Jean Murrell Capers
Eugenia "Jean" Marie Murrell Strode Capers (January 11, 1913 – July 18, 2017) was an American judge, educator, and politician. Early life Born to Dolly Ferguson Murrell and Edward E. Murrell on January 11, 1913, Eugenia "Jean" Marie Murrell Strode Capers was a Kentucky native from Georgetown. She was one of five children. At the age of six, her and her family moved to Cleveland, Ohio due to Edward Murrell's desire for his children to attend an integrated school. Dolly Ferguson had her primary schooling in an integrated Ohio school while Edward Murrell was educated in the segregated Kentucky system. The two met at Kentucky's State Normal School for Colored Persons, now Kentucky State University. Capers' parents firmly believed that a strong education will open doors to future success; a concept that Capers would pass on to generations of children to come. Education and career Following in her parents' footsteps, Capers became an educator, receiving a degree in 1932 from Western Reserve University, now Case Western Reserve University, one of few African Americans to do so at the time. She attended Western Reserve on a full scholarship. Her education degree was used as she taught as an elementary school and