Landers says Radcliffe alumnae chose Edelman to receive their highest honor because they "wanted to award social action and show that success comes in a variety of colors and genders. You don't have to be a corporate male to make an impact."

Edelman's Radcliffe Medal is just one of the dozens of accolades which have been bestowed upon her throughout her distinguished career, first as a civil rights lawyer in the South in the 1960s, and then as a children's rights advocate and author of two books.

In addition to her Radcliffe honor, Edelman was granted an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Harvard at its 1991 Commencement ceremony--allowing her to receive a Harvard degree simultaneously with one of her three sons, Joshua R. Edelman '91.

When she was awarded the honorary degree at the Tercentenary Theatre, the 28,000 members of the audience saluted her with a standing ovation, says University Marshal Richard M. Hunt, who introduced Edelman that year.

"This was long before she became well known through her friendship with the Clintons," Hunt says.

Hunt had so much respect for Edelman and her work that he says he even manipulated the seating in order to dine next to her at the honorary degree dinner.

"We talked about different ideas of children's rights," Hunt says.

"She is a lovely woman in every way, and I am quite pleased that the very special Class of '93 selected such a substantial speaker," he says.

Other recognitions afforded to Edelman range from the Anne Roe Award from Harvard's Graduate School of Education in 1984 to the Albert Schweitzer Humanitarian Prize from Johns Hopkins University in 1988.

1989 was an especially good year for Edelman, when she supplemented her award from Radcliffe with the prestigious Gandhi Peace Prize.

In past years, Hunt says, class committees have chosen speakers "more along the lines of celebrities or television stars, as opposed to this year, when they have committed to someone who has some thing very important to say."

As a Harvard parent and W.E.B. DuBois Institute lecturer in 1986, Edelman knows the College intimately. Hunt says. "That will enable her to speak directly to the lives of the students here potentially making this one of the finest Class Day speeches ever," he says.

Class Marshal Mukesh Prasad '93 says Edelman was chosen based on her ability to "balance a strong family with strong conviction."

In addition to working for the rights of millions of children across the country, Edelman has raised three sons of her own.

One is a Harvard-educated teacher, a second is presently studying at Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, and her youngest matriculated to Yale College last year.