Widener Law Dean Linda L. Ammons has been named to the list of the 100 most influential black attorneys in the United States as selected by On Being a Black Lawyer, a news and resource center devoted to advancing diversity in the legal profession.OBABL published “The Power 100 Special Edition” Feb. 15 in honor of Black History Month. It is available online here and features profiles of the nation’s most influential black attorneys working in government, academics, and both the public and private sectors. Ammons has served as dean of Widener Law since July 2006. She is the first woman and first African American to lead the school. An accomplished lawyer, professor, and administrator, she came to Widener from Cleveland-Marshall College of Law in Cleveland, Ohio, where she was associate dean and professor of law. Prior to joining the faculty at Cleveland-Marshall, Dean Ammons served as executive assistant to former Ohio Governor Richard F. Celeste, from 1988 to 1991, advising him on legal and policy matters in the criminal justice, regulatory and administrative areas.  As dean at Widener, Ammons oversees academics and operations at both campuses: the school in Wilmington, Delaware where more than 1,100 law, other graduate and paralegal students study and the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania campus attended by more than 400 law students. She received the 2011 Christopher W. White Distinguished Access to Justice Service to Children Award from the Delaware State Bar Association in October 2011. The award recognized her service to Delaware’s children, through her work completing an independent review into the matter of Delaware pediatrician Dr. Earl Bradley, who was convicted of sexually abusing hundreds of his young patients. Ammons conducted the review at the request of Gov. Jack Markell in the spring of 2010.The dean was selected to the Power 100 list after OBABL’s editorial team, together with a group of advisers, spent months researching prospective candidates. The selection committee read trade publications, blogs, and critical reviews. A portion of the candidates had appeared on past lists of influential lawyers. For this group, the committee considered whether the candidate's influence and relevance had increased since the time he or she was last honored.“I am grateful to be included on this list of distinguished members of the legal profession,” Ammons said. “It is tremendously rewarding to have a career that involves helping to shape the next generation of our nation’s attorneys and watching them develop into skilled professionals.”OBABL publisher, Yolanda Young notes that according to the American Bar Association, fewer than five percent of U.S. attorneys are African American. OBABL seeks to help advance diversity in the legal profession.On Being a Black Lawyer has been recognized by the American Bar Association, National Black Law Students Association, and National Association of Black Journalists. Founded in 2008 as a news and resource center, the company has grown into a social media firm providing research, career development, and brand marketing opportunities to clients. Honorees will be toasted at a cocktail reception at The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Washington, DC on Feb. 29 from 6 to 8 p.m. CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller will serve as mistress of ceremony.