10/06/2026
We reached out to members of the inaugural 2021 class of 40 Under 40. We'll be sharing their stories starting with Alex Booker '14, below.
To nominate yourself or someone else for the upcoming 2027 class of 40 Under 40, please visit salemstate.edu/40under40!
"When I received the 40 Under 40 award in 2021, I was completing a fellowship representing federal employees and their unions in whistleblower, wage and hour, and civil rights cases. Shortly after, I joined the U.S. Merit Systems Protection Board as an Attorney Advisor, where I drafted appellate decisions on federal personnel law.
In 2023, I moved to the U.S. Department of Education's Office of the General Counsel, working in the Division of Legislative Counsel to develop the Department's positions on legislation, help members of Congress understand the technical details of education law, and coordinate review of bills across federal agencies.
In 2025, I was one of more than 1,300 career civil servants removed from the Department of Education in a reduction in force. I then joined Nonprofits Counsel, a practice led by my Boston College Law School classmate Lauren Koster. Together, we relaunched it as Commonlight Legal LLP, where I now serve as Managing Partner of our Massachusetts and D.C. offices. The firm represents nonprofits and independent schools in Connecticut, D.C., Massachusetts, and New York. My practice focuses on employment law and advocacy compliance, and Lauren and I both serve as outside general counsel to organizations on governance and compliance.
My first experience with nonprofit and institutional governance was as a Student Trustee at Salem State, and it still shapes how I work with the executive directors and boards we advise and my own role as a director on SSU's Alumni Association and Foundation Board." - Alex Booker '14
