O’Connor was the first woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, where she was an associate justice from 1981 to 2006. Prior to that, she was a judge in Arizona, a US Senator (R-AZ), and a chancellor of the College of Willam and Mary.
O’Connor is the author of three books: a children’s book, Chico: A True Story from the Childhood of the First Woman Supreme Court Justice (2005); and two memoirs, The Majesty of the Law: Reflections of a Supreme Court Justice (2003), and Lazy B: Growing Up on a Cattle Ranch in the American Southwest (2002, co-written with her brother, H. Alan Day).
In retirement, O’Connor founded the Sandra Day O’Connor Institute, a nonprofit organization promoting civil discourse and civic engagement. Arizona State University named its law school the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law in her honor.