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Sara Gullickson McGrane has always had a strong sense of right and wrong. That’s what pushed her to go into law after graduating from Minnesota State Moorhead in 1987. For the last three decades, she has spent her time advocating justice for the people of North Dakota and Minnesota. This Spring, she is being honored with a 2026 MSUM Foundation Distinguished Alumni Award.

When Sara first got to Minnesota State Moorhead, she didn’t know she was interested in law school. It wasn’t until her professors challenged her to think differently that she considered it.

“The professors pushed me to do more, because they knew I was capable.”

 So, it was no surprise to Sara when a professor suggested she pursue law after getting her English degree.

“A professor told me, ‘You should go to law school with the way your brain works.’ It was reaffirming to hear that they felt it was a good choice,” says Sara.

An English major was also great training ground for law school, as reading poetry, dissecting the word choice, language, and punctuation were very similar to what was required in law school.

BA in English

After law school, Sara practiced law at a large firm in Denver doing major litigation. But she later came back to Fargo to work for the Attorney General’s office.

“Early into my career I did a little bit of everything, but only civil cases,” Sara says.

Sara now works as a Labor and Employment lawyer for Felhaber Larson, where she has been for the past twenty-five years and served as the firm's first female president from 2017-2023. Sara has also been named one of Minnesota’s Super Lawyers for multiple years, is one of the three Minnesotan lawyers with a Chambers Tier 1 ranking and does multiple hours of pro-bono work each year.

Today, about 56% of law students are women, but only 20-25% are partners in law firms (American Bar Association, 2024). Sara has always been an advocate for those who don’t have a voice and paving the way for women pursuing a career in law.

Minnesota State Moorhead was just the starting point of Sara’s impactful career. She continues to serve her community in the Twin Cities at Felhaber Larson, helping others and making changes to her industry, one case at a time.

Congratulations, Sara, on receiving an MSUM Foundation 2026 Distinguished Alumni Award!