Award-Winning 'Law And Order SVU' Writer Honored By Alma Mater

MOUNT VERNON, NY — A hometown hero has joined the ranks of legendary Mount Vernon icons, that includes lawmakers, champion athletes, award-winning actors, renowned writers and famed musicians.

The Mount Vernon City School District inducted Cheryl L. Davis, who has worked in television and theater as a writer, into the Mount Vernon High School Hall of Fame this month.

Davis is no stranger to earning the recognition of her peers.

Davis received a Writers’ Guild Award for her writing on "As the World Turns" and was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for her work on the show as well. She has written several episodes for “Days of Our Lives” and one for "Law and Order: SVU."

She says there is something extra special about her latest honor.

"This means an incredible lot because I am proud of where I come from," Davis said. "I'm a Mount Vernononite through and through. I was raised in the city and I love the city. I’m extremely proud of my writing work, and telling untold stories. I got my love for that when I was in elementary school. I would go through the school library and look through biographies of black women, and women, and just try to figure out where is my story."

Despite her busy schedule and growing fame, Davis has made the time to return to Mount Vernon to make speeches at Mount Vernon High School since her graduation in 1979. She has been a frequent participant in the school's career days as well.

"I am elated and delighted to be here today to welcome everyone to this momentous occasion," Acting Superintendent Veronica Smith told those gathered for the presentation. "It is a major accomplishment to be selected to this prestigious acknowledgement within our hometown of Mount Vernon. Since Ms. Davis graduated from Mount Vernon High School, she has gone on to make us proud in work and in deeds. She is a role model for our students, who will be able to view her in the Hall of Fame among other greats from Mount Vernon. Your remarkable work has not gone unnoticed."

It seems Davis had a habit of overachieving from a young age.

She was a member of the National Honor Society, a National Merit Scholar, and one of IBM Corporation’s Thomas J. Watson Scholars.

Davis went on to earn her Bachelor of Arts degree in English from Princeton University in 1983, her Master of Jurisprudence from Columbia School of Journalism, and her Juris Doctorate degree from Columbia University School of Law

It was her time in Mount Vernon that led her to some of her most notable .

Davis attended Macedonia Baptist Church of Mount Vernon growing up, and she incorporated elements from her time there in a "Law and Order: SVU" episode, which revolves around a black church. She was greatly influenced and inspired by her time growing up in Mount Vernon.

Davis is still a member of Macedonia Baptist Church, where she played piano for Sunday School and was a member of the youth choirs growing up.

As a musical theater librettist and lyricist, Davis has won a Kleban Prize, given to writers of extraordinary promise, and her musical "Barnstormer" received a Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation Award. Her play, "The Color of Justice," earned praise from The New York Times.

Her play "Maid’s Door" received seven Audelco Awards, which honor Black theater and artists in New York City. The production was presented twice at the National Black Theatre Festival and was a finalist for the Francesca Primus Prize, which recognizes an emerging woman playwright.

When she isn't creating, Davis is also a practicing attorney in Manhattan and general counsel for the Authors’ Guild. As a writer herself, she uses her work as an attorney to help protect the intellectual rights of other writers. The Authors’ Guild is a non-profit, and she often serves authors that may not have enough money to hire legal representation.