Mississippi Justice Institute & Mississippi Center for Public Policy

Shadrack White serves as the Director of the Mississippi Justice Institute out of a desire to help working people—particularly when a rigged government wants to take away their right to start a business, stop them from practicing their religion, or hide decisions from their view by breaking ethics laws.

Shadrack grew up in Sandersville, Mississippi – population 789 – in a blue-collar family. His father and grandfather were oilfield pumpers, and his mother and grandmother were teachers. After attending public school, Shadrack earned his undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Mississippi. He studied as a Rhodes Scholar at the University of Oxford, earning a master’s in economic history.

Shadrack’s law degree is from Harvard Law School, where he learned the meaning of fighting for your values even when it’s unpopular. Shadrack served as President of the Federalist Society (a conservative legal association), grew Harvard’s Federalist Society to be the largest in the nation, and brought speakers to campus to defend the legality of public prayer, the morality of work and free enterprise, and the importance of traditional moral values.

In 2011, Shadrack served as Director of Policy to then-Lt. Gov. Phil Bryant during his first run for Governor. Four years later Gov. Bryant tapped Shadrack to manage his $4 million re-election campaign and help craft the agenda for his second term.

Prior to joining the Mississippi Justice Institute, Shadrack practiced law in the private sector at a firm in Ridgeland, helping to litigate cases from large multi-district litigation down to small state court cases. He served as a Special Prosecutor in Rankin County, successfully prosecuting felonies involving the family of an elected official. During law school, he worked for a team of prosecutors at the Organized Crime Drug Task Force in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston. He has taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Mississippi and previously worked as a fellow at a national think tank on state policy. Today Shadrack and his wife, Rina, live in Rankin County.