An 84-year-old Democrat from Jackson, Clarke served in the legislature for 39 years before deciding not to seek reelection in 2023.
After a Capitol ceremony unveiling her oil painting, Clarke said that she hopes it will serve as an inspiration for the state's future leaders.
"It means that maybe all of that hard work I did wasn't that in vain," Clarke said. "Because the children who come along will be able to see that they can do anything. Just like my mama told me, you don't know what you can do unless you dream."
Clarke's legislative accomplishments include leading the effort to establish the state's first drug courts in the 1990's. She also filed bills to establish a state lottery for 19 years before it passed in 2018. The final lottery bill was named after her, and she bought the first ticket when they went on sale.
There were three women in the state legislature when Clarke was first sworn in. With that number now at 19, Clarke says diversity in the legislature is "better than it was, but still not where it needs to be."
Another Democrat from Jackson, Rep. Tamarra Grace Butler-Washington, now holds Clarke's former seat. Butler-Washington knows she has big shoes to fill, but says Clarke left a blueprint on how to to be successful.
"Looking over her career span, it taught perseverance and hard work, because I'm learning and I see that that's what it's going to take in order to make change," Butler-Washington said. "Change is not going to come overnight. It may not even come this first session, but keep the ability and the tenacity to continue to work hard for your constituents and for our state and it will come."
Democratic Representative Robert Johnson of Natchez praised Clarke as a passionate legislator, and an always fierce advocate for her alma matter, Alcorn State University.
“The city of Jackson, the drug courts, the lottery and Alcorn State University — nobody had a better champion than Alyce Clarke," Johnson said.
Clarke's portrait now hangs in the room where the House Education Committee meets.
