Mary Emma Woolley, First Female Student to Attend Brown University

Mary Emma Woolley, First Female Student to Attend Brown University

Mary Emma Woolley in her graduating gap and gown, as first female student to attend Brown University and would later become the 11th President of Mount Holyoke College.
 
Mary Woolley took her experiences from being the first female student to attend Brown University and used it to try to improve women’s education later in life. When she became the president of Mount Holyoke college at 38, she also became one of American’s youngest college presidents. She raised the academic standards for admittance and got rid of the domestic work system, wanting to prove that a women’s education didn’t need to be justified by anything but intellectual grounds. Working with other women’s colleges, she raised funds, constructed 16 new buildings, and the endowment grew from $500,000 to over $5 million. By offering increased salaries, fellowships and sabbaticals, she attracted some of the country’s best scholars to work at Holyoke. Thanks to all of these efforts, Holyoke became one of the best colleges in America during her 36 year occupation.

Library of Congress

c. 1903

https://cdn.loc.gov/service/pnp/cph/3c10000/3c11000/3c11800/3c11858r.jpg

Link: http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/94508955/

(Source: Mary Emma Woolley. (2012, August 25). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 19:38, October 12, 2012, from http://bit.ly/Q6Rqbk)

Library of Congress

Library of Congress

Medium: Photograph.

English

Figures

Mary Emma Woolley, Education, Women, Mount Holyoke, Domestic Work System

Historic