Mary P. Haney and the Decade for Women

Posted on April 2, 2019 by Women and Leadership Archives

The beginning of April means that Women’s History Month has come to a close and International Women’s Day has passed, but the WLA works all year round to bring to light the contributions of women that help their communities and impact the world!

In today’s blog post, I am excited to highlight a collection that shows how one woman’s unique experiences led to a career advocating for women through international collaboration. The materials donated by Mary P. Haney document the roles she played in different stages of her life, including her participation in the international women’s movements taking place during what the United Nations called the “Decade for Women.”

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Digitizing Mundelein

Posted on March 22, 2019 by Women and Leadership Archives

Our unassuming file cabinets

There is a lot of history stored here in the Women and Leadership Archives, so it would be easy to overlook the three black filing cabinets tucked away in a corner of our reading room. That would be a mistake, though, since those drawers contain the Mundelein College Photograph Collection.* In other words, they hold an estimated 40,000 photographs and slides (yes, you read that correctly) captured during Mundelein College’s more than sixty-year history.

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Diverse Catholic Women’s Voices: “A Catholic Statement on Pluralism and Abortion”

Posted on January 29, 2019 by Women and Leadership Archives

When I started to research Marjorie Tuite, O.P. for a social media post on the Women and Leadership Archives’ Facebook page, I knew a bit about her. By her designation as “O.P.,” Tuite was part of a group of women religious called the Dominican Sisters of St. Mary of the Springs Order. However, I learned much more about her than I expected: I didn’t know that I’d fall down a rabbit hole about abortion access and the practice of feminist Catholic theology!

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Peace Studies Through the Years: Mundelein’s Legacy at Loyola

Posted on December 18, 2018 by Women and Leadership Archives

This post was written for Dr. Elizabeth Fraterrigo’s Fall 2018 Women’s and Gender History course. It is part of the Sesquicentennial Blog Project, which seeks to share stories from Loyola University and Mundelein College in anticipation of Loyola’s 150^th anniversary in 2020-2021.

Compared to subjects offered since Loyola’s founding, Peace Studies is a relatively new program at Loyola University Chicago. Its history, however, stretches much further back than its start in 1994 as an interdisciplinary minor. The program’s roots can be traced to Loyola’s neighbor, Mundelein College, a women’s Catholic school that operated from 1930-1991 in what is now Mundelein Center. The story of the Peace Studies program’s journey from Mundelein to Loyola is a fascinating one, and it reveals the ways people at both schools thought about the meaning of peace.

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Ora Benton: Student Smuggler to the Soviet Union

Posted on December 5, 2018 by Women and Leadership Archives

This past September I attended the Class of 1968 Reunion/Gannon Center 25^th Anniversary to help work an oral history listening station. While I was there, I talked with a Mundelein graduate that went on a study abroad trip to the Soviet Union. She mentioned that some girls on the trip brought blue jeans with them to sell to Russians. I was interested in the idea that some women on the trip smuggled goods into the country, and decided to look into the 1982 Soviet Union study abroad trip in our archives. In the Alumnae series of the Mundelein College collection I found an account of the trip from 1980 Mundelein graduate, Ora Benton.

Ora was busy packing her bags for the trip. She had to fit everything she needed for the ten-day trip, but she was not worried about space; she was worried about getting through Soviet customs. Ora, and forty-three other students, alumnae, and friends of Mundelein College* were preparing for a study abroad trip to the Soviet Union in December of 1982. Shortly after Mundelein planned the trip the Chicago Action for Soviet Jewry (CASJ) contacted Ora and other participants of the study abroad trip. The organization asked the students to help them deliver gifts and religious material to “Refusenik” families in the Soviet Union.

Refusenik families were Soviet-Jewish families that wanted to emigrate, but the USSR refused to grant them exit visas. The women were immediately hesitant to help the CASJ. Visiting the Soviet Union during the Cold War was already nerve-wracking and now the organization wanted them to smuggle in religious “contraband.” A representative with the Chicago Action for Soviet Jewry assured them the actions were neither illegal nor dangerous. Ora and her classmate ultimately conceded to visiting one family in Moscow and one in Leningrad. Gifts for the families included menorahs, bibles, Jewish reading material, clothes, and food. What the women did not know was the Soviet Union had strict laws prohibiting the distribution and teaching of religious material.

Arriving in the Frankfurt Airport, the bags made it through customs with only a small issue of metal casing on the bible setting of the detector. While the women were not particularly worried about security in Frankfurt, the metal detector scare on the bible increased anxiety about bag checks in the Soviet Union. After landing in Moscow, both Ora and her classmate made it through customs without any issues. The customs officials did not flag of confiscate any material in the suitcases.

Once in the Soviet Union, tour guides kept the group busy with a packed itinerary. Despite their busy schedule, Ora and her classmate found time to make their way to the first Jewish household. Still uneasy and concerned about surveillance, the women were careful not to use their hotel phone or call a taxi to the hotel. Ora recalled finding a taxi after walking down a couple blocks from the hotel. At the first home, they met an American whose father brought him to the Soviet Union during the depression. He had settled in Moscow with and his wife and son. The family tried to immigrate to Israel, but the Soviet Union denied their request to leave.

On the last day of the trip, the students made contact with the family in Leningrad. They only had one hour to visit before they had to catch their flight back to the United States. The Leningrad family, much like the family in Moscow, were very welcoming to the Americans. Their four-year-old daughter showed off her English skills, reciting children’s rhymes her father had taught her. After visiting for an hour and distributing the gifts, Ora and her classmate departed for the hotel to pack their things for the trip home. All the students and alumnae made it safely back to the United States despite smuggling contraband into the Soviet Union and breaking several Soviet laws.

*Mundelein College, founded and operated by the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM), provided education to women from 1930 until 1991, when it affiliated with Loyola University Chicago.

Molly is a Graduate Assistant at the WLA and is in the first year in the joint Public History/Library Information Science program with Loyola University Chicago and Dominican University. She enjoys running, reading by the lake, and cheering on the Cardinals despite being surrounded by Cubs fans.

Loyola University Chicago’s Women and Leadership Archives Blog is designed to provide a positive environment for the Loyola community to discuss important issues and ideas. Differences of opinion are encouraged. We invite comments in response to posts and ask that you write in a civil and respectful manner. All comments will be screened for tone and content and must include the first and last name of the author and a valid email address. The appearance of comments on the blog does not imply the University’s endorsement or acceptance of views expressed.

The Women of the College Faculty Program

Posted on November 9, 2018 by Women and Leadership Archives

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, as of 2016, 44% of full time college faculty were women. While we still have a long way to go to create an academic culture that is free of discrimination and sexism, it is important to appreciate how far we have come. Eleanor F. Dolan’s Papers gives us a glimpse into the struggle women across the country endured while trying to become faculty members in the 1960s.

Eleanor F. Dolan was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1907. After receiving her B.A. from Wellesley College and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Radcliffe College, she started a long career focused on women’s rights and higher education. After being a professor 12 years, Dr. Dolan joined the staff of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) as a specialist for higher education. In 1967 she joined the federal government as a Specialist for Graduate Academic Programs in the Bureau of Higher Education. She was executive secretary of the national Council of Administrative Women in Education, participated in many local organizations, and was a founder of the Women’s Equity Action League.

While Dolan was a part of the AAUW from 1950 to 1967, the organization focused on women and graduate school. With the increase of students (women and men alike) going to college in the 1950s, the organization wanted to support the education of more faculty members. Their College Faculty Program, started in 1959, gave women financial assistance to pursue higher education and future careers in professorship. Specifically for “mature women” (those 35 or over) looking to be full time students, the program gave scholarship winners one to three full years of tuition.

The goals and mission of the College Faculty Program

The folders containing the information on the AAUW and the College Faculty Program offer only a glimpse into the over 100 women’s lives that were changed with this program:

One participant “expressed her delight to ‘find that she is capable of productive mental life though over 50,’” while another suggested that “you continue this wonderful program and encourage others to further their education.”

However, beside the glowing reviews and reports of straight A’s, the documents reflect the obstacles women (especially ‘older’ women) faced when considering higher education instead of being traditional homemakers. Here’s a sample application form:

As you can see in the scholarship application, questions about husband’s occupation, ages of children, and the plans about the family are prioritized on page 1, while page 2 and 3 ask about the woman’s personal achievements and interests. The health statement page of the application focuses on their physical ability to carry on a full year’s educational program, especially in her ‘old’ age of 35.

This application offers two different points of view- 1. The view of the AAUW, who want to find applicants who are fit enough to finish the program, and 2. The view of the applicants, who, through the questionnaire, are being encouraged to think first about what their educational journey will mean for their family and then if they are prepared to become faculty members. I wonder if men were ever asked about how their educational careers affect their family.

Scholarship winners’ testimonies also describe the difficulties of being responsible for taking care of the home on top of being a full-time student, and the feelings that come with restarting school after some time away.

Beyond giving money to students, the program also conducted surveys asking universities and colleges about their opinions and policies regarding admission, financial aid, counseling, and employment for ‘mature women’. This shows how focused the AAUW was in fighting institutional sexism and discrimination, along with the importance of offering a variety of masters degrees, and encouraging them to accept more women who are older than the typical candidate. The 44% of women employed as faculty members could thank the AAUW for pressuring universities to think about how their policies fought against women in academia, and could thank the women in the College Faculty program for showing that they can be dedicated, amazing graduate students while still being women.

Emily is a Graduate Assistant at the WLA and is in her second year in the joint Public History/Library Information Science program with Loyola University Chicago and Dominican University. She enjoys going on long walks with her puppy, visiting cool museums, and cheering on the White Sox during baseball season.

A Few of My Favorite Things: Kate’s Top Collections

Posted on October 30, 2018 by Women and Leadership Archives

Over the course of my two years at the Women and Leadership Archives (WLA) I’ve had the privilege to work with a lot of the collections we hold. From academics, artists, homemakers, social justice activists, women religious, nurses, politicians, business leaders – almost any vocation or subject you could name we’ve got a collection in which a woman or group of women were involved and rocking at it. Though I’ve yet to come across a collection that didn’t engage me, I have to admit that I have my favorites. What follows is my “hit parade” of my favorite collections at the WLA:

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A Haunting of the BVMs

Posted on October 16, 2018 by Women and Leadership Archives

With the start of October comes many changes; cozy sweaters, hot chocolate, pumpkin spice, and, of course, Halloween. There is nothing more appropriate for this month than a good scary story, and luckily, here at the WLA we have one in our very own collection! There is an account told by Sister Mary Ernestine, BVM* of stories she heard from Sister Isabella Kane** of strange happenings experienced by her and other sisters. Here is that story:

Sister Isabella Kane was about fourteen years old when she entered the BVM Community and having experience with piano, she was sent to teach music. She was a natural and enjoyed her time teaching, but especially loved painting in the music room after night prayers when it was empty. One night Sister was painting when the door suddenly flew open. Thinking it was one of the sisters trying to mess with her, she paid it no mind and shut the door. She settled down to continue painting when the door flew open again. After checking the hallway and finding it empty, she ran to bed.

Mother Superior Mary Isabella Kane, BVM

That wasn’t the last time Sister Isabella would experience strange occurrences.

Sister Isabella and the other sisters rented a large three story double house to be used as a school as well as house the sisters. The sisters living in the convent complained of noises: banging on doors, knocking of wooden beds, and other demonstrations of what they believed was “the Evil One.”

One sister was thrown off her bed, another was unable to control violent trembling as night approached, and one more found as she headed down the stairs, two fireballs appeared in the landing. Though the superior was not convinced of any haunting (and believed it to be all coming from the sisters’ active imaginations), she agreed to move from that home for everyone’s health.

Though we have no way to be sure if it truly was “the Evil One” haunting the sisters, the mystery still persists. So Happy Halloween everyone, hope it’s a spooky one!

*BVM stands for Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, a religious order out of Dubuque, IA.

**Sister Isabella later served as Mother Superior of the BVMs from 1919-1931.

Tina is a Sesquicentennial Scholar at the WLA working to highlight Mundelein in the upcoming 150th anniversary of Loyola. She is currently working on her masters degree in Digital Humanities. Tina is a reformed ice cream hater and is a fan of the flavor Savannah Buttermint at Jeni’s.

This post was written for Dr. Elizabeth Fraterrigo’s Fall 2018 Women’s and Gender History course. It is part of the Sesquicentennial Blog Project, which seeks to share stories from Loyola University and Mundelein College in anticipation of Loyola’s 150th anniversary in 2020-2021.

Tina is a Sesquicentennial Scholar at the WLA working to highlight Mundelein in the upcoming 150th anniversary of Loyola. She is currently working on her masters degree in Digital Humanities. Tina is a reformed ice cream hater and is a fan of the flavor Savannah Buttermint at Jeni’s.

This post was written for Dr. Elizabeth Fraterrigo’s Fall 2018 Women’s and Gender History course. It is part of the Sesquicentennial Blog Project, which seeks to share stories from Loyola University and Mundelein College in anticipation of Loyola’s 150^th anniversary in 2020-2021.