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Scrapsandfeathers

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24 views2 pages

Scrapsandfeathers

Uploaded by

vivosa4272
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Mount Holyoke's early history is marked by overcoming significant obstacles.

Mary Lyon
founded the institution during an economic depression, tirelessly traveling by stagecoach to
collect donations ranging from a few cents to a thousand dollars, and even items like fabric
scraps and feathers. Despite the challenging fundraising efforts, Lyon persisted, though she
sometimes doubted their success. Some supporters even criticized her for traveling alone.

Lyon also faced societal barriers, as many believed women should only be in domestic roles
and were unfit for higher education. Nearly a century before women gained the right to vote,
Lyon proved that women could excel academically, especially in traditionally male fields like
chemistry. Her struggle for her own education inspired her to make higher learning accessible
to all women, particularly those with limited resources.

She was supported by other pioneering educators like Catharine Beecher, Zilpah Grant,
Reverend Joseph Emerson, and Edward Hitchcock. However, the goal of creating a lasting
institution for women's higher education remained elusive. Lyon saw many women’s schools
close due to lack of funding or the death of their founders. She combined the achievements of
other educators with strategic political insight, suggesting that plans for women’s education
should appear to come from benevolent men to avoid opposition.

When Mount Holyoke Female Seminary opened on November 8, 1837, it introduced rigorous
academic entrance requirements and a demanding curriculum free of domestic instruction. It
was also endowed, ensuring its permanence and securing higher education for future
generations of women. Mary Lyon's legacy is captured in her famous words: "Go where no
one else will go, do what no one else will do."

As the first of the Seven Sisters—the female equivalent of the Ivy League—Mount Holyoke
set the standard in women's education, becoming a model for other women's colleges and
earning a reputation for excellent teaching and academic rigor, especially in the natural
sciences. As the nation expanded, frontier schools and seminaries looked to Mount Holyoke
for teachers and educational leaders, fulfilling Lyon’s vision of educating women to teach.
The college’s influence also reached globally, with alumnae teaching in missions in places
like China, Turkey, and Africa.

Mount Holyoke has shown itself to be an institution capable of leading boldly while adapting
to changing times. After Mary Lyon’s death in 1849, her principles of high academic
standards and commitment to service remained strong. In 1861, the course of study was
extended from three to four years, as Lyon had planned. Under Elizabeth Blanchard’s
leadership in 1888, the institution gained collegiate status and was renamed Mount Holyoke
Seminary and College. By 1893, the seminary curriculum was phased out, and it became
Mount Holyoke College. Lyon’s visionary leadership set a precedent for future leaders.

Notable among these leaders was Elizabeth Storrs Mead, who served as president from 1890
to 1900. When a fire destroyed the original seminary building in 1896, Mead initiated an
extensive building plan, including new facilities for physics and chemistry, a gymnasium, and
several residence halls based on the cottage system. Alongside these physical changes, Mead
introduced curricular and administrative reforms, phasing out seminary requirements,
introducing electives, reducing non-teaching responsibilities for faculty, and encouraging
them to pursue advanced degrees. For the first time, students were given a voice in college
governance.

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