Catholic Women's Colleges in America

by Tracy Schier (Editor), Cynthia Eagle Russett (Editor)

Overview

More than 150 colleges in the United States were founded by nuns, and over time they have served many constituencies, setting some educational trends while reflecting others. In Catholic Women's Colleges in America, Tracy Schier, Cynthia Russett, and their coauthors provide a comprehensive history of these institutions and how they met the challenges of broader educational change. The authors explore how and for whom the colleges were founded and the role of Catholic nuns in their founding and development. They examine the roots of the founders' spirituality and education; they discuss curricula, administration, and student life. And they describe the changes prompted by both the church and society beginning in the 1960s, when decreasing enrollments led some colleges to opt for coeducation, while others restructured their curricula, partnered with other Catholic colleges, developed specialized programs, or sought to broaden their base of funding.

Contributors: Dorothy M. Brown, Georgetown University; David R. Contosta, Chestnut Hill College; Jill Ker Conway, Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Carol Hurd Green, Boston College; Monika K. Hellwig, Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities; Karen Kennelly, president emerita of Mount Saint Mary's College, Los Angeles; Jeanne Knoerle, president emerita of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College; Thomas M. Landy, College of the Holy Cross; Kathleen A. Mahoney, Humanitas Foundation; Melanie M. Morey, Leadership and Legacy Associates, Boston; Mary J. Oates, Regis College; Jane C. Redmont, Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley; Cynthia Russett, Yale University; Tracy Schier, Boston College.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780801868054
Publisher:	Johns Hopkins University Press
Publication date:	04/05/2002
Pages:	464
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.44(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Tracy Schier is associate director of the Boston College Institute for Administrators in Catholic Higher Education.

Cynthia Russett is Larned Professor of History at Yale University.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introduction
Chapter 1. Faith, Knowledge, and Gender -Jill Ker Conway
Chapter 2. Colleges of Religious Women's Congregations: The Spiritual Heritage - Monika K. Hellwig
Chapter 3. American Catholic Colleges for Women: Historical Origins - Kathleen A. Mahoney
Chapter 4. The Colleges in Context - Thomas M. Landy
Chapter 5. Faculties and What They Taught - Karen Kennelly
Chapter 6. The Philadelphia Story: Life at Immaculata, Rosemont, and Chestnut Hill - David R. Contosta
Chapter 7. Sisterhoods and Catholic Higher Education, 1890-1960 - Mary J. Oates
Chapter 8. Live Minds, Yearning Spirits: The Alumnae of Colleges and Universities Founded by Women Religious - Jane C. Redmont
Chapter 9. Making It: Stories of Persistence and Success - Dorothy M. Brown and Carol Hurd Green
Chapter 10. The Way We Are: The Present Relationship of Religious Congregations of Women to the Colleges They Founded - Melanie M. Morey
Conclusion. Into the Future - Jeanne Knoerle and Tracy Schier
Appendix A. American Colleges and Universities Founded by Women Religious for the Education of Lay Students - Thomas M. Landy
Appendix B. Colleges Founded by Women Religious for Educating Sisters - Thomas M. Landy
Notes
Contributors
Index

What People are Saying About This

David O'Brien

A comprehensive introduction to the subject, providing an original and substantial contribution to the history of Catholic higher education. No one has done anything like this before. The authors treat an important and unique subject, and their scholarship is excellent.

— David O'Brien, College of the Holy Cross

From the Publisher

A comprehensive introduction to the subject, providing an original and substantial contribution to the history of Catholic higher education. No one has done anything like this before. The authors treat an important and unique subject, and their scholarship is excellent.
—David O'Brien, College of the Holy Cross

Editorial Reviews

A richly documented and provocatively analyzed work.
—Fernanda Perrone, History of Education Quarterly

Kudos to Schier and Russet for providing this book as a catalyst and charging scholars to continue work they have begun. Anyone interested in the history of higher education should read it as a first step in understanding a group of colleges that has been invisible and ignored. Anyone interested in women's issues should read it for its story of female initiative on a grand scale.
—Sylvia Simmons, Connection

This is a valuable book. I consider myself well-informed about US Catholic women's colleges in the twentieth century, but I learned a great deal from it . . . A much-needed supplement to the standard histories of Catholic education.
—Regina Bannan, Equal wRites

Outstanding . . . This excellent anthology should be included in future research and teaching for historians of education, American Catholicism, and American women.
—Carol K. Coburn, Journal of American History

A much needed exploration of these unique institutions.
—Sandra Yocum Mize, Religious Studies Review

This book will be welcome by all interested in an inclusionary history of American Catholic life.
—Margaret Mary Reher, American Catholic Studies

Renn boldly engages the complexities of women's lives globally, giving careful attention to the intersections of gender, culture, economics, and education . . . Women's Colleges and Universities in a Global Context is a rich resource for researchers and students interested in women's issues and the role of higher education in transforming the climate for women's equity across the world . . . With this book, Renn has further confirmed her well-deserved reputation as a preeminent scholar of higher education both within the US and internationally.
—Journal of College Student Development

From the Publisher

This book will be welcome by all interested in an inclusionary history of American Catholic life.

American Catholic Studies - Margaret Mary Reher

Renn boldly engages the complexities of women's lives globally, giving careful attention to the intersections of gender, culture, economics, and education . . . Women's Colleges and Universities in a Global Context is a rich resource for researchers and students interested in women's issues and the role of higher education in transforming the climate for women's equity across the world . . . With this book, Renn has further confirmed her well-deserved reputation as a preeminent scholar of higher education both within the US and internationally.

Journal of College Student Development

This is a valuable book. I consider myself well-informed about US Catholic women's colleges in the twentieth century, but I learned a great deal from it . . . A much-needed supplement to the standard histories of Catholic education.

Equal wRites - Regina Bannan

Outstanding . . . This excellent anthology should be included in future research and teaching for historians of education, American Catholicism, and American women.

Journal of American History - Carol K. Coburn

Kudos to Schier and Russet for providing this book as a catalyst and charging scholars to continue work they have begun. Anyone interested in the history of higher education should read it as a first step in understanding a group of colleges that has been invisible and ignored. Anyone interested in women's issues should read it for its story of female initiative on a grand scale.

Connection - Sylvia Simmons

A much needed exploration of these unique institutions.

Religious Studies Review - Sandra Yocum Mize

A richly documented and provocatively analyzed work.

History of Education Quarterly - Fernanda Perrone

This book will be welcome by all interested in an inclusionary history of American Catholic life.

— Margaret Mary Reher

American Catholic Studies

A much needed exploration of these unique institutions.

— Sandra Yocum Mize

Religious Studies Review

Outstanding... This excellent anthology should be included in future research and teaching for historians of education, American Catholicism, and American women.

— Carol K. Coburn

Journal of American History

This is a valuable book. I consider myself well-informed about US Catholic women's colleges in the twentieth century, but I learned a great deal from it... A much-needed supplement to the standard histories of Catholic education.

— Regina Bannan

Equal wRites

Kudos to Schier and Russet for providing this book as a catalyst and charging scholars to continue work they have begun. Anyone interested in the history of higher education should read it as a first step in understanding a group of colleges that has been invisible and ignored. Anyone interested in women's issues should read it for its story of female initiative on a grand scale.

— Sylvia Simmons

Connection

A richly documented and provocatively analyzed work.

— Fernanda Perrone

History of Education Quarterly