Women on the Faculty: A Dartmouth Centennial

On November 8, 2019, members of the Dartmouth community gathered in Goldstein Hall to mark the arrival of the first woman faculty member at the college a century ago. During the day-long conference, introduced by Dean of the Faculty Elizabeth Smith, papers were presented by current and former faculty, the director of Rauner Special Collections, and an undergraduate intern on the impact of women faculty on Dartmouth. The initial panel was largely devoted to Elizabeth Reynolds, first woman faculty member and founder in 1918 of the Russian Department, and biologist Hannah Croasdale, the first woman to attain a tenured appointment at Dartmouth. Subsequent speakers discussed their own experiences as women faculty during the years following the College’s move to coeducation in 1972. On the final panel, faculty representing a variety of perspectives assessed the current status of women faculty at Dartmouth. The day’s discussions were brought to a close by two keynote speakers, both former members of the Dartmouth History Department: Judith Byfield, Cornell University, and Mary Kelley, University of Michigan. The conference was organized by Sienna Craig, Associate Professor of Anthropology, and John Kopper, Professor of Russian and Comparative Literature.