Founder and the College's first Dean, Mabel
Smith Douglass was a graduate of Barnard College and
a teacher in the New York City Public School System. In 1912,
with support from the New Jersey State Federation of Women's
Clubs, Douglass spearheaded the movement that led to the establishment
of the New Jersey College for Women in 1918. She served as dean
from 1918 to 1933. In 1955, NJC was renamed Douglass College
in her honor.
Margaret Trumbull Corwin (1934-1955)* A
graduate of Bryn Mawr with a master's degree from Yale, Margaret
Trumbull Corwin kept the College on an even keel during her 21
years of leadership. During that time she guided the College
through economic hardship, a world war, and the post-war adjustment.
A rational exponent of the liberal arts, she worked to “raise
standards and promote excellence in an atmosphere of plain living
and high thinking.”
Mary Ingraham Bunting (1955-1960)
A graduate of Vassar with advanced degrees in microbiology from the University
of Wisconsin, Mary Ingraham Bunting produced many broadening changes
in the curriculum at Douglass. Her energetic leadership resulted in
the “long overdue” acceptance of women returning to complete their
education (now known as The Mary I. Bunting Program) and the initiation
of a vast building campaign. Following her Douglass deanship, she became
president at Radcliffe College.
Ruth Marie Adams (1960-1966)
An Adelphi graduate with a doctorate in English from
Radcliffe, Ruth Marie Adams' tenure was marked by the completion
of the building program, the inclusion of the school in the Federated
Plan, and the addition of programs for gifted students and the
culturally deprived. Her goal was a college in which “the arts
and sciences are taught in a lively fashion by competent scholars.” After
serving as dean of Douglass for six years, she became president
of Wellesley.
Margery Somers Foster (1967-1975)
A graduate of Wellesley with a doctorate in economics
from Radcliffe, Margery Somers Foster came to Douglass in the midst
of political and academic unrest. Under her leadership, the College
withstood the trend to coeducation and responded to the student
call for more relevant programs and more responsibility for their
own governance, making it “an exciting new eara for women.” She
implemented the Douglass-Cook relationship and expanded the scope
of the arts on campus with a new Fine Arts Center.
Jewel Plummer Cobb (1976-1981)
A graduate of Talladega College in Alabama with advanced
degrees in cell biology from New York University, Jewel Plummer
Cobb was a dedicated proponent of women's causes with a special
commitment to women-in-science programs. She championed the women's
college mission during reorganization, working to make Douglass
the focal point for University activities for women, and developed
the Scholars Program. Following her years at Douglass, she became
president of California State University at Fullerton.
Mary S. Hartman (1982-1994)
A graduate of Swarthmore with advanced degrees in history
from Columbia University, Mary S. Hartman became a member of the
Douglass history department in 1968. She served as director of
the Women's Studies Institute from 1975 to 1977, was named acting
dean in 1981, and dean in 1982. She organized the first group of
Faculty Fellows committed to the Douglass mission within the framework
of the reorganized University. Mary S. Hartman is now director
of the Institute for Women's Leadership.
Barbara A.Shailor (1996-2002)
A graduate of Wilson College with advanced degrees in
classics from the University of Cincinnati, Barbara A. Shailor
is the former vice president for student services and professor
of classics at Bucknell University. She taught Latin and Greek
language and literature, as well as courses in humanities and classical
civilization, and served as chair of Bucknell's departments of
classics and history. A classicist, her research interests include
the study of Latin manuscripts, classical texts in the Middle Ages
and Renaissance, women in classical antiquity and the Middle Ages,
and classical mythology.
Carmen
Twillie Ambar (2002 - Present)
REFERENCE SOURCE: “DOUGLASS COLLEGE, A HISTORY,” BY
DR. GEORGE P. SCHMIDT. |
