As a leading lady it's important to study the women who have come before you and learn from her advertises, challenges, and success. It's inspiration to continue moving forward with their visions for a better world!
Who was the first African American Woman to Join a College Faculty?
This week's featured leading lady is Sarah Jane Woodson Early. Sarah Jane Woodson Early was born in Chillicothe, Ohio in 1825. Her father, Thomas Woodson, helped found the all African American community of Berlin Crossroads, Ohio, where she grew up. In 1852 she enrolled in Oberlin College, one of only two colleges that were open to both women and African Americans in the 1850s and earned a bachelor's degree. During her college years she taught at several schools in the area that were sponsored by the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, and in 1859, she was asked to become an English instructor at Wilberforce University, making her the first African American woman to join a college faculty.
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Wilberforce University closed for about a year during the Civil War, and when it reopened Early rejoined the faculty, teaching English and Latin. In 1868 she left the college to teach at an African American girls' school in North Carolina, and that same year she married Jordan Winston Early, a widowed AME minister. For the next twenty years she taught where ever her husband's career took them, and by the time she retired in 1888, she had taught more than six thousand children and been the principal of schools in four cities. After her retirement she wrote the book about her husband's work, The Life and Labors of Rev. Jordan W. Early, published in 1894. She died in 1907.
Thank you for you legacy and example Sarah! Keep moving forward to all of our present and future educators! What will you be the first to do?
Who was the first African American Woman to Join a College Faculty?
This week's featured leading lady is Sarah Jane Woodson Early. Sarah Jane Woodson Early was born in Chillicothe, Ohio in 1825. Her father, Thomas Woodson, helped found the all African American community of Berlin Crossroads, Ohio, where she grew up. In 1852 she enrolled in Oberlin College, one of only two colleges that were open to both women and African Americans in the 1850s and earned a bachelor's degree. During her college years she taught at several schools in the area that were sponsored by the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, and in 1859, she was asked to become an English instructor at Wilberforce University, making her the first African American woman to join a college faculty.
Wilberforce University closed for about a year during the Civil War, and when it reopened Early rejoined the faculty, teaching English and Latin. In 1868 she left the college to teach at an African American girls' school in North Carolina, and that same year she married Jordan Winston Early, a widowed AME minister. For the next twenty years she taught where ever her husband's career took them, and by the time she retired in 1888, she had taught more than six thousand children and been the principal of schools in four cities. After her retirement she wrote the book about her husband's work, The Life and Labors of Rev. Jordan W. Early, published in 1894. She died in 1907.
Thank you for you legacy and example Sarah! Keep moving forward to all of our present and future educators! What will you be the first to do?