Later on this month (Friday the 21st to be exact) the UMW will welcome their newest president, Troy Piano. Since 1908, UMW has had 10 presidents direct the school. I’ve been lucky enough to be around and meet two of them during my time here at UMW and from what I gathered, they were/are nice people.
But what about the others?
Let’s take a quick trip down memory lane and check them out.
Edward H. Russel
First President
1908 to 1919 ( 11 years )
Algernon B. Chandler, Jr.
Second President
1919 to 1928 ( 9 years )
Morgan L. Combs
Third President
1929 to 1955 ( 26 years )
Grellet C. Simpson
Fourth President
1956 to 1974 ( 18 years )
Prince B. Woodard
Fifth President
1974 to 1982 ( 8 years )
William M. Anderson, Jr.
Sixth President
1983 to 2006 (23 years )
William J. Frawley
Seventh President
2006 to 2007 ( 1 year )
Judy G. Hample
Eighth President
2008 to 2010 ( 2 years )
Richard V. Hurley
Ninth President
2010 to 2016 ( 6 years )
I find it interesting to see all the presidents listed in one spot. The names are super familiar as a lot of buildings around campus are named in honor of the presidents (ex simpson library, Hurley center, etc etc). But what really stood out to me here was the fact that UMW has only had one one female president in it’s history. I find it strange considering the school’s beginnings as college exclusively for women. Why would a school for woman be run by men?
I understand it could simply have been from lack of female applicants in the later years but in the beginning, was this due to the way things were? A little research lead me to discover that one of America’s first female president of a college was Francis Elizabeth Caroline Willard in 1871. ¹
In fact, UMW has a residence hall named after her that was built in 1911. ²
This means that not only was female president not unheard of by the time UMW was created, but the school even acknowledged her.
So why no female president? I thought more on the subject and recalled that women weren’t allowed to vote in the United States until 1920. This could be a reason behind UMW’s earlier lack of female presidents. I don’t count it as an excuse, but more of a possibility for their reasoning.
While I wish Troy Piano a great and lengthy term as president, I do hope UMW will see more female presidents in it’s future. Times have changed, as has UMW. Will the administration do so as well?
Notes
1. The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. “Frances Willard.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., n.d. Web. 4 Apr. 2017.
2. Crawley, William Bryan. “The First Half Century.” University of Mary Washington: a centennial history, 1908-2008. Fredericksburg, VA: U of Mary Washington, 2008. 7. Print.
Image Citations
1. Edward H. Russel. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
2. Algernon B. Chandler, Jr. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
3. Morgan L. Combs. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
4. Grellet C. Simpson. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
5. Prince B. Woodard. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
6. William M. Anderson, Jr. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
7. William J. Frawley. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
8. Judy G. Hample. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017
8. Richard V. Hurley. UMW Presidents Collections. Special Collections and University Archives, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington. Web. 4 Apr. 2017