Schools

Judith R. Shapiro inaugurated president of Barnard College

October 27, 1994

Judith R. Shapiro, a widely respected cultural anthropologist who has done pioneering research on gender differences, was inaugurated as president of Barnard College on October 27, 1994.

Founding of Women's American ORT

October 12, 1927

In a Brooklyn kitchen on October 12, 1927, Anna Boudin, Mrs.

Judith Rosenbaum on Annie Nathan Meyer Founding Barnard thumbnail

Opening of Barnard College

October 7, 1889

Driven by the effective and fervent lobbying efforts of activist Annie Nathan Meyer (1867-1951), Barnard College opened its doors on October 7

Thumbnail of Rachel King on the Birth of Flora Langerman Spiegelberg, 2015

Birth of "Grand lady of the southwest frontier" in New York City

September 10, 1857

Flora Langerman Spiegelberg, the "grand lady of the southwest frontier" was born on September 10, 1857.

Drisha Institute graduates its first female Talmud scholars

August 18, 1996

On August 18, 1996, Devorah Zlochower, Leora Bednarsh, and Laura Steiner were recognized for completing a three-year program of Talmud study at the Drisha Institute for Jewish Education in New York City.

Death of early music pioneer Wanda Landowska

August 16, 1959

Born in Warsaw in 1879, Wanda Landowska studied piano at the Warsaw Conservatory, from which she graduated at age 14. In 1900, she moved to Paris, where she taught piano and performed.

The Women’s Mizrachi Federation in America, Detroit Meeting, circa 1960s

Mizrachi Women meet independently for first time

June 19, 1939

The Mizrachi Women's Organization opened its first independent meeting on June 19, 1939, in Atlantic City.

Birth of Trude Weiss-Rosmarin, editor and commentator on American Jewish life

June 17, 1908

Born in Germany on June 17, 1908, Trude Weiss-Rosmarin became a major commentator on the nature of American Jewish life.

Clara de Hirsch Home for Working Girls opens

May 22, 1899

Funded by a bequest from the British Baroness Clara de Hirsch, the Clara de Hirsch Home for Working Girls opened its doors

Senda Berenson officiates at first collegiate women's basketball game

March 22, 1893

Senda Berenson, the "Mother of Women's Basketball," officiated at the first women's basketball game on March 22, 1893, at Smith College, in Northa

Public health pioneer Margaret Arnstein appointed dean of Yale School of Nursing

March 13, 1967

Born in New York City in 1904, Margaret Arnstein grew up in a family deeply involved in social health and welfare projects.

Vocational Training Schools in the United States

For nearly fifty years, vocational training schools enabled immigrant women and their single daughters to aspire to, and in many instances actually attain, a higher standard of living.

Torah Study

The commandment of Torah study is a positive Biblical precept.

Teaching Profession in the United States

Through Jewish educational organizations, Jewish schools, and public schools, female Jewish teachers have played an important role in shaping the North American teaching profession. Over the last 150 years, American Jewish women have been drawn to teaching in both public and Jewish schools by a multitude of factors.

Helen Tamiris

Helen Tamiris was a leader in forming American modern dance. An acclaimed choreographer and director, she used dance to comment on the social issues of her day, including racism, poverty, and war.

Edith Rosenwald Stern

Edith Rosenwald Stern, philanthropist, community leader, and civil rights activist left a legacy of commitment to social justice. With the same passion and strategy, she led the Jewish community in its philanthropy, encouraged her grandchildren to pursue their own charitable interests, and strongly supported Israel.

Stern College for Women

In September 1954, an inaugural class of thirty-two students enrolled at Stern College for Women, as Yeshiva University opened the first liberal arts college in America for women under Jewish auspices.

Pauline Perlmutter Steinem

Pauline Perlmutter Steinem, like her granddaughter Gloria Steinem, was an ardent activist for women’s rights, especially suffrage. She was also involved in Jewish activism, serving many local Jewish organizations and devoting a considerable amount of her income to send Jews to Israel just before World War II began.

Barbara Miller Solomon

Barbara Miller Solomon, educator and pioneer in women’s history, suggests the transformative role that education could play in individual women’s lives, a theme that also shaped much of her writing.

Settlement Houses in the United States

Jewish women have played significant roles as benefactors, organizers, administrators, and participants in American settlement houses. Settlement houses, founded in the 1880s in impoverished urban neighborhoods, provided recreation, education, and medical and social service programs, primarily for immigrants.

Science in Israel

In October 2003 the European Commission published She Figures, a survey on women in science and technology in member countries and associates (including Israel), which cited statistics and other data that provide a basis for measuring the degree of progress towards equality of the sexes in these spheres.

Felice Nierenberg Schwartz

In 1945, shortly after graduating from Smith College, Felice Nierenberg Schwartz founded the National Scholarship Service and Fund for Negro Students (NSSFNS) , an organization dedicated to opening the doors of higher education to African-American students. In 1962, when her youngest child entered nursery school, she founded Catalyst, an organization dedicated to opening the doors of business to women.

Sarah Schenirer

As the founder of the Bais Ya’akov educational movement, Sarah Schenirer brought about a revolution in the status of women in Orthodox Judaism.

Alice Salomon

Alice Salomon was an educator, feminist, economist, and international activist who was one of the pioneers of the emerging field of professional social work in Germany in the early 20th century. In 1925 she was among the founders of the German Academy for Women’s Social and Educational Work, and she later served as the first president of the International Committee of Schools of Social Work.

Salonika: Female Education at the end of the Nineteenth Century

The particular nature of Salonika Jewish society, exposed as it was to the progressive ideas of female education held by its Greek neighbors, was closely linked to local conditions. If there was still a place where it is certain that Jews did not suffer for their Jewish identity, it was undoubtedly Salonika. On the other hand the ease with which Salonikan Jewish society accepted and encouraged a new model of womanhood can only be explained by its compatibility with the local, traditional model.

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