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October 16, 2014

A new book that explores the heartbreaking and inspiring stories of the first female professors at Amherst gives insight into the evolution of gender equity in society and on campus. The experiences described in Gender Matters: The First Half-Century of Women Teaching at Amherst—such as being given a starting salary less than that of a husband “so as not to upset the stability of the marriage”—serve as a reminder as to just how much the College has changed in a generation.

Jane A. Taubman, emerita professor of Russian, gave the following presentation at the symposium, Half Century of Women Teaching at Amherst: Gender Matters on Saturday, October 1, 2011.

A CAPSULE HISTORY OF THE PIONEER WOMEN AT AMHERST, 1962-1983

The reporters at the Amherst Student actively covered faculty women at Amherst College. Their first piece, titled Women Professors at Amherst, a Survey of the Professional Difficulties and Perceptions of Women on the College Faculty, was published May 5, 1980 and included interviews with 17 faculty women.

The October 29, 1984 edition published an article Assessing the Conditions of Women Faculty and cited a number of issues  with hiring, tenure and general attitudes at Amherst.

Symposium Schedule for Saturday, October 1, 2011

8:30-9:00 a.m.      Breakfast. Lobby of Converse Hall.

9:00-9:10 a.m.       Welcome and memorial minute.  Buffy Aries (Psychology) and Pat O’Hara (Chemistry).

9:10-9:15 a.m.        Brief history of the arrival of the pioneer women. Jane Taubman (Russian)

9:15-10:30 a.m.    Round table discussion: The Early Years  

The women noted below were hired during the years 1962-83 as full time instructors and many were on the track for tenure. During that same period, there were a number of other women on the faculty as visiting lecturers at the college. Information on the visitors can be found in the archives of Amherst College.

Rose Olver, Professor of Psychology and Women’s and Gender Studies

October 1, 2011

Russian professor Jane Taubman was interviewed for this segment about the renowned writer Ludmilla Petrushevskaya.