-
Salem Academy
In 1772 the Moravian community located in North Carolina started the Salem Academy for young girls. This educational institution was created at a time when public education wasn't available even for boys in most places in the world including in the US. Salem Academy is still the oldest academy for females in the US. -
Sarah Pierce's Litchfield Female Academy
Sarah Pierce dedicated her life to educating young women. She started Sarah Pierce's Litchfield Female Academy. The academy believed that girls should be taught the same subjects as men and taught girls and women subjects that were mostly only taught to boys such as history and sciences. -
Phebe Sudlow
Phebe Sudlow became the first female public school principal in 1859. In 1874 she became the first female superintendent. In 1877 she was elected the first female president of the Iowa teachers association. Sudlow also demanded equal pay as a man would get before accepting her first job as principal. -
Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler
In 1860 Rebecca Lee Crumpler became the first and only black female accepted to the New England Female Medical College. In 1864 she became the first black female to receive a medical degree in the US. Dr. Crumpler stopped practicing medicine in 1880 and in 1883 published a book based on the journal she kept throughout her years of practicing medicine called A Book of Medical Discourses. -
Mary Jane Patterson
Mary Jane Patterson was the first black woman to earn a bachelor's degree. She graduated from Oberlin College in 1862 with a bachelor of arts and high honors. She'd enrolled in the gentlemen's course which was a four-year program instead of the two-year program for women. She went on to become a teacher after graduating and eventually also served as a principal.