Sarah Elizabeth Doyle (March 22, 1830 – December 21, 1922) was an American educator and educational reformer, noted for her roles in founding the

Rhode Island School of Design The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD , pronounced "Riz-D") is a private art and design school in Providence, Rhode Island. The school was founded as a coeducational institution in 1877 by Helen Adelia Rowe Metcalf, who sought to increase the ...

and establishing women's education at

Brown University Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...

Early life

Sarah Elizabeth Doyle was born in Providence in 1830, the third of seven children to Martha Dorrance Doyle and Thomas Doyle, a bookbinder. She graduated from Providence High School in 1846 and began her career as a teacher in 1856.

Rhode Island School of Design

Doyle was a charter member of the corporation of the

and served as secretary from 1877 to 1899.

Pembroke College

Sarah Doyle is perhaps best known for leading the campaign to admit women to Brown University. In 1891, the first six female students were allowed to enroll as undergraduates. By 1895, Doyle formed the Rhode Island Society for the Collegiate Education of Women for the purpose of raising the funds for a full Women's College at Brown. The group raised $75,000 to erect Pembroke Hall, the first permanent building of the Brown

Women's College Women's colleges in higher education are undergraduate, bachelor's degree-granting institutions, often liberal arts colleges, whose student populations are composed exclusively or almost exclusively of women. Some women's colleges admit male stud ...

, later renamed Pembroke College.

Other achievements

Doyle served as the Girls' Principal at Providence High School from 1878 until her retirement in 1892. She was active in a number of Rhode Island organizations, including the Rhode Island Women's Club, which she founded in 1876, the

Providence Athenaeum The Providence Athenaeum is an independent, member-supported subscription library in the College Hill neighborhood of Providence, Rhode Island. The building is open to the public, but only members can check out items from the collection. The ...

, the

Rhode Island Institute of Instruction Rhode may refer to: *In Greek mythology: :*Rhodos, goddess and personification of the island of Rhodes :*Rhode, one of the fifty daughters of Danaus * ''Rhode'' (spider), a genus of spiders *Rhode (surname) *Rhode, County Offaly, an Irish town *Rh ...

. In 1898, Providence mayor William C. Baker named Doyle as secretary of a commission of five members to investigate the management of public schools.

Death and burial

Doyle died on December 21, 1922, at her home at 119 Prospect Street in Providence. Her health had been declining for some time. Her funeral was held at the First Congregational Church (now First Unitarian Church) on Benefit Street. She is buried in a family plot in

Swan Point Cemetery Swan Point Cemetery is a historic rural cemetery located in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. Established in 1846 on a 60-acre (0.24 km2) plot of land, it has approximately 40,000 interments. History The cemetery was first organi ...

Tributes and recognition

* She was the first woman to receive an honorary degree from Brown University in 1894 * Sarah Doyle was honored during her own lifetime through the Sarah E. Doyle Club, created by her students in 1894. * In 1975, Brown University established the

Sarah Doyle Women's Center The Sarah Doyle Center for Women and Gender (SDCWG), formerly the Sarah Doyle Women's Center, is a center at Brown University, which "seeks to provide a comfortable, yet challenging place for students, faculty, and staff to examine the multitude o ...

. * Doyle was inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame in 2005.

References

External links

*
Portraits of Sarah Doyle
{{DEFAULTSORT:Doyle, Sarah Elizabeth 1830 births 1922 deaths American educators People from Providence, Rhode Island Rhode Island School of Design Brown University people Burials at Swan Point Cemetery Pembroke College in Brown University alumni