Ana María O'Neill (March 7, 1894 – May 24, 1981) was an educator, author and advocate of

women's rights Women's rights are the rights and entitlements claimed for women and girls worldwide. They formed the basis for the women's rights movement in the 19th century and the feminist movements during the 20th and 21st centuries. In some countries, ...

Early years

O'Neill was born in the town of

Aguadilla, Puerto Rico Aguadilla (, ), founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city and municipality located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is s ...

where she received her primary and secondary education. She enrolled and graduated from the Normal School of the

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...

, where she earned her teacher's certificate in 1915. She taught in Puerto Rico until she decided to go to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

to continue her education; there she attended

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, and in 1927 earned a master's degree in education.Biografias

Educator and activist

O'Neill returned to

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, and in 1929 became the first female professor in the field of Commerce in the University of Puerto Rico, a discipline which she taught until 1951. As a women's rights activist, she urged women to participate in every aspect of civic life and to defend their right to vote. O'Neill enrolled in the Rochdale Institute of the National School of Cooperativism, earning a diploma as a Cooperative leader. She fought for the Cooperative movement in Puerto Rico and was instrumental in the passing of the legislation entitled "The General Law of Cooperative Societies", in 1946. O'Neill was also the founder of the "Cooperative Institute" of the University of Puerto Rico.

Author

In 1948, she authored the book "Ética Para la Era Atómica" (English title: "Ethics for the Atomic Age") which was acclaimed and recognized with a literary award from

North Western University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Chartere ...

. In 1966, O'Neill was honored by the

Union of American Women Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

who named her the 1966 "Woman of Puerto Rico". That same year she was recognized by the cooperative establishment of the island was named "Woman of the Americas". O'Neill was also the author of "Psicología de la Comunicación" (The Psychology of Communication) which was published in 1986, five years after her death.

Later years

Ana María O'Neill died in the City of

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the jur ...

on May 24, 1981, of

heart failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome, a group of signs and symptoms caused by an impairment of the heart's blood pumping function. Symptoms typically include shortness of breath, excessive fatigue, a ...

. She was buried at the Puerto Rico Memorial Cemetery in

Carolina, Puerto Rico Carolina (; ) is a city and municipality located on the northeast coast of Puerto Rico. It lies immediately east of the capital San Juan and Trujillo Alto; north of Gurabo and Juncos; and west of Canóvanas and Loíza. Carolina is spread ove ...

.https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/154021120 Puerto Rico Memorial Cemetery

Written works

*"Ethics for the Atomic Age" By Ana Maria O'Neill, Publisher; Boston: Meador Publishing Company, 1948. *"Psicología de la Comunicación", O'Neill, Ana Maria, , , Publisher: Universidad de Puerto Rico Printing, Publication Date: 1986 *"Exposición de la taquigrafía Gregg", 1932 *"Exposición revisada de la taquigrafía Gregg", O'Neill, Ana María, et al., 1974 *"Nueva exposición revisada de la taquigrafía Gregg, Edición Oro", 1984, O'Neill, Ana María; O'Neill de Pumarada, Celeste; Muñíz De Vela, Olga; Vales de Portela, Carmen Pilar; Castillo, Gladys T

References

External links

El Nuevo Dia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Ana Maria 1894 births 1981 deaths People from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican educators Puerto Rican women writers Puerto Rican people of Irish descent University of Puerto Rico alumni Teachers College, Columbia University alumni Puerto Rican activists 20th-century American women 20th-century American people