Ellen Fitz Pendleton (August 7, 1864 – July 26, 1936) was an American educator. She was president of Wellesley College for 25 years and notably expanded it financially and physically.

Early life

Pendleton was born in

Westerly, Rhode Island Westerly is a town on the southwestern shoreline of Washington County, Rhode Island, first settled by English colonists in 1661 and incorporated as a municipality in 1669. It is a beachfront community on the south shore of the state with a popula ...

on August 7, 1864. She was the youngest of nine children of Enoch Burrows Pendleton and Mary Ette (Chapman) Pendleton, and a descendant of Brian Pendleton who was the first in her family line to immigrate to America from England in 1632 and settled in

Watertown, Massachusetts Watertown is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, and is part of Greater Boston. The population was 35,329 in the 2020 census. Its neighborhoods include Bemis, Coolidge Square, East Watertown, Watertown Square, and the West End. Waterto ...

Career

Pendleton attended Wellesley College and received her

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

degree in 1886. She then became a tutor at the college in 1886. She became a full-time instructor in mathematics at the college in 1888. Pendleton took post-graduate courses at Newham College in England in 1889–1890 and received a degree of Master of Arts from Wellesley College in 1891. In 1897, Pendleton became secretary at Wellesley College, holding that position until 1901 at which time she became associate professor of mathematics and put in charge of College Hall. In 1902, she became dean of the college. She served as acting president in 1910 before assuming the presidency as the sixth president of Wellesley College. She was inaugurated October 19, 1911, being the first woman graduate to be elected president. Pendleton initiated a major rebuilding of the college facility grounds. College Hall was destroyed by fire in March 1914. This building had the classrooms, offices, dormitory quarters, and library. Pendleton built temporary quarters for her students within three weeks to hold classes. Over the next ten years a 3-million-dollar campaign she promoted resulted in construction of several new buildings. Before Pendleton retired she initiated many new buildings on the college grounds and created a $10-million endowment during her presidency; she was president of Wellesley College for 25 years. Pendleton was a supporter of

academic freedom Academic freedom is a moral and legal concept expressing the conviction that the freedom of inquiry by faculty members is essential to the mission of the academy as well as the principles of academia, and that scholars should have freedom to teac ...

. She instituted an honors program during her presidency and rejected the introduction of vocational and specialized courses. She supported "a wide liberal education, independent study, and freedom in choosing electives by the undergraduates". She supported academic freedom for

pacifists Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaigne ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. She opposed the

Massachusetts Teachers' Oath The Massachusetts Teachers' Oath was a loyalty oath required to teach in Massachusetts from 1935 to 1967. Passage In response to political radicalism during the Great Depression, several states passed legislation that required public school teache ...

of 1935 requiring

loyalty oath A loyalty oath is a pledge of allegiance to an organization, institution, or state of which an individual is a member. In the United States, such an oath has often indicated that the affiant has not been a member of a particular organization or ...

s. Nobel Peace Prize winner

Emily Greene Balch Emily Greene Balch (January 8, 1867 – January 9, 1961) was an American economist, sociologist and pacifist. Balch combined an academic career at Wellesley College with a long-standing interest in social issues such as poverty, child labor ...

had once sent a letter to the president of Wellesley College in 1918 and wrote that one should follow "the ways of Jesus". Wellesley College trustees terminated her contract in 1919. Pendleton strongly opposed her dismissal for support of academic freedom. Pendleton was a member of the Wellesley College examination board and helped liberalize the structure of the exams. She was the first woman to serve on a panel to award the American Peace Prize. This prize was established by

Edward Bok Edward William Bok (born Eduard Willem Gerard Cesar Hidde Bok) (October 9, 1863 – January 9, 1930) was a Dutch-born American editor and Pulitzer Prize-winning author. He was editor of the ''Ladies' Home Journal'' for 30 years (1889–1919). He ...

in 1923. As a member of the Naples Table Association she supported women's scientific research. She received the honorary

Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Docto ...

degree from Brown University in 1911 and that of

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor ...

degree from Mount Holyoke College in 1912.

Retirement and death

Pendleton gave her intentions to retire from Wellesley College in February 1935. She ultimately retired in June 1936. Pendleton died the next month on July 26 in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

of a

paralytic Paralysis (also known as plegia) is a loss of motor function in one or more muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory damage. In the United States, roughly 1 in 50 ...

stroke.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pendleton, Ellen Fitz Presidents of Wellesley College 1864 births 1936 deaths Wellesley College faculty People from Westerly, Rhode Island Wellesley College alumni