Historical dictionary of women's education in the United States

About this book

The history of women's education in the United States presents a continuous effort to move from the periphery to the mainstream, and this book examines both formal institutions and informal opportunities for girls and women. Not only were women long prevented from receiving an education because of their gender, but their formal educational opportunities were also greatly affected by race, class, and ethnicity. Denied formal education early on, women found ways of educating themselves informally through associations and reform movements. While individuals have been prominent, women's educational history also must be told through the institutions they created. This reference book presents an introductory essay and nearly 250 alphabetically arranged entries on events, ideas, movements, institutions, and persons in the history of women's education in the United States from the colonial period to the present. Each entry includes a brief bibliography, and the book concludes with a timeline of women's educational history and a list of works for further reading. The entries are written by expert contributors and reflect the geographic, racial, and socioeconomic diversity of schooling for girls and women throughout various eras of U.S. history.