The Deans' Bible. Angie Klink

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      I thank another member of the “chosen family,” Captain Sally Watlington. Sally was the daughter Helen Schleman never had. Sally was equally close to Dorothy Stratton. Dorothy, Helen, and Bev influenced Sally in her decision to join the navy. Sally and Betty cared for the deans as they aged. (Sally affectionately called them “the Deanie Weenies” and “the Girls.”) In the spirit of the Bible’s symbolic undertone of women advocating for one another, Betty and Sally were there for the deans, to the end. Most recently, the two cared for Barbara Cook until her passing in April 2013.

      The day after Barb passed away, I was at Betty’s house to interview Purdue alumna Teresa Roche, who knew all of the deans and is especially close to Betty. As Teresa and I sat at the kitchen table, Betty headed for the front door to leave for an errand. As if something came to her suddenly, she stopped, turned her head to the side, and said rather cryptically, “Be prepared for your life to change.” Then she opened the door and scurried off. Her words wafted prophetically in her wake.

      People have asked me if my books change me during the process of writing. They all have left their marks, even the children’s books with their sparse number of words. But The Deans’ Bible has transformed me the most, for these distinguished women have “removed the scales from my eyes.”

      Each dean chose a favorite passage to write down in the front matter of Carolyn Shoemaker’s Bible. Similarly, I am selecting a verse for this book—Acts 9:15–18, referred to as the “Conversion of Saul.” It reads:

      But the Lord said, “Go and do what I say. For Saul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel. And I will show him how much he must suffer for me.”

      So Ananias went and found Saul. He laid his hands on him and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road, has sent me so that you may get your sight back and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Instantly something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he regained his sight.

      After receiving his sight, Saul spent time with other believers to learn of the teachings of Jesus, and then he embarked on a ministry to preach the truth to others. When Saul spoke to others, his words were powerful because he was a brilliant scholar, yet most convincing was the evidence of the way he lived. It’s important to know the Good Book and how to defend one’s faith, but words need to be backed up with a changed life.

      For nearly two years I conducted research and wrote The Deans’ Bible. I have spent much time with the believers. It’s important that the efforts of the deans are written down to proclaim their faith in the potential of all people and their gospel of women helping other women. Scales must fall from more eyes. I hope my words can be backed up with a changed life—yours and mine.

      —ANGIE KLINK

      Publisher’s Note: In addition to the photographs in the center of this book, further images can be found on a connected website hosted by the Purdue University Archives and Special Collections at http://dx.doi.org/10.5703/1288284315231.

       AUTHOR’S NOTE

      DEANS OF WOMEN AT UNIVERSITIES AND COLLEGES across the United States were once connected as a nurturing network of mentors by their own professional organization, founded in 1916 as the National Association of Deans of Women (NADW). The early founders worked diligently to professionalize the position of dean and to legitimize their roles on predominantly male college campuses. The organization metamorphosed through the twentieth century, changing its name three times before shuttering in 2000.

      Deans of women opened doors and opportunities for female students, faculty, and administrators throughout American campuses. Their scholarly journal, research monographs, symposia, and conferences provided evidence of the immeasurable contributions that the association and its members made to higher education and women’s voices in that education.

      At the 1956 NADW annual conference in Cincinnati, Ohio, President Eunice Hilton declared a new name for the forty-year-old association. It became the National Association of Women Deans and Counselors (NAWDC).

      In 1973, the name changed again as the word “administrators” was added. The organization became the National Association for Women Deans, Administrators, and Counselors (NAWDAC), a name it would hold until 1991, when the group moved into a new identity.

      In 1990, a fundraising consultant hired by NAWDAC recommended a name change using the ideas of “women in education” and “women’s leadership” as a guide. The membership of NAWDAC voted to change the association’s name to the National Association for Women in Education (NAWE). The word “dean” was no longer part of the seventy-five-year-old organization’s distinctiveness.

      By the turn of the twenty-first century, NAWE experienced increased competition for membership from other professional organizations. Society had also shifted away from supporting single-sex groups; NAWE came to an end in 2000. The association’s legacy and immense contributions to the advancement of female students, faculty, and administrators in higher education live on through its historical contributions—contributions that are of the utmost importance still today.

      In 2012, the American Council on Education’s (ACE) survey of college presidents found a profession dominated by white men—a portrait that has hardly changed since the NADW was founded in 1916. Today, 26 percent of institutional leaders are female. No doubt, the deans of women would encourage females to persevere, for there is still work to be done for the issue of women’s educational equity and advancement—still a goal to be attained in the twenty-first century.

      Today, the National Student Affairs Archives (NSAA) at the Center for Archival Collections at Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio, comprises the institutional papers of numerous national, regional, and state professional student affairs associations. The NSAA also is home to “The Student Affairs History Project,” a website devoted to the history of the student affairs profession. The NSAA was a helpful resource in the writing of The Deans’ Bible.

       THE DEANS’ LIST

      CAROLYN E. SHOEMAKER

      Born: 1865

      Died: March 2, 1933

      Dean of Women: 1913–1933

      DOROTHY C. STRATTON

      Born: March 24, 1899

      Died: September 17, 2006

      Dean of Women: 1933–1942

      WWII leave of absence: 1942–1947

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