Jane Fauntz Manske, who graduated around 1932 with a degree in Art Education from Illinois, was a national champion swimmer and diver. She competed for the USA Olympic team in 1928 and 1932, winning bronze in springboard diving in 1932. Despite a high school ban on female athletics in Illinois, she excelled in college swimming and diving and was a Kappa Alpha Theta member. Manske was also among...
Marie Hochmuth Nichols was a faculty member in the Speech and Communication Department from 1939-1976. Her pioneering work in rhetorical studies, known as “The Illinois Tradition,” highlighted the role of rhetoric in community building and change. Nichols was NCA president in 1969, the first woman elected by the whole membership, and received the NCA’s “Distinguished Service Award” in 1976. She...
Natalia M. Belting earned her B.A. in 1936 and M.A. in 1937 from Illinois. She joined the History Department in 1940 and was the first woman promoted to Associate Professor. Teaching from 1941 to 1985, she authored several books, including children's history books, and received the Mother’s Association Medal of Honor. Her faculty papers and personal journals are archived at the University.
Carita Robertson joined the Physical Education Department in 1925 and later became its head. She sponsored the first Big Ten swim meet for women in 1930 and helped design a basketball floor plan for women in 1932.
Florence Bell Robinson joined the Department of Landscape Architecture in 1929 and was notable for "breaking the tenure barrier" in co-ed Landscape Architecture schools. She became an Assistant Professor in 1946 and a Full Professor in 1951 before retiring.
Irna Phillips, a 1923 UIUC graduate, was the first alumna to receive the Alumni Achievement Award. Known as the “mother of the soap opera,” she created the hit shows *As the World Turns* and *The Guiding Light* and helped develop several other popular soap operas.
Louise Dunbar earned her PhD in History in 1920 and joined the History faculty that same year, during a time when few women held such positions. She had a significant influence on campus, particularly in the History Department, and retired in 1962 after more than 40 years of teaching.
Louise Woodroofe attended U of I from 1913-1917 and returned in 1920 as an instructor in freehand drawing. She became a full Professor of Art in 1948 and was voted "Most Supportive Faculty Member" in 1978. Woodroofe influenced the Assembly Hall design and left a lasting legacy through the Louise M. Woodroofe Prize.
Maria Leonard became Dean of Women at UIUC in 1923, serving until 1945. She founded Alpha Lambda Delta in 1924 to recognize academic excellence among freshman women. A strong advocate for female students, Leonard played a key role in advancing opportunities for women on campus.
Pauline Chiang enrolled in the College of Commerce in 1922 as the first female Chinese student at the University. She was active in campus organizations, including the Woman’s Club, where she advocated for Native American welfare and spoke on the issue multiple times.