荔枝成人app

To celebrate International Women鈥檚 Day (March 8, 2025), we鈥檝e compiled stories about members of the Trinity community – from alumnae who were Canada鈥檚 first female lawyer and the first female to hold a doctorate in computer science, to former Provost Mayo Moran who served as the first female Dean of the Faculty of Law and the College鈥檚 first tenured woman faculty member and women leaders of St. Hilda鈥檚 College. These incredible trailblazers are an inspiring reminder of what has been accomplished, and what is left still to do.

The United Nations officially recognized International Women鈥檚 Day (IWD) in 1977. While recognizing the many achievements of women and girls, the IWD is an opportunity to amplify the achievements of women while recognizing that gender parity is still a distant goal. The听 is Accelerate Action.

CELEBRATING MEMBERS OF THE TRINITY COMMUNITY

• Elizabeth Benn: Sports Trailblazer
• Myrtle Burgess: First Female Black Student to Study at Trinity
• Gloria Carpenter: Pioneer Who Helped Bring Legal Change to the Caribbean
• Helen Gregory: In 1884, Helen Gregory was the first woman admitted to 荔枝成人app
• Marsha Hewitt: First Dean of Divinity (acting) since the establishment of the Faculty
• Clara Martin: Canada鈥檚 First Woman Lawyer
• Mayo Moran: First female Dean of the Faculty of Law, University of Toronto
• Ethel Ridley: Matron-in-Chief of the Canadian Nursing Staff during the First World War
• Audrey Tobias: From Quiet Protester to Front Page News
• Caroline Louise Josephine Wells: First Women Dentist in Canada
• Beatrice Worsley: Canada鈥檚 First Female Computer Scientist
• St. Hilda鈥檚 College:听听Elizabeth Abbott听 |听听Mabel Cartwright听 |听听Mossie May (Waddington) Kirkwood听 |听听Ellen (Patteson) Rigby听 |听听The Rev. Elizabeth Maude (Hunter) Rowlinson听 |听听Melinda Hartnet Seaman听触听听Mary Stedman

 

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Elizabeth Benn 鈥� Sports Trailblazer

Trinity alumna Elizabeth Benn is at the top of her game.

In February 2022, Elizabeth made history when she was named director of major-league operations for the New York Mets.

She鈥檚 the highest-ranking female baseball ops employee in franchise history, and one of a select few to break into the upper echelons of any big-league front office.

Read her inspirational story 鈥� including battling stereotypes and discrimination and determined perseverance 鈥� in the听.

 

Myrtle Burgess 鈥� First Female Black Student to Study at Trinity

In the early 1900s, Provost Thomas Macklem admitted three students to 荔枝成人app and St. Hilda鈥檚 College, siblings from St. Louis, Missouri. However, unbeknownst to Provost Macklem when he made the offer of acceptance, the students were Black.

Myrtle was the College鈥檚 first female Black student, and her story offers us an important glimpse into life as a Black student at Trinity in the early 20th century.

It is a credit to her intelligence, drive and tenacity that even in the face of discrimination, she continued her studies.听Read more about听Myrtle鈥檚 life as a student and the story of the Burgess siblings.

In 2019, 荔枝成人app named a student residence 鈥� Burgess House 鈥� in St. Hilda鈥檚 after our first female Black student, Myrtle Burgess.

 

Gloria Carpenter 鈥� Pioneer Who Helped Bring Legal Change to the Caribbean

Trinity alumnae Gloria Clare Carpenter went on to become the first Black woman to graduate from Cambridge. In the photo below, she stands in the back row, on the left, in the 1943 edition of Torontonensis (photo courtesy of University of Toronto Archives).

Carpenter, who died in 1995, completed her Bachelor of Arts in law at U of T and, at the end of the Second World War, left Toronto to become the first Black woman to graduate from the University of Cambridge, where she pursued advanced legal studies.听.

 

 

 

 

Helen Gregory 鈥� The first woman admitted to 荔枝成人app in 1884, Helen Gregory was a pioneering journalist, feminist and judge

Helen Gregory MacGill (nee Helen Emma Gregory: 1864 to 1947) – women’s rights activist and magistrate. She was the first woman admitted to 荔枝成人app in 1884 and the first woman to graduate from the College (BA, MA). As a reporter, she travelled alone across the Canadian West to Japan. She later served for 23 years as judge of the Vancouver Juvenile Court. She was the first woman appointed judge in the region (1917) and the third in Canada. .

 

 

 

Marsha Hewitt 鈥� First Dean of Divinity since the establishment of the Faculty

Meet Marsha Hewitt: for the 2022-2023 academic year, Professor Hewitt is the Acting Dean of the Faculty of Divinity. She was the first full-time, tenured woman faculty member in the Faculty and the first woman to hold the Dean role since the establishment of the Faculty over 170 years ago. Professor Hewitt is also a听member of the Department for the Study of Religion at the University of Toronto.

Now entering her 36th year at Trinity, she teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in psychoanalytic theory and clinical practice, psychoanalytic psychology of religion, dreams and visions, critical theory and method and theory in the study of religion. 鈥淭eaching is my vocation, and I choose that word carefully. I am happiest when teaching: we have wonderful, intelligent and interesting students at both 荔枝成人app and the University of Toronto. It has always been, and remains for me, a pleasure and a privilege to work with them,鈥� Professor Hewitt said. Last year,听听鈥� an听: 鈥淎mong a variety of topics, she talks about how the COVID-19 pandemic has traumatized us on a global scale, and how 鈥榥ow more than ever, it is important for educators to show deep care for their students.’鈥�

You can learn more about听Professor Hewitt in the 鈥淢eet Faculty & Staff Initiative鈥�听produced by Trinity鈥檚 Wellness Team.

 

Clara Martin 鈥� Canada鈥檚 First Woman Lawyer

When Clara Martin was a law student living in a Toronto boarding house, a young male resident denounced her as a 鈥渧ery odd sort of woman.鈥� His observation seemed to rest on her penchant for riding a bicycle 鈥� eyebrow-raising behaviour for a well-bred lady in the late 1800s. This wasn鈥檛 her first, or last, act of social impropriety, however. Martin 鈥� who graduated with a math degree in 1890 and a bachelor of civil law degree in 1897 from 荔枝成人app, and an LLB in 1899 from U of T 鈥� succeeded in becoming the first woman lawyer in the British Empire. Her road was often a difficult, lonely one. 鈥淚 was looked upon as an interloper, if not a curiosity,鈥� said Martin of her articling days at a Toronto law firm. 鈥淭he clerks avoided me and made it as unpleasant for me as they possibly could.鈥�

Martin was also the first female student at Osgoode Hall Law School. In 1891, the Law Society of Upper Canada had informed her that admission to Osgoode was restricted to 鈥減ersons鈥� 鈥� and under the British North America Act, women did not qualify as such. With the help of Oliver Mowat, premier and attorney-general of Ontario, Martin galvanized the legislature into passing an 1892 act granting women access to the law school. She entered Osgoode the following year and was called to the Bar of Ontario in February 1897.

After working as a law clerk at two Toronto firms, Martin opened her own private practice. In 1923, at the age of 49, she died of a heart attack. Recalling her difficult path, and the stoicism of her early student years, Martin once said, 鈥淲ere it not that I set out to open the way to the bar for others of my sex, I would have given up the effort long ago.鈥� Read more about听.

 

Mayo Moran – First female Dean of the Faculty of Law

Professor Mayo Moran served as 15th Provost & Vice-Chancellor of 荔枝成人app from 2014 to 2024. Prior to assuming her role as Provost, Professor Moran served as the first female Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto. Provost Moran publishes extensively on comparative constitutional law, legal and feminist theory, and historical injustices among other topics. Her book Rethinking the Reasonable Person (Oxford University Press) examines how judicial ideas of 鈥渘ormal鈥� behaviour may discriminate against women and girls. Her latest book, The Problem of the Past and How to Fix It, is forthcoming from Oxford University Press.

In celebration of International Women鈥檚 Day 2024. Provost Moran spoke at the University Faculty Women鈥檚 Club luncheon. Provost Moran shared the theme of her IWD talk: “I teach a course called Ten Cases that Changed the World. For International Women鈥檚 Day, I decided to take up that theme and to tell the stories of a few women who faced terrible injustice and who had the courage to fight against the odds so that others wouldn鈥檛 face what they did. We tend to think that people who change the world are endowed with extraordinary powers, but these women show how despite all odds, ordinary people sometimes change the course of history. For that reason, I called the talk, 鈥淥rdinary Heroes: Three Women Who Changed the World.鈥�

 

Ethel Ridley听鈥� Matron-in-Chief of the Canadian Nursing Staff during the First World War

Ethel Ridley (1872 鈥� 1949) graduated from 荔枝成人app in 1895. She enlisted as a nurse with the Canadian Army Medical Corps during the First World War and was stationed in military hospitals throughout England and France, eventually becoming Matron-in-Chief of the Canadian nursing staff.

She received commendations for her service, including the Royal Red Cross in 1916 and the Order of the British Empire in 1918. Following the war, she returned to the New York Orthopaedic Hospital as Directress of Nurses.

The photographs and postcards document various stages of her life, from her time as a student at St. Hilda鈥檚 College through to her retirement in Gananoque.

[Source: 荔枝成人app Archives F2115:听]

 

 

Audrey Tobias 鈥� From Quiet Protester to Front Page News

Trinity alumna (Class of 1948) Audrey Tobias (1924 鈥� 2016) was an activist who made headlines when she was criminally charged for refusing to fill out the census.

An inspiring example of a woman who stood up for that she believed in,听.

 

 

 

Caroline Louise Josephine Wells: First Woman Dentist in Canada听

In 1893, Caroline Louise Josephine Wells (1856-1939) broke Ontario鈥檚 dentistry gender barrier as the first female member of the Ontario Dental Society and the first female graduate of the Royal College of Dental Surgeons (RCDS). Dr. Wells was married to a dentist and when his health started to fail, she decided to go into the profession. This was no easy feat, as she faced tremendous social and economic pressures to achieve her goal. Determined to overcome these obstacles, Wells sent her three children to live with relatives so that she could concentrate on her studies and successfully complete her education. She attended 荔枝成人app and received her doctorate (DDS) in 1899 from the college鈥檚 Faculty of Dentistry. For 36 years, Dr. Wells practised in Toronto, providing groundbreaking dental care to patients听鈥撎齝aring for this vulnerable and neglected population听鈥撎齣n several of Ontario鈥檚 mental hospitals. She retired at the age of 72. (Sources:听听补苍诲听)

 

 

Beatrice Worsley 鈥� Canada鈥檚 First Female Computer Scientist

Beatrice Worsley, known to her friends and colleagues as Trixie, is believed to be both the first woman in the world to earn a doctorate in computer science and Canada鈥檚 first female computer scientist. She completed her undergraduate studies in mathematics and physics at U of T鈥檚 荔枝成人app in 1944, and soon afterwards enlisted in the Women鈥檚 Royal Canadian Naval Service.

For her doctoral studies in mathematical physics at Cambridge, she was supervised by computer science forerunners Maurice Wilkes and Alan Turing. Her dissertation, 鈥淪erial programming for real and idealized digital calculating machines鈥� is considered the first on modern computing. This former assistant professor at U of T died at the age of 50 from a heart attack.

Read more about this trailblazer:听听补苍诲听.

Learn about the scholarship听.

 

Celebrating Leaders of St. Hilda鈥檚 College

Who are the people behind the named rooms at St. Hilda鈥檚 College? They are inspiring and compassionate women, accomplished scholars and influential leaders. Admired and revered by the Trinity community and beyond, their many contributions have helped to shape who we are as a community today: Elizabeth Abbott, Mabel Cartwright, Mossie May (Waddington) Kirkwood, Ellen (Patteson) Rigby, The Rev. Elizabeth Maude (Hunter) Rowlinson, Melinda Hartnet Seaman, Mary Stedman. Learn about some of the incredible women of St. Hilda鈥檚 College who left a special mark within the historic spaces of the college.

 

The Abbott Room:

Elizabeth Abbott, MA, PhD (1942-) 鈥� Second Dean of St. Hilda鈥檚 College and Sixth Dean of Women 荔枝成人app at 荔枝成人app, 1991-2004

In 1991, Abbott was installed as 荔枝成人app鈥檚 Dean of Women and Dean of St. Hilda鈥檚 College, where she served for thirteen years until retiring in 2004 to become a full-time writer. During her deanship, Abbott, an advocate for social justice, was Trinity鈥檚 representative on the University of Toronto鈥檚 Committee on Homophobia, on the Editorial Board of the Canadian Human Rights Foundation, and on the Rights and Freedoms Committee of the Writers鈥� Union of Canada. She also served as an adviser to Trinity鈥檚 Latin American Club and, from 1992 to 1997, played defence for the Saints, the Trinity women鈥檚 ice hockey team. When Abbott retired, the former Dean鈥檚 Reception Room in St. Hilda鈥檚 was renamed The Abbott Room in her honour. In October 2017, the student wellness space opened in the Abbott Room with the room鈥檚 namesake Elizabeth Abbott in attendance at the welcome event.

Cartwright Hall:

Mabel Cartwright, BA, LLD (1869-1955) 鈥� Second Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College, 1903-1936 and First Dean of Women 荔枝成人app at 荔枝成人app, 1915-1936

In 1903 she was appointed Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College and in 1915 she was granted the additional title of Dean of Women at 荔枝成人app. Academically, Cartwright was Lecturer in English at 荔枝成人app from 1916 until 1928, when she was promoted to Associate Professor of English. In 1925 she oversaw the move of St. Hilda鈥檚 College from Queen Street to three houses on St. George Street. Cartwright was determined to retain the old college traditions, but also continue to foster a strong and long-lasting sense of community and belonging among the Saints. She made sure to involve non-residents in the college鈥檚 activities and called for mandatory attendance at chapel and choir as well as active social service work by every student. Also in 1925, she was granted a Doctor of Laws (honoris causa) by the University of Toronto. When Cartwright retired in 1936, she was granted the title of Principal Emeritus. In November 1937 she laid the cornerstone for the new St. Hilda鈥檚 College building on Devonshire Place. An inspiring teacher, great scholar, and influential leader, she was much loved by the students of St. Hilda鈥檚.

Kirkwood House and Kirkwood Meadows:

Mossie May (Waddington) Kirkwood, MA, PhD, DSL (1890-1985) 鈥� Third Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College and Second Dean of Women 荔枝成人app at 荔枝成人app, 1936-1953

An alumna of 荔枝成人app, in 1936, Mossie May (Waddington) Kirkwood returned to 荔枝成人app as Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 and Dean of Women as well as Associate Professor of English. Under her leadership St. Hilda鈥檚 moved to its building on Devonshire Place, which opened in 1938. As principal, she was much adored and admired by her students, and her importance to the women cannot be overstated. Her office was always open and she was a sympathetic listener. She was an advocate for women鈥檚 education and the right for them to have satisfying lives and careers and gave evening lectures for women interested in continuing their studies. Wishing to expose her students to new experiences, once a week she would organize a dinner where students interacted with important poets, dramatists, academics, and painters (notably the Group of Seven). In 1953, Kirkwood resigned from her administrative duties but remained in the English Department as the first woman to hold a full professorship, and when she retired in 1960 she became the first woman to be named professor emeritus. In September of that year the north wing of St. Hilda鈥檚 College was opened and named in her honour, and in 1977 荔枝成人app bestowed upon her the degree of Doctor of Sacred Letters (honoris causa).

In this 2018 article 鈥撎�听鈥� Trinity鈥檚 Archivist met with Naomi Kirkwood Kuhn, daughter of Mossie May and William Kirkwood, and her son Roland, both graduates of 荔枝成人app, graciously shared their memories of this iconic woman.

搁颈驳产测听搁辞辞尘:

Ellen (Patteson) Rigby听(1855-1913)听鈥� First Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College, 1888-1903

In 1888, the second Provost of 荔枝成人app, The Rev. Charles W.E. Body, ventured to establish a separate residential college for women to secure for them the same privileges the male students already received. That year, Ellen Patteson was offered the position of principal and in October opened up the first St. Hilda鈥檚 building on Euclid Avenue. The appointment of Patteson laid a strong foundation for both St. Hilda鈥檚 College and for women鈥檚 education in Canada, and in 1894 荔枝成人app opened all its lectures to women.听Although the project was an experimental one, Patteson was able to carry the college from its infancy to a permanently successful and self-supporting college residence. Eventually the original house became too small. In 1889 new houses were found on Shaw Street, and in 1892 the college moved to larger ones on the same street. In 1899 construction began on a new building on the main 荔枝成人app campus on Queen Street.听In 1896, Patteson married The Rev. Oswald Rigby, the Dean of Residence at 荔枝成人app. In 1903, The Rev. Rigby was appointed Headmaster of 荔枝成人app School in Port Hope, Ontario. The now Mrs. Rigby accompanied her husband to his new job, bringing her tenure as principal to an end.听There, as at St. Hilda鈥檚, Rigby was greatly loved by the students, because of her warmth, sympathy, and concern for their wellbeing.

Rowlinson House:

The Rev. Elizabeth Maude (Hunter) Rowlinson, BSc, MA, PhD, DD (1930-2020) 鈥� First Dean of St. Hilda鈥檚 College and Fifth Dean of Women 荔枝成人app at 荔枝成人app, 1978-1991

In 1978, Elizabeth Maude Hunter was appointed Dean of Women at 荔枝成人app and Dean of St. Hilda鈥檚 College, as well as a fellow of the college. In terms of teaching, Rowlinson held the position of Senior Tutor in Mathematics at the University of Toronto, and authored a number of articles and reviews in various mathematical journals. In her role as Dean of Women she saw herself as a counsellor for her students. Unlike her predecessors, with the changing times she was no longer acting in loco parentis. However, she was involved in many aspects of student life, attending dinners, holding receptions, playing the violin in the 荔枝成人app Chamber Orchestra, and singing in the Chapel Choir. When Rowlinson first arrived at St. Hilda鈥檚, there were more women than men making up the student body, but less space for them in residence. She oversaw the first instance of women living in the main Trinity building, when, for two years, women moved into The Angel鈥檚 Roost as a temporary solution until, in 1981, the south wing of St. Hilda鈥檚 College was built. It has borne Rowlinson鈥檚 name since 1995. In 1991 Rowlinson retired from 荔枝成人app, and became a Fellow Emerita. She was ordained a deacon in the Anglican Church on 6 June 1993, and on 15 May 1994 she was ordained a priest.

Melinda Seaman Hall:

Melinda Hartnet Seaman, MA (1912-1992) 鈥� Fifth Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College and Fourth Dean of Women 荔枝成人app at 荔枝成人app, 1963-1978

An alumna of 荔枝成人app, in 1963 to become the Principal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College and Dean of Women at 荔枝成人app, as well as Assistant Professor of English. She dedicated herself to improving the quality of residence life, from small things such as selecting furniture and paring roommates, to larger endeavours like vocally opposing the gradual shift of student activities to the main Trinity building. St. Hilda鈥檚 to her was a community which deserved its own cultural and athletic events, to which the men of Trinity were welcomed. During her time as principal she strove to ensure that non-resident students felt as much at home at St. Hilda鈥檚 as the residents did, making an effort to know them as well as she did the women she lived with, and opening up dinners to those who had evening classes. During her tenure, she oversaw the relaxation of institutional restrictions and curfews, the growth of student autonomy, and the move toward joint government and committee decision making between St. Hilda鈥檚 and Trinity. She was also the last person to be designated 鈥淧rincipal of St. Hilda鈥檚 College鈥�. Like her predecessors, Seaman was a maternal figure for the women of St. Hilda鈥檚, ready to offer advice and encouragement to those who asked for it. Loved by her students, at her retirement party in April 1978 they gave her an academic gown for Nicholas, her cat.

Stedman Library:

For Trinity alumna听Mary Stedman听鈥�44, who died November 7, 2014 aged 92, giving back was a lifelong guiding principle, splendidly exemplified in her generosity to 荔枝成人app. Over the years, in addition to substantial donations in support of the John W. Graham Library fund, the restoration of St. Hilda鈥檚 library, upgraded phone and security systems and computer room, and improvements to the George lgnatieff Theatre, she helped endow the acclaimed Trinity One program. Mary鈥檚 prime inspiration was her father, Samuel, co-founder of the Stedman stores once familiar across the country (a few still remain). His determination to provide for his daughters an education that he himself had lacked, at a time when attending university was not so common for women, was equalled only by his insistence that giving back was both an obligation and a privilege. Two of Mary鈥檚 three sisters, Margaret 路37 and Ruth 鈥�42, were also Trinity grads who unstintingly supported the College. 荔枝成人app remained throughout her life a 鈥渟econd home,鈥� for Mary, and giving back to it a natural impulse. 鈥淭he reason I continue to support this College,鈥� she maintained, 鈥渋s to give someone else the opportu颅nities that I had.鈥�

Burgess House:

In honour of听Myrtle Burgess, the college鈥檚 first female Black student 鈥� in 2019, 荔枝成人app named a student residence, Burgess House, in St. Hilda鈥檚.听Read more about Myrtle鈥檚 life as a student and the story of the Burgess siblings.

History of St. Hilda鈥檚 College

In 1884, first female students were admitted to 荔枝成人app. Four year later, in 1888 St. Hilda鈥檚 College was created as the women鈥檚 college of Trinity, putting the College in the forefront of the movement for higher education for women. St. Hilda鈥檚 College was incorporated under its own Act on February 11, 1890 to 鈥減rovide higher education for women in Affiliation with Trinity University.鈥� The current St. Hilda鈥檚 College residence building on Devonshire Place opened in 1938. In 2004, all residences at Trinity became coeducational.

 

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