Anna J. Cooper Joellen El Bashir |
|
Click on Images for Full View
|
|
|
Anna
Julia Cooper {1858-1964}, educator and writer, was born a slave in Raleigh, NC. She began
her education in 1867 at St. Augustine’s Normal and Collegiate Institute in Raleigh.
In 1881 she entered Oberlin College in Ohio, where she earned both undergraduate and
graduate degrees. In 1925, she earned the Ph.D. degree from the Sorbonne in Paris, France.
|
|
Dr.
Cooper taught on the college level for several years before coming to Washington, D.C. as
principal of M Street High School (now Dunbar High School) from 1902 to 1906. Much of her
career, however, centered around Frelinghuysen University in Washington, D.C., an adult
education night school that offered courses in academic, religious and trade programs. Dr.
Cooper, president of Frelinghuysen University from 1930 to 1940, was a staunch proponent
of education for females. She believed strongly that education was the key to social
equality for women and that access to higher education was critical to women becoming a
distinct political and social force. She was also a relentless advocate for women’s
suffrage.
|
For
further reading on the life and career of Dr. Anna J. Cooper, Baker-Fletcher, Karen. A
Singing Something: Womanist Reflections Gable, Leona C. From
Slavery to the Sorbonne and Beyond: The Life Johnson, Karen Ann. Uplifting the
Women and the Race: The Lives, Lemert, Charles and Esme Bhan, eds. The
Voice of Anna Julia
|
|
