City College News

Issue date: 3/10/07 Section: Features

The office of Mary Pruitt, located in the counseling center on the second floor of the T building, gives you an immediate sense that an old-school activist occupies the place. The walls are lined with shelves that overflow with tight rows of books pertaining to human rights in all its forms: the women's movement, civil rights, labor, etc. There are framed photos behind the desk of Gloria Steinem, and a miniature of Picasso's famous rendering of Gertrude Stein, among others.

On the floor adjacent to the door is a stack of old protest signs, warped a bit from age, but with messages still as emphatic as the day they were written. The top one says, in bold, block lettering: "I Wish Them to Be Taught to Think," a quote credited to Mary Wollstonecraft, the famous 18th century philosopher and writer, who, with the controversial publication of her book, A Vindication of the Rights of Women, gave voice to what was to become the feminist movement. And while Pruitt is many things, she is, above all, a feminist. Along with her friend and colleague, Carol Hogard, she helped to create the Women's Studies program at MCTC, now in its 34th year.

Both women had long histories of social activism before coming to teach at what was then called Metropolitan Community College in the early 70s. Pruitt earned her MA from Hunter College of the City University of New York between the years of 1967-1970, and was there for "all of the rolling social movements of the time."

Hogard achieved her Bachelor's degree from Fontbonne College before going on to receive her MED from St. Louis University, where she, too, was active in social and political movements. According to Hogard, they "were both basically of the same generation. The idealistic, anti-war generation of the hippies, as we were called in those days." She goes on to say that this activism taught them both "to stand up for our rights-not just the rights of women, but the rights of all humans as equal beings in this world."

At its inception, MCTC's Women's Studies program was revolutionary in that it was the first of its kind in the nation to be offered at a community college. Starting with what Pruitt calls "consciousness-raising groups" that met informally off-campus, the program was a grassroots effort spearheaded by herself and Hogard. They saw a definite need for resources on campus for what were then called "non-traditional" students: single parents, those returning to school, and those who had already entered the workforce. Both women are quick to point out that those students were vital to the program's creation.

Many students eagerly embraced the feminist movement; the program was a natural progression of the so-called "radicalism" that was sweeping the nation's college campuses in those idealistic days. This passion for change was not just limited to the feminist movement, but also included the American Indian Movement and the ongoing struggle for Civil Rights, which are both closely tied to Women's Studies.

By 1974, the consciousness-raising groups had evolved into Women's Upward Bound classes taught by Pruitt and Hogard within the college curriculum, thanks to a federal grant. It was approved with the understanding that, once the money ran out, the school would underwrite the costs of the program. However, in 1976, Metro's then President, Raphael Cortada, decided to put an end to the program. Little did he know of the stir this seemingly mundane administrative decision would cause. Over 200 students assembled in Loring Park to protest in what was called a birthday party for Martha Washington, dressing as famous suffragettes while giving rallying speeches and carrying signs. The cries of protest were heard, and the program was reinstated.

The Women's Studies program has come a long way, baby (to borrow a phrase from a sexist cigarette ad campaign of the 1970s). When it was first starting out, the classes that were offered focused on helping women deal with the pressures of working and going to school, or parenting while working and going to school. According to Pruitt, the program "came of age" in the 1980s, when Dean Valeriana Moller encouraged its expansion into academic fields such as Biology, Anthology, Sociology, and History. Since the 1990s, the classes have been consistently updated to reflect the diverse needs of what is perhaps one of the most diverse student bodies in the country.

Today an MCTC student can choose from a variety of Women's Studies classes each semester. Hogard teaches a hugely popular course, Women, Ecofeminism and Development-the first of its kind in the state-that continues to stay on the cutting edge of scholarship and community involvement, while Pruitt regularly offers Women's History classes that many students find extremely enjoyable. Other classes being taught this semester include: Women in Cross Cultural Perspective, Biology of Women, Women in Leadership and Management, Introduction to Women's Culture, View of Modern Women, and Women Poets of the World. A relatively new addition to the curriculum is an Introduction to Women's Studies class that examines the academics of Women's Study by learning the many ways it can be interpreted and applied while using it as, according to the course description, a "tool for academic problem-solving in relation to race, class, ethnicity, and sexuality." Both Pruitt and Hogard are excited to announce the addition of Women in Art, a class to be taught by Katherine Schaefer during the upcoming Fall 2007 semester.

Back in 1977, Pruitt and Hogard were quoted in the college's former student newspaper, The Metronome, as saying that they did not advocate receiving a Bachelor of Arts degree in Women's Studies, as "you can't get a job in it. We recommend something that will get you some bread." But the times, they have a-changed. Today there is a "constant flow of scholarships" for students wishing to pursue Women's Studies degrees at schools such as Hamline University, and Augsburg, Smith, Wellesley, Mt. Holyoke, and Mills Colleges. This year alone, there are at least ten students with excellent chances of winning scholarships to one of these institutions.

"There are jobs in academia all over the map," says Pruitt. "There are networks of physicists, chemists, etc, where years ago there were only careers available in English Literature and the Social Sciences. We're here to stay!"

Pruitt and Hogard have been forces to be reckoned with on this campus for over thirty years, and personal heroes to many. When they retire, the Academic Dean, Linnea Stenson, has pledged to bring in a full-time faculty member to helm the department and ensure its continued success and longevity.

Says Hogard of herself and Pruitt, "Neither of us have lost the dream that the full contribution of women to the world will be fully realized into every curriculum by the time our grandchildren's generation is going to college." As long as there is a Women's Studies department at MCTC, the legacy of not only these two spectacular women, but of all of those who have struggled for the cause of equality, will be honored, and the school itself will continue to be a leader in diversity

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