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Maudelle Bousfield
An oval yearbook photograph of a young African-American woman wearing a high-necked ruffled blouse. Her hair is in a bouffant updo.
Photograph of Bousfield from the University of Illinois yearbook, 1906.
Born
Maudelle Tanner Brown

June 1, 1885
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
DiedOctober 14, 1971(1971-10-14) (aged 86)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
OccupationEducator
Years active1913–1952
Known forNoted as the first African–American school principal within the Chicago Public Schools district.
Spouse
Midian Bousfield
​
​
(m. 1914; died 1948)​
Children1
RelativesHenry Ossawa Tanner (cousin)
W. Leonard Evans Jr. (son-in-law)

Maudelle Tanner Bousfield (née Brown; June 1, 1885 – October 14, 1971) was an American educator. Bousfield was the first African–American woman to graduate from the University of Illinois, and the first African–American school principal within the Chicago Public Schools district.

Biography

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Early life and education

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Bousfield was born Maudelle Tanner Brown in St. Louis, Missouri. Her parents were Charles Hugh Brown and Arrena Isabella Tanner Brown, who were both educators.[1] Bousfield attended the Charles Kunkel Conservatory of Music in St. Louis during her youth.[2]

Bousfield enrolled at the University of Illinois in 1903. She graduated with honors in 1906, with degrees in astronomy and mathematics, becoming the first African-American woman graduate from the University of Illinois.[3] After her time at the University of Illinois, Bousfield took courses at the Chicago Mendelssohn School of Music,[2] and earned a master's degree in education at the University of Chicago.[4]

Career

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Three women posed for a photo; two seated, one standing and bent over the other two. The table in front of them is reflective; the middle woman is holding papers.
Women's Policy Committee of the War Manpower Commission. At the first meeting of the Women's Policy Committee of the War Manpower Commission on October 1, 1942, three members get acquainted. They are, left to right: Maudelle Bousfield, Margaret A. Hickey, chairman; and Sara Southall.

Bousfield played piano[5] and taught mathematics before briefly resigning in 1914. Bousfield returned to teaching in 1922, later taking the principal's exam in 1926. Bousfield scored high on the exam and was assigned to head Keith Elementary School in 1927, becoming the first African–American school principal in the Chicago Public Schools district. In 1939, Bousfield became the first African–American high school principal in the same district,[6] after being assigned to head the predominately African–American Wendell Phillips High School in Bronzeville neighborhood of the city.[2] In addition to her tenure as principal, Bousfield served on the Women's Policy Committee of the War Manpower Commission,[7] with Margaret A. Hickey and Sara Southall during World War II.[8] Bousfield retired from Wendell Phillips High School after eleven years in 1950, with plans to travel: "I'll have a chance to see some of the far away places that have made atlases so fascinating to me."[9]

Later years and death

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In her later years, Bousfield traveled,[10] worked with the United Negro College Fund, and taught at Fisk University.[9] She also wrote a gardening column for the Chicago Defender newspaper. Bousfield served as the sixth international president (Supreme Basileus) of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the historically black sorority.[11] She was a charter member of the National Association of Negro Musicians.[12] Bousfield died on October 14, 1971, aged 86, in Chicago.[13]

Personal life and legacy

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Bousfield was married once and had a daughter. In 1914, she married physician Midian Othello Bousfield and together they had a daughter, Maudelle (b. 1915; d. 2013).[12] Bousfield's daughter was married businessman W. Leonard Evans Jr. Midian Bousfield died in 1948. Bousfield's cousin was artist Henry Ossawa Tanner. In 2013, a new residence hall at the University of Illinois was named Bousfield Hall, in her memory.[1][14] The Maudelle Brown Bousfield Apartments are run by the Chicago Housing Authority.[15]

References

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  1. ^ a b Dolinar, Brian (March 2013). "What's in a Name? Two C-U Buildings Named After African American Women". The Public I. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  2. ^ a b c Danns, Dionne (2009). "Thriving in the Midst of Adversity: Educator Maudelle Brown Bousfield's Struggles in Chicago, 1920-1950". The Journal of Negro Education. 78 (1): 3–16. ISSN 0022-2984. JSTOR 25608714.
  3. ^ Schmidt, Kim (25 February 2019). "The courage to be first". Storied. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  4. ^ "About Maudelle Bousfield". University Housing. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  5. ^ Kunz, Jessica (2019-03-28). "Celebrating Women: Maudelle Tanner Brown Bousfield". WCIA. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  6. ^ "Mrs. Maudelle Bousfield Appointed Head of Chicago High School". Opportunity. 17: 309. October 1939.
  7. ^ "Mrs. Maudelle Bousfield Favors Women Replacing Men in War Industry". The Pittsburgh Courier. 1942-09-12. p. 10. Retrieved 2020-06-01 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Women's Policy Committee of the War Manpower Commission. At the first meeting of the Women's Policy Committee of the War Manpower Commission on October 1, 1942, three members get acquainted. They are, left to right: Maudelle Bousfield, Margaret A. Hickey, chairman; and Sara Southall. The committee was formed to aid in mobilizing women workers for the war effort". Library of Congress. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  9. ^ a b Lynch, Agnes (1950-06-11). "Teacher Closes Desk in Phillips for Final Time". Chicago Tribune. p. 88. Retrieved 2020-06-01 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Mrs. Bousfield to Tell of Extensive Travels". Chicago Tribune. 1951-05-20. p. 1. Retrieved 2020-06-01 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Bousfield, Maudelle Brown - Sixth International President". AKA's Pioneering Sorors Open Doors. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  12. ^ a b Smith, Jessie Carney (1992). Notable Black American Women. VNR AG. pp. 41–43. ISBN 978-0-8103-9177-2.
  13. ^ "Maudelle B. Bousfield Dies; Pioneer Black Educator". Jet: 48. November 4, 1971.
  14. ^ Wurth, Julie (February 10, 2013). "New UI residence hall will bear name of university's first African-American alumna, a true pioneer". The News-Gazette. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
  15. ^ "Maudelle Brown Bousfield Apartments". The Chicago Housing Authority. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
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