Alice Reynolds
Alice Louise Reynolds (April 1, 1873 – December 5, 1938) [1] was the first woman professor at Brigham Young University (BYU). BYU magazine put her in a list of the 10 best BYU professors of the 20th century.[2] She was the second woman in Utah to be a full professor.[3]: 277
Childhood and education change
Alice was born in Salt Lake City, Utah Territory, United States. Her father was George Reynolds and her mother was Mary Ann Tuddenham.[4] Her father was a general authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), and worked as secretary to the First Presidency of the church for many years. When Alice was six years old, her father went to jail because he had more than one wife (plural marriage).
Her father's sister, her aunt Julia Reynolds, helped raise Alice. Alice liked reading and being around grownups.[5]: 9 When she was 12, her mother died while giving birth to one of her siblings.[5]: 15 Alice's father sent her and her younger sister Florence to the Brigham Young Academy (BYA) for their high school education.[5]: 16 Alice was inspired by one of her teachers, Academy Principal Karl G. Maeser.[6] She graduated from BYA in 1890.[7]
Alice had taught for two years when the president of BYA, Benjamin Cluff, asked her to start a literature department at BYA.[8]: 280 Reynolds went to the University of Michigan to study literature from 1892 to 1894. When she came back she became a full-time teacher at BYA.
Later in her life Reynolds received more education in Chicago, Cornell, Berkeley and Columbia.[8]: 280 She also traveled to Europe four different times.[5]: 38
Career change
Teaching change
Reynolds was a Professor of English for 44 years.[6] She became the first female to be a full professor at BYU.[9] She taught approximately 5,000 students in 20 different English courses.[6] Reynolds's absent-mindedness was famous at BYU. According to her students, she once walked through a herd of cows while reading a book and brought a teakettle to work instead of her purse.[8]: 279 [10][11]
Reynolds was an editor for the Relief Society Magazine from 1923 to 1930 and a writer for other LDS magazines. She also served in the General Board of the Relief Society of LDS Church for seven years.[9]
Contributions to library change
While working at BYA, Reynolds became the chairperson of the committee to establish the library. She was the chairperson of the committee for 19 years. She held a large fundraiser to obtain 1,200 books to add to the school's library. Over the course of her life, she organized several other campaigns to help the library grow to 100,000 volumes.[9] Through the efforts of the club, over 10,000 volumes were donated to the BYU library.[6]
References change
- ↑ "Alice Louise Reynolds". Brigham Young Academy High School Class of 1890. Brigham Young High School Alumni. Retrieved 2009-12-07.
- ↑ McClellan, Jeff (1999). "A Lingering Influence: Top 10 BYU Professors of the 20th Century". BYU Magazine. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
- ↑ Keele, Reba (1978). "Alice L. Reynolds". In Burgess-Olson, Vicky; Allen, James (eds.). Sister Saints. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press. ISBN 9780842512350.
- ↑ Jenson, Andrew (1936). Latter-day Saint biographical encyclopedia: A compilation of biographical sketches of prominent men and women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Vol. 4. Salt Lake City, Utah: The Andrew Jenson History Company (Printed by the Deseret News Press). p. 194. ISBN 9781172755158. Retrieved December 12, 2013.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Lyman, Amy Brown (1947). Lighter of Lamps: The Life Story of Alice Louise Reynolds. Salt Lake City, Utah: Alice Louise Reynolds Club; Deseret News Press. OCLC 5586589.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 McClellan, Jeff (1999). "A Lingering Influence: Top 10 BYU Professors of the 20th Century". BYU Magazine. Retrieved 29 February 2016.
- ↑ Easton, Susan Black; Woodger, Mary Jane (2011). Women of Character: Profiles of 100 Prominent LDS Women. American Fork, Utah: Covenant Communications, Inc. pp. 246–249. ISBN 9781680470185.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Keele, Reba (1978). "Alice L. Reynolds". In Burgess-Olson, Vicky; Allen, James (eds.). Sister Saints. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press. ISBN 9780842512350.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 "Alice Louise Reynolds". Brigham Young Academy High School Class of 1890. Brigham Young High School Alumni. Retrieved 2009-12-07.
- ↑ Finding aid author: Kristi Young (undated). "Alice Louise Reynolds / Jeane Woolfenden". Prepared for the L. Tom Perry Special Collections, Provo, UT. Retrieved July 17, 2017.
- ↑ Peterson, Ester Eggertsen. "Roots and Wings". BYU Studies: 11. Archived from the original on 16 July 2017. Retrieved 17 July 2017.