Alice T. Schafer

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Alice Turner Schafer (born June 18, 1915 in Richmond , Virginia , † September 27, 2009 in Lexington , Massachusetts ) was an American mathematician and university professor. She was a founding member of the Association for Women in Mathematics in 1971 .

life and work

Schafer was called Alice Turner before she married the mathematician Richard Schafer . Her mother had died in childbirth and after her father's untimely death she was supported by her two aunts. She attended elementary school in Scottsburg , Virginia, and continued to be very interested in math in high school. When asked to the high school headmistress to support her application for a place at the University of Richmond in mathematics, she replied that mathematics is not an issue for girls and that she would only support her application if she is ready to study advertise the story. The University of Richmond nevertheless admitted her to study mathematics and granted her a full scholarship. She was the only math student. However, women were not allowed to enter the university library, but had to request a book, which they could then study in the "women's reading room". She won the James D. Crump Prize in Mathematics in her junior year and received a bachelor's degree in mathematics in 1936. After that she was a high school teacher for three years and then studied with another scholarship at the University of Chicago . After completing her master's degree, she did her PhD with Ernest Preston Lane. She wrote her dissertation on "Singularities of Space Curves", which she later published in two articles: 1944 in the Duke Mathematical Journal and 1948 in the American Journal of Mathematics . After her doctorate and marriage, she taught at Connecticut College , Swarthmore College and the University of Michigan, among others . In 1962 she became a full professor at Wellesley College and headed the mathematics department from 1963 to 1968. In 1971 she was a founding member of the Association for Women in Mathematics and was elected second president of the association. In 1980 she was appointed Helen Day Gould Professor of Mathematics at Wellesley College and retired as a mathematics professor. From 1988 to 1996 she taught again at Marymount University . She made several trips to China with the United Nations People to People Citizen Ambassador Program, where she accompanied groups of math educators (1987), a math delegation (1989–1990), and conference participants (1992 and 1995). In 1996 she retired for the last time.

Awards (selection)

  • 1964: Honorary Degree from the University of Richmond
  • 1977: Distinguished Alumna Award, Westhampton College
  • 1985: Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science
  • 1988: Yueh Gin Gung and the Dr. Charles Y Hu Award for Excellence in Mathematics, Mathematical Association of America
  • 1990: Alice-T.-Schafer-Mathematikpreis for her dedicated work for a stronger participation of women in mathematics, Association for Women in Mathematics

literature

  • Marilyn Bailey Ogilvie, Joy Dorothy Harvey: The Biographical Dictionary of Women in Science: L – Z, 2003, ISBN 978-0415920384
  • Charlene Morrow, Teri Perl: Notable Women in Mathematics: A Biographical Dictionary, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1998, ISBN 0-313-29131-4

Web links

personal data
SURNAME Schafer, Alice T.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Turner, Alice Elizabeth (maiden name); Schafer, Alice Turner (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American mathematician and university professor
DATE OF BIRTH June 18, 1915
PLACE OF BIRTH Richmond , Virginia
DATE OF DEATH September 27, 2009
Place of death Lexington , Massachusetts