James Rhoads
James Evans Rhoads (born January 21, 1828 in Marple Township , Pennsylvania , † January 2, 1895 in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania) was an American educator and administrator. He was the first president of Bryn Mawr College .
life and work
Rhoads received his education at Westtown School in Pennsylvania, an institution of the Society of Friends. He studied with his uncle Charles Evans from Philadelphia and taught there for a time at a school. In 1851 he received a medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania and ran a pharmacy in Philadelphia. From 1852 to 1854 he was a doctor in the Pennsylvania Hospital. He then opened a general practice practice . In 1860 he married Margaret W. Ely and had with her two daughters and a son. In 1862, after severe exhaustion, he sought recovery during a six-month tour of Europe. However, this time was not enough for a full recovery of his constitutional energies, and he withdrew from medical practice entirely. The civil war and its aftermath required active care for the southern freedmen, and Rhoads was among the first to help colored people in every way possible. He was one of the most helpful friends in Washington, Hampton, Virginia, and Philadelphia. When General Ulysses S. Grant initiated his policy of justice and kindness towards the Indians, Rhoads oversaw, among other things, education and missionary work for the benefit of the Indian tribes. He was also president of the Indian Rights Association for several years. In 1876, Rhoads was asked to publish a denominational weekly magazine: the Friends' Review. The religious as well as literary aims of this magazine were in line with his preferences. In 1883 he was named president of Bryn Mawr College for Women, where he had served on one of the original boards of trustees. The college was established by a liberal foundation for which Joseph W. Taylor had chosen a seat a few miles from Philadelphia. The selection of Rhoads for the office of first president was welcomed on all sides. While not a college graduate himself, he had long been a manager at Haverford College , a similar institution for men. At the time the college organization of Bryn Mawr College was being carried out, women's higher education was still at a comparatively early stage and the theory of curriculum arrangement in colleges for men was being revised and revolutionized in most places. Rhoads established Bryn Mawr as an internationally respected, non-denominational school. The first class consisted of 36 female students and eight doctoral students. It was the first university to offer women degrees, including doctorates. In 1894, Rhoads was forced to resign from the presidency due to an illness that affected him. Martha Carey Thomas succeeded him as second president. He continued teaching as a professor of ethics and was President of the Board of Trustees. The James E. Rhoads Hall was named after him in his honor. In 1890 he was awarded the honorary degree LL.D by Union College in New York State.
Publications (selection)
- Four Lectures on Some of the Distinguishing Views of Friends: Delivered in Twelfth Street Meeting-House, Philad'a by Request of the Overseers of That Meeting; 1890 (Classic Reprint), 2018, ISBN 978-1333953461 .
- Addresses at the Inauguration of Bryn Mawr College, 2019, ISBN 978-0526588817 .
- Our next duty to the Indians, Philadelphia: Indian Rights Association, 1887.
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Rhoads, James |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Rhoads, James Evans |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American educator and administrator |
| DATE OF BIRTH | January 21, 1828 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Marple Township , Pennsylvania |
| DATE OF DEATH | January 2, 1895 |
| Place of death | Philadelphia , Pennsylvania |