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Dr. Elaine Ryan Hedges, an innovative scholar, a superior teacher, and an exemplary
administrator, was born in Yonkers, New York on August 17, 1927.
She lived in Baltimore, Maryland from the late 1960’s
until her death in 1997. This extraordinary educator was at the
forefront when the field of Women’s Studies was created in
the 1970’s, and was crucial to its development and
continued growth, as founding member and advisor to the National
Women’s Studies Association. Nationally and
internationally recognized as a scholar of the first rank, Dr.
Hedges has made a significant and lasting contribution to the
people of the State of Maryland, and particularly to the women
of Maryland.
For many years, Dr. Hedges served as writer, critic, and
editor for The Feminist Press, which honored her in 1988 with
The Feminist Press Award for Contributions to Women’s
Culture. She was also one of eight major editors for the
current edition of Heath Anthology of American Literature, a
publication which virtually redefined the canon of American
literature toward the inclusiveness of women writers and
writers of all races. Noted for her scholarship on American
women’s quilts, Dr. Hedges was sought as a speaker and
consultant by historical societies, museums, and quilting
groups. Her critical efforts in forming the Modern Language
Association’s Committee on the Status of Women, during
the 1970’s, continue to reap untold benefits for women
educators and students.
In the early 1970’s Dr. Hedges founded the
Women’s Studies Program of Towson University, esteemed
as one of the oldest and best in the nation, contributing
greatly to the expansion of diversity and inclusiveness in
higher education in the State. By the time of her retirement,
Towson’s interdisciplinary program in Women’s
Studies had grown to include 40 faculty members, 50 courses,
and reached an average of 2,000 students a year. In addition
to her exceptional efforts in developing and perfecting
Towson’s Women’s Studies Program, Dr. Hedges was
one of two organizers to make Towson University’s
curriculum more gender-inclusive. As co-director of a three
year grant, from the U.S. Department of Education’s Fund
for Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), Dr. Hedges
helped 75 Towson faculty members in 13 disciplines transform
their courses to more adequately incorporate the growing body
of knowledge on women. As an extension of that work she and
co-director, Professor Sara Coulter of Towson University,
headed a similar “mainstreaming” project for five
community colleges within the state of Maryland.
At the time of her death, Dr. Hedges had been working on
publishing materials for the National Center for Curriculum
Transformation Resources on Women, which she and Dr. Coulter
recently established on the Towson University campus with
funds from a Ford Foundation grant. The National
Center’s purpose is to serve as a clearinghouse for the
dissemination of ideas and materials developed in these and
other mainstreaming projects throughout the nation and the
world.
Elaine Hedges’ lifework has made women more visible in
our culture and society. Achieving preeminent status as a
leader and ground breaker in the fields of women’s
studies and American literature, Dr. Hedges’ work has
led to tremendous educational advances in the State, to the
present and future benefit of Maryland women and women
throughout the world.
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