Special Collections & Archives: Snapshots from the Archives

Snapshot from the Archives: Remarkable Women for Women's History Month 2025

Remarkable Women: Making a Difference in Education

March is Women's History Month, with International Women's Day celebrated around the world on the 8th. This year’s WHM theme is "Moving Forward Together! Women Educating and Inspiring Generations’"- a perfect fit with Roehampton University's long history of female leadership in education. To mark this event, Roehampton's archivists have been busy curating a special exhibition celebrating the many inspirational women who have left their mark on our colleges: the women who have led, taught, or studied here over the last 200 years, as well as present day leaders who continue to inspire future generations. The exhibition, entitled "Remarkable Women: Making a Difference in Education" can be seen in the Well at Southlands, between 11am and 2pm on Tuesdays to Thursdays, until 26th March. 

As you explore our uniquely beautiful campus, you may have noticed how the wood-panelled walls of Grove House at Froebel, or the elegant corridors of Parkstead House at Whitelands, are hung with many portraits of women through the ages. These are former heads of college, and  just some of the inspirational leaders who feature in the exhibition.

From "Mother of Methodism" Susanna Wesley (1669-1742), whose pioneering advocacy for the education of women had a direct influence on subsequent generations, leading to the establishment of Southlands College in 1872, to current Head of Digby Stuart College and Dean of Students Professor Marilyn Holness OBE, we celebrate the women whose energy and drive has made a real difference to education in this country and beyond. You can see full details of all these remarkable women in this online exhibition slideshow; here are some brief snapshots of some of them. 

Have you ever wondered who Digby Stuart College is named after? It is in fact two people: Mother Mabel Digby RSCJ founded Wandsworth Teacher Training College for Women in 1874, which has grown to become today's Digby Stuart College. Janet Erskine Stuart RSCJ entered the Society of the Sacred Heart in 1882 and was responsible for expanding the teacher training college, a well as writing several books on the education of girls and women. Both are buried here, in the chapel of the college that bears their names. 

Mabel Digby (left) and Janet Erskine Stuart

Building Influence

Some other names may also be a familiar to you from the buildings around campus. Emilie Louise Michaelis, for instance, was Principal of the Froebel Education Institute (FEI, now Froebel College) from 1892 to 1901 and was a leading figure in the introduction of the Froebelian kindergarten system to the UK. Esther Lawrence was FEI Principal from 1901 to 1932 and had a huge influence on the provision of early childhood education for children in socially deprived areas. Rosalie Lulham joined the FEI teaching staff in 1896 and founded the Nature Studies department and Braille circle; she went on to become the Institute's Vice Principal from 1932 to 1934. The Richardson building is named for the woman who oversaw much of its construction following the extensive bomb damage suffered by Digby Stuart College in the second world war. Mother Mary Richardson served as College Principal from 1948 to 1968 and foresaw "a time when the college would eventually be educating young people not just to become teachers but to join other professions such as social work and psychology" - which has indeed come to pass with the development of Roehampton as a university. She was also a prolific writer of children's books and radio plays. Eglantyne Mary Jebb, MA CBE was FEI Principal from 1932 to 1955, leading the college through the challenges of a wartime evacuation and post-war relocation and expansion. Her CBE was awarded in 1950 for her contribution to national education policy, including the integration of Froebelian teachers in state schools.

Left to Right: Emilie Michaelis, Esther Lawrence, Rosalie Lulham, Mary Richardson, Eglantyne Jebb.

The first female Principal of Whitelands College was Clara Luard in 1907. She led the College until 1918, fighting fiercely against the prevailing attitudes of the day regarding the value of higher education for women.  Mary Atkinson Williams, MA, was the first female Principal of Southlands College (1914 to 1918), having previously been a student and then a teacher there. She successfully led the College through the challenges of the First World War, including air raids and Zeppelin bombs. A later College principal, Florence M. Wood MA, who served from 1931 to 1949, actually held a pilot's licence, a rare achievement for a woman at that time.

Left to Right: Clara Luard, Mary Atkinson Williams, Florence Wood

For more information on these and many other inspirational women from all four Roehampton colleges, visit the exhibition in the Well at Southlands or view the Youtube slideshow. 

With special thanks to the exhibition's curators:

Gilly King, Southlands College Archives Historian; Kornelia Cepok, University Archivist; Gemma Bentley, Whitelands Archivist; and Ginny Jordan-Arthur, former Digby Stuart Chaplain. 

Exhibition generously funded by the Southlands Methodist Trust. 

Professor Marilyn Holness OBE