Summary
Abstract
Teresa Cohen was the first woman professor in the Dept. of Mathematics at Penn State, 1920-1961.
Dates
- Creation: 1928-1986
Extent
2 Linear Feet
Background
Biographical / Historical
Dr. Teresa Cohen was the first women professor in the Department of Mathematics at the Pennsylvania State University. Born on February 14, 1892, in Baltimore, Maryland, she attended the Friends School in Baltimore. In 1912 she received her B.A. degree from Goucher College, a small private, liberal arts, women's college in Towson, Maryland. Cohen continued her studies at Johns Hopkins University, in Baltimore. At Hopkins she received both her M.A. (1915) and Ph.D. (1918) in mathematics. In September 1920, Joseph Willard, the chairman of the mathematics department at the Pennsylvania State College, needed to fill a last minute demand for another section. Upon the recommendation and suggestion of one of his uncle's, Willard contacted Cohen about the teaching position. Although she had no formal education training, she accepted, and in doing so became the first woman faculty member in the department. During her first year (1920), she had the position of instructor. In 1922, her title changed to assistant professor, and she would continue to rise within the department until she was granted the status of full professor in 1946. Cohen remained in the department until age laws forced her reluctant retirement with emeritus status on December 31, 1961. During her forty-one year tenure at Penn State, she taught over seven thousand students in subjects ranging from algebra to the history of mathematics. She had a tremendous love and enthusiasm for teaching and welcomed the opportunity to help students who asked her for assistance. After her retirement she continued to tutor students until as late as 1986. When she was ninety-three years old, she held office hours five days a week during which she gladly tutored students on the rudiments of mathematics for no charge. Cohen was also an active member of the university and State College communities. She served on numerous department and university-wide committees. A founding member of Penn State's Phi Beta Kappa fraternity, she held all the major offices of this organization, except historian. She was also a member of Sigma Delta Epsilon for many years and served several terms as local treasurer of that organization's Nu chapter. An active member of the Jewish congregation, she attended the Hillel Synagogue, and participated in the Jewish Community Council, the Jewish Community Council for Women, and was a member of B'nai B'rith Women, a national organization for Jewish Women. She was also instrumental in advising and providing leadership for hundreds of Jewish students who attended Penn State. An avid music lover, Cohen played the violin and attended as many concerts, operas, and musical productions as she could. She was also the recipient of numerous professional awards and honors, including the Lion's Paw which acknowledges excellence in teaching. The highlight of these awards may have been the November 1, 1970, celebration given to honor her for her fifty years of teaching at Penn State. Friends, colleagues, and former students returned to Penn State to honor Cohen for her personal and professional achievements. Cohen was a well respected and admired women, both within the university and State College community.
Scope and Contents
The collection consists of two standard record cartons and has been categorized in two subgroups; 1) Personal and 2) Professional.
The personal records consist of a small collection of post cards, handwritten index card and additional memorabilia reminiscent of her tenure at the Pennsylvania State University.
The professional records are arranged in two series; College of Liberal Arts and Teaching Materials.
The College of Liberal Arts series consists of committee reports, inter-office correspondence and two petitions.
These petitions are for the establishment of charters for Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Chi honor societies at Penn State.
The teaching materials series consists of lecture notes, exams, sample problems, and solutions to the many courses Cohen had taught at Penn State.
Those courses have been arranged by course number.
Because the collections original order was destroyed prior to the materials being transferred to the university's archives, 16 folders were not identified specifically by course name or number.
The third series is a small collection of Liberal Arts and Mathematics publications that were present with the collection.
A book collection contains several copies of "Basic Algebra and Trigonometry," (1956) that have been removed and now reside in the Penn State book collection in Pattee Library, University Park, Pennsylvania.
The Teresa Cohen papers provide insight into early mathematical practices and techniques.
By examining the problems, solutions, and computations, the researcher could learn how problems were solved, and determine if the methods have changed over the years.
In addition, the lecture notes Cohen used in her class room would be helpful for the researcher, for they provide valuable mathematical information and data.
Cohen organized her lecture notes fairly well, and they would assist the researcher who examines them.
Since some of the materials in the collection concern the College of Liberal Arts, a researcher interested in knowing about some of the committee decisions and reports pertaining to the College of Liberal Arts would find these papers useful.
However, this material is rarely dated and loosely organized.
Nonetheless, these papers are interesting and contribute to the historical record.
Finally, a researcher interested in studying prominent teachers in the field of mathematics would find this collection helpful.
The bulk of Cohen's papers are concerned with her teaching activities, and the researcher looking for the notes, texts, and computations of mathematicians would want to use this collection.
However, one drawback to the collection is that it contains very little personal recollection of Cohen's tenure at Penn State.
There is no diary or journal to provide the researcher with a biographical sketch.
Despite this, Cohen's papers should not be overlooked by a historian of mathematics.
Scope and Contents
The collection contains the personal and professional papers of Teresa Cohen. The personal papers consist of a small collection of post cards, and memorabilia of her tenure at Penn State. The professional papers consist of the College of Liberal Arts committee reports, inter- office correspondence, and two petitions to establish charters for Phi Beta Kappa and Sigma Chi honor societies at Penn State. Her teaching materials contain lecture notes, exams, sample problems and solutions for the many courses Cohen taught. Also, includes a small collection of Liberal Arts and Mathematics publications and journal articles.
Physical Location
For current information on the location of these materials, please consult the Penn State University Libraries catalog via the link above. Archival collections may be housed in offsite storage. For materials stored offsite, please allow 2-3 business days for retrieval.
Processing Information
Processed by Special Collections staff.
Using These Materials
Repository Details
Part of the Eberly Family Special Collections Library Repository
104 Paterno Library
Penn State University
University Park 16802 USA
(814) 865-1793
spcollections@psu.edu
Conditions Governing Access
This collection is open for research.
Conditions Governing Use
Photocopies of original materials may be made available for research purposes at the discretion of the Eberly Family Special Collections Library. Photocopies or reproductions of original materials may be subject to fees as outlined by the Pennsylvania State University Libraries reproduction policies. Copyright is retained by the creators of items in these papers, or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law. Patrons seeking advice on the availability of unpublished materials for publication should consult relevant copyright law and laws of libel.
Preferred Citation
[Identification of item], Teresa Cohen papers, 00188, Eberly Family Special Collections Library, Pennsylvania State University.
- Title
- Guide to the Teresa Cohen papers
- Status
- Published
- Author
- Special Collections Faculty/Staff
- Date
- 2011
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Revision Statements
- 2021: As part of bulk updates, Benjamin Mitchell updated standardized notes to current standard