Barbara W. Newell

Barbara Warne Newell (born August 19, 1929) is an economist, career professor, and higher education administrator.

Barbara Newell (née Warne) was born on August 19, 1929, the daughter of Colston Warne and Frances Warne.

She moved to Amherst, Massachusetts as an infant with her family, where her father taught economics at Amherst College from 1930 to 1969.

“My home was a social center for the Economics Departments of Smith and Mount Holyoke, as well as Amherst.

So my childhood was peopled by a great number of professional women and I just took it for granted that this is where I was headed.

I also noted that the only women economists in the country were employed by women’s colleges.”

— Barbara Newell, Oral History Interview with Barbara Newell (WCW)

Newell attended Vassar College, noting that the historically women's college experience mirrored her childhood experiences with female role models.

Newell graduated in 1951 with a B.A. in Economics.

After graduation, Newell was accepted to Yale's graduate program in labor economics, but was discriminated against on the basis of her gender, as she would be prohibited from teaching and completing fieldwork on the side.

Newell ultimately attended the University of Wisconsin, which welcomed her with no such restrictions.

Two years into the program, Newell lost her husband of five weeks, George V. Thompson, to polio.

She took time off from her degree before her father encouraged her to return.

H. Edwin Young, then chair of the economics department, and Robben Wright Fleming arranged for the University of Illinois to pay for Newell to complete her dissertation before coming back to the University of Wisconsin.

She wrote her dissertation on Chicago and the labor movement.

Newell received her M.A. In 1953 and Ph.D. in 1958, both in Economics.

During a time of national focus on poverty, Newell was inspired by Fleming to aid in the development of a Poverty Center in cooperation with Melvin Laird, a Republican Congressman from Wisconsin.

The Poverty Center proposal was an early inspiration for the creation of the Wellesley Centers for Women (WCW).

After earning her doctorate from the University of Wisconsin in 1958, Newell was hired as Assistant Professor of Economics at Purdue University in 1959, making her the first woman hired by the Purdue School of Business.

She applied for the position at Purdue University after her husband, physicist George Newell, was hired by the university.

Amid the social turmoil of the late 1960s and early 1970s, the university was being closely watched due to allegations by the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW) regarding discrimination in female employment and admissions.

During the planning of celebrations for the historic event, it became apparent that the presence of women at the university was largely for appearance.

Newell was one of only two women serving in a high-ranking administrative role, neither of which was a permanent position.

The fact that only two women were appointed to the event-planning committee fueled criticism regarding men planning an event that was meant to celebrate the academic achievements of women.

In response, Newell formed another committee and led efforts to create a more education-based celebration spanning an October weekend.

During the two-day teach-in, events including various panel discussions and workshops educated attendees on women's history and place in the university.

The event served as an opportunity for women within the school to connect and communicate with one another.

George Newell developed cancer in 1963 and died weeks later, leaving Barbara a single mother with a young daughter and an Assistant Professorship.

Newell gained tenure at Purdue University in 1963, but returned to the University of Wisconsin Madison soon after to serve as Assistant to Chancellor Robben Fleming.

In this role, Newell was tasked with creating a Center for Poverty at the university, an experience which would later be influential in her creation of the Wellesley Centers for Women during her presidency at Wellesley College.

During Newell's time as Acting Vice President at the University of Michigan, the school marked its 100th anniversary of the admission of their first female student, Madelon Stockwell, in 1970.

After serving as an Associate Provost for Graduate Studies and Research at the University of Pittsburgh, Newell was appointed as the 10th President of Wellesley College in 1971 and served in the position until 1980.

Newell was inaugurated into the presidency on Thursday, October 26 at Alumnae Hall of Wellesley College.

Notably, she served as the tenth President of Wellesley College from 1972 to 1980 and was the first female chancellor of the State University System of Florida from 1981 to 1985.

Newell also received honorary degrees from the following thirteen institutions: Central Michigan University (1973), Trinity College (1973), Williams College (1974), Northeastern University (1974), Mt. Vernon College (1975), Purdue University (1976), Lesley College (1978), Denison University (1978), Rollins College (1981), Florida Institute of Technology (1981), Eckerd College (1982), Gettysburg College (1982), Butler University (1983), Alaska Pacific University (1986), Monmouth College (1986), and University of Maryland (1987).

Newell also served as the first woman U.S. Ambassador to UNESCO from 1979 to 1981, succeeding Esteban Edward Torres.

Near the end of her presidency from 1979 to 1981, Newell became the first woman to serve as U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

After leaving Wellesley College, she served as the chancellor of the State University System of Florida (1981–85) and taught economics.

During her time as the 10th President of Wellesley College, she founded the Center for Women's Studies, which would later become the Wellesley Centers for Women.

This institute is home to hundreds of research and action projects that have informed public policy, influenced practices, and shaped public opinion.