Loyola University Chicago

Women and Leadership Archives

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Women's Legacy

The Women and Leadership Archives (WLA) collects, preserves, and makes available permanently valuable records of women and women's organizations, which document women's lives, roles, and contributions.

News

  • Organizing Your Personal and Family Archives: June 10, 2020

    Please join us on June 10, 2020, for a virtual presentation: Organizing Your Personal and Family Archives. Emily Reiher, WLA Director, will present information about storing and handling items safely, encountering outdated formats, purchasing supplies, and managing digital items.
    REGISTER

  • WLA 25th Highlighted in Salt Magazine, Winter 2020

    The Women and Leadership Archives 25th Anniversary was highlighted in the latest edition of Salt (a magazine published for friends & family of the Sisters of Charity, BVM). Read the full issue here!
    READ

  • COVID-19 Update

    March 18, 2020 Update: The WLA is closed to all onsite visitors until further notice. Please contact us at wlarchives@luc.edu with any questions or remote research requests.
    Effective March 16, 2020, the Women and Leadership Archives will be operating by appointment only for the Loyola University Chicago community (faculty, students, and alumni). These researchers are encouraged to contact the WLA to see if virtual accommodations can be made or if an in-person visit is necessary. All other in-person visits and events will be postponed until further notice. WLA staff are available to conduct research, digitize items, and conduct other services to provide access to collections remotely. For more information, please contact the WLA at wlarchives@luc.edu. Follow the link for information regarding Loyola University Chicago’s response to COVID-19.
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  • Welcome the new WLA Director!

    Please join us in welcoming Emily Reiher, the new WLA Director who started in January 2020.
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  • 2020 Color Our Collections

    The WLA is once again participating in Color Our Collections. From February 3-7, 2020, libraries, archives, and other cultural institutions around the world are sharing free coloring sheets based on materials in their collections. Please download, print, and share your favorites! Share your work with us using #ColorOurCollections and #COCWLA.
    PARTICIPATE

  • Explore the WLA's Digital Collections on Preservica

    The WLA's digital collections are now available on a new platform called Preservica. This tool allows us to manage digital collections for the long run by keeping secure backups and helping us to migrate formats over time as software changes. View fascinating documents, photographs, and artwork from the WLA's collections wherever you go!
    VIEW

  • LYPW Polish Translation

    We are happy to announce (just in time for the Legion's 80th anniversary this year!) that the Legion of Young Polish Women Digital Exhibit is now available in Polish! Follow the link to get access to the English and Polish versions of the digital exhibit.
    VIEW

  • Pop-Up Library at the WLA, Spring 2020: CANCELED

    The remaining pop-up events in March and April have been canceled.MORE

  • The Past, Present, & Future of Feminist Spaces: POSTPONED

    This event, sponsored by Loyola's Women's Studies & Gender Studies Program and Women & Children First bookstore, has been postponed until further notice.

  • Unsung Heroes in the History of STEM and Health Sciences

    Sister Mary Therese Langerbeck, BVM, reportedly “the world’s first Sister-Doctor of Astrophysics” has been included in the Society of American Archivists list of "Unsung Heroes in the History of STEM and Health Sciences." Sr. Langerbeck taught physics at Mundelein College in Chicago from 1936-1970. (Photo: Sister Langerbeck with globe, n.d.)
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  • Jean Fritz and the Chicago Seven Trial

    Jean Fritz, a 51-year-old mother of three, found herself in the middle of one of the most publicized a controversial trial of her time. She spent four months sequestered in a hotel and separated from her family and the outside world as she, and the other eleven jurors, held the fate of seven young defendants in their hands.
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  • Sister Jean: Back in the Day

    Before the world fell in love with her, we knew Sister Jean (Jean Dolores Schmidt, BVM) from her long career at Mundelein College.
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  • History

    Why is there an angel on our webpage?

    Curious as to why there is an angel on the side of our page? Click here to learn more!