American women in the 21st century have more options from which to select a college education than in the past, yet there are some women who purposely select a women's college. This study examined the culture of women's colleges, specifically Spelman College, a Historically Black Women's College (HBWC) in Atlanta, Georgia, founded by White…

While expanding higher education is an important component of women's agency development, subsequent employment in the labour market remains an impediment to realising gender equality in many developing countries. In Bangladesh, while the rate of women's higher education completion has steadily increased, employment has not kept pace, resulting in…

This paper presents the successes and challenges faced in implementing the dual-mode strategy in higher education in the context of feminist theory. Worldwide, women's universities have been established by governments and private organisations to involve women more fully in the country's economic, political and social activities. The establishment…

Women's colleges and universities persist around the world, even as the vast majority of tertiary institutions are open to men and women. In nearly every nation, women can attend even the most elite formerly all-male universities, and in several nations women are the majority of all college students. Questions therefore arise about the continued…

This study was primarily a multiple-case study that incorporated descriptive statistical analysis to examine the contributions that three niche institutions play in the diverse democracy of the U.S. A "niche institution" is a college or university whose role in U.S. higher education is to meet the needs of a specific group and whose…

Since their creation in the latter part of the nineteenth century, women's colleges in America have undergone many significant changes. In 1960, over 230 women's colleges were in operation; over the next forty years more than 75 percent chose to admit men or shut their doors entirely (Miller-Bernal, 2006a). This chapter will shed light on the…

This dissertation is a qualitative case study of how three liberal arts colleges rationalized and provided physical education courses despite a trend in higher education to reduce or eliminate physical education from the curriculum. Kalamazoo College, Bennett College for Women, and Barnard College for Women continue to provide physical education…

The ideology of higher education for women at Wellesley College in the late 19th and early 20th centuries is discussed in the context of feminism and the women's suffrage movement. "Symmetrical womanhood," a concept emphasizing balance of traditional roles and intellectual and community involvement, was a goal of Wellesley faculty of…

A study of student leadership experiences at three women's colleges is described, and its implications for leadership in coeducational settings are examined. A brief review of research on women and leadership in college looks at women students' under representation in leadership roles, some reasons for this situation, female students' self esteem,…

Views on the importance of the woman's contributions to shaping culture and the role of female leadership at Mount Holyoke College are considered. According to historian Mary Ritter Beard, the "woman's tradition" of imparting a progressive social consciousness to the culture has been an important influence. Beard addressed Mount Holyoke…

This case study briefly explores how an online, multimedia learning module based on a Cognitive Apprenticeship higher level pedagogy can positively affect students achieving the learning outcomes of a Constructivist project-based curriculum in a blended e-business management program in the Middle East. The cohort in this program is nonnative…

The mission of Catholic colleges and universities and their responses to change are discussed in four articles. Historical information on Catholic women's colleges and the current picture are reviewed by Abigail McCarthy in "A Luminous Minority." The revision of the curriculum at Fordham College is described by James N. Loughran in…

The early history of Bennington College, Vermont, beginning with initial endeavors by Vincent Ravi Booth in 1923, is examined. Topics include: granting of a satisfactory charter to the college; the role of educators such as Amy Kelly and William Heard Kilpatrick in initial curriculum recommendations; electing Robert Devore Leigh as president;…

Organizational change at Wells College, New York, is traced from 1876-1905 in relation to women's role in higher education. This excerpt of a larger study indicates how women worked within a female college that had male authority figures at a time in which there were strong notions about proper feminine behavior. The college was intended to train…

Queens College, a women's liberal arts institution, regained prosperity by maintaining its traditional, quality undergraduate offerings and adding coeducational graduate and continuing education programs and degree options for mature women. (MSE)