Pioneering Women of Rutgers College
May 20, 1976 (page 15 of 56). 1976. The Home News (1970-1985), May 20, 1976. https://login.proxy.libraries.rutgers.edu/login?qurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.proquest.com%2Fnewspapers%2Fmay-20-1976-page-15-56%2Fdocview%2F2270929616%2Fse-2%3Faccountid%3D13626 (accessed November 24, 2025).
After two centuries of educating exclusively male students, Rutgers College admitted its first class of 450 women in the fall of 1972. That boundary-pushing first female class turned out to be one of the most selective of any institution of higher education in the country at the time, according to Arnold B. Grobman, then dean of Rutgers College. Here are the stories of those pioneering women who changed 200 years of Rutgers history and went on to have careers in practically all fields and professions. They became physicians and nurses, bankers and business owners, attorneys, educators, journalists, librarians, and government analysts. Read about their lives told in their own words.
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Marian Calabro
Description: Marian Calabro was born in Kearny, New Jersey in 1954. She grew up in Kearny and attended Queen of Peace grammar school in North Arlington and Kearny High School. During her upbringing, her interests revolved around reading, music, theater and writing. From 1972 to 1976, she went to Rutgers College in the first coed class. She majored in English and wrote for The Targum. She recalls dorm life as a freshman, the big brother program, access to women's reproductive health, student... -
Janice Janka Hartmann
Description: Janice Janka Hartmann was born in Philadelphia in 1954. In the interview, she discusses her family's Polish heritage and traditions that were carried on in her family. She grew up in New Jersey in Pennsauken and Moorestown and went to parochial schools. From 1972 to 1976, she attended Rutgers College in the first coed class. She recalls student life in Davidson Hall, memorable professors, including Sam Baily and Tom Forstenzer, and involvement in the Polish Student Social Club,... -
Linda Dale Hoffa
Linda Dale Hoffa was born in 1954 in Camden, New Jersey. (Part One) She grew up in Burlington and Camden Counties, living primarily in Haddon Township. During her youth, she went to public schools and was involved in the Methodist Church in Westmont and athletics. In 1971, she lived in Holland as an exchange student with the American Field Service. From 1972 to 1976, she attended Rutgers College on the Presidential Scholarship. She discusses being in the first coed class at the college, living... -
Mary Frank Kelly
Description: Born in 1954, Mary Frank Kelly grew up in Bloomfield, New Jersey. In the interview, she discusses her maternal family's Irish and Scottish roots and paternal family's Slovakian and Ukrainian roots. Her parents were both college educated. Growing up, she participated in sports and Girl Scouts and played the French horn in band, wind ensemble and orchestra. She went to the Rutgers College of Pharmacy from 1972 to 1977 and was in the first coed class at Rutgers College. At Rutgers,... -
Margaret Eraclio Nizolek
Description: Margaret Eraclio Nizolek was born in Flushing, Queens in 1954. She spent her early years in Flushing and then grew up in Jericho, where she went to public schools. From 1972 to 1976, she attended Rutgers College, majoring in English and minoring in French. In the interview, she discusses her experiences in the pioneering class of women at Rutgers College. She delves into dorm life at Davidson, memorable professors, campus life and meeting her future spouse. She went to graduate... -
Deborah Rickards
Description: Deborah Rickards was born in 1955 in New York City. In the interview, she discusses her family's Eastern European and English Jewish roots. She grew up in an observant Jewish family, living in Roosevelt, New York until 1968 and then in Ridgewood, New Jersey. From 1972 to 1976, she attended Rutgers College and majored in history. She served as a student representative in the University Senate as a sophomore and was appointed to the President's Advisory Council as a senior by... -
Angela Scalpello
Description: Born in 1954, Angela Scalpello grew up in Lyndhurst, New Jersey. In the interview, she discusses her maternal family's roots in Naples, Italy and her father's upbringing in Malta and subsequent immigration to the U.S. She went to parochial schools, graduating from Queen of Peace Girls' High School in North Arlington in 1972. She attended Rutgers College from 1972 to 1976. In the interview, she delves into dorm life in Hegeman Hall, majoring in English, memorable professors... -
Peg Van Kleef
Born in 1954, Peg Van Kleef grew up in East Paterson/Elmwood Park, where she attended public schools. In the fall of 1972, she began in the first coeducational class at Rutgers College. In the interview, she recalls her initial impressions of Rutgers College, living in the River Dorms and Silvers Apartments, the Big Brother-Little Sister Program, student life on campus, typing copy for Targum Productions, her classmate serving as the first woman president of the Rutgers Student Government... -
Susan Koch Youmans
Description: Susan Koch Youmans was born in 1954 in Coaldale, Pennsylvania. She grew up in Coaldale, and when she was in seventh grade, her family moved to South River, New Jersey. In 1972, she began at Rutgers in the Pharmacy School. In the interview, she recalls living on Busch Campus in Davidson, switching to education as a major, student-teaching in East Brunswick, campaigning for George McGovern in 1972, and socializing on the College Ave Campus. After graduating from Rutgers College in...