Remarkable women have been part of Roosevelt University since its founding in 1945, starting with the first advisory board chair, Eleanor Roosevelt. In the years since, Roosevelt has counted many bold and visionary women among its students, staff, trustees and friends.
Meet some of the women who left their mark on Roosevelt University.
faculty foundations
A modern dance and choreography pioneer, Sybil Shearer came to Chicago after her 1941 debut at Carnegie Hall. She taught as a dance professor first at the YMCA College and then Roosevelt College from 1945 to 1951. She has been described as “original, provocative, unpredictable, a maverick, a poet of movement, a near-legendary figure and a gentle rebel.”
When Rose Hum Lee was appointed chair of the sociology department in 1956, she became the first Chinese American to lead a university academic department in the country. Lee wrote journal articles and textbooks about Chinese immigration and assimilation, urban studies, comparative social welfare and art.
Frances Horwich taught early childhood education from 1946 to 1952. Horwich is most known for her role as “Miss Frances,” host of the Ding Dong School, one of the earliest preschool TV programs in the world. Horwich invented the technique of speaking to the audience as if they were in the same room, a style later adopted by Fred Rogers and the cast of Sesame Street.
Betty Balanoff (MA History, ’63) taught history to Roosevelt students for 25 years. Her lasting legacy is the Labor Oral History Project, a collection of over 60 interviews with union members in the Roosevelt archives. Balanoff conducted the interviews from 1970 to 1985.
breaking the glass ceiling
Born in a displaced persons camp after World War II, Goldie Wolfe Miller (BS '67) graduated from Roosevelt University as class president and valedictorian. At a time when the commercial real estate industry was dominated by men, she ran the largest woman-owned commercial brokerage in the United States with almost $3 billion in transactions.
In 2007, Wolfe Miller created the Goldie B. Wolfe Miller Women Leaders in Real Estate Initiative at Roosevelt University. The program supports young women in commercial real estate and now extends to graduate students across the Midwest. Wolfe Miller was inducted into the Chicago Association of Realtors Hall of Fame in 2011 and received an honorary Roosevelt doctorate in 2015.
Karen Gibbs (BSBA ’76) was the first woman to work on the floor of the Chicago Board of Trade. She began her career there as a board marker and left as a member of the Office of Investigations and Audits. Gibbs has worked as an anchor and financial news reporter for CNBC, PBS and Fox News.
Carla Hayden (BA Political Science, ’73) led community libraries in Chicago, Baltimore and Washington, DC before becoming the 14th Head Librarian of Congress. She is the first African American and first woman to serve in the role.
Read more about Hayden in the Roosevelt Review.
By the time Vicki Fuller (BSBA '79) left her position as Chief Investment Officer of the New York State Common Retirement Fund, she grew it to $207.4 billion in assets. She credited her studies at Roosevelt University as the foundation for her career.
As global chief diversity officer, Patricia Harris (BGS ’80) developed diversity and inclusion strategies for McDonald’s workforce around the world. The company earned recognition from Fortune and many other publications for its commitment to diversity.
Harris is the chair of the Roosevelt University Board of Trustees. Hear more about her journey on the University podcast.
Political powerhouses
As a founding member of the advisory board, Eleanor Roosevelt visited the University often in its early years. She spoke at Roosevelt College in November 1945, when the school was dedicated in honor of her husband, and returned in 1959 when the University was rededicated to honor both Roosevelts.
In her syndicated newspaper column “My Day,” she wrote the following about the University:
“Here is an experiment in education for democracy where 1,400 students representing a number of foreign countries, as well as many racial and religious backgrounds, are enthusiastically at work. I met the faculty, which is as varied as the student body. But teachers and students alike are dedicated to a search for knowledge and truth through knowledge.”
Melissa Bean (BA Political Science, ’02) represented Illinois’ Eighth District in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011. She is the current president and CEO of Mesirow Wealth Management. As an advisory board member of the Women’s Leadership Council, she’s building a new space for women leaders to work together.
When Melissa Bean (BA ’02) arrived in Congress, there were no women’s restrooms on the House floor. Until 2011, Congresswomen had to hike through the chamber and Statuary Hall, sometimes rushing back to make a vote. The builders of the Capitol building hadn’t predicted that one day, women would serve as representatives.
Today, as an advisory board member of the Women’s Leadership Council, the alumna is building a new space for leaders to collaborate on issues women face. The Council hosts programs, mentorship and initiatives to help close the gender gap.
At age 91, Myrtle Shannon (BGS History, ’96) was Roosevelt’s oldest graduate. Shannon’s grandfather had been enslaved; after the Civil War, he earned his education and returned to Mississippi to become a teacher. “He always taught us: Get as much education as you can,” Myrtle recalled.
Social Justice Advocates
Darlene Clark Hine (BA History, '63) observed history in the making as a Roosevelt student, listening to Black Panthers Mark Clark and Fred Hampton when they spoke on the second floor of the University. She's authored more than a dozen books on race, class and gender, including The African-American Odyssey and The History of Black Women in America.
In 1980, she said, “No one thought black women were worth studying. I had entered a universe that I never knew existed. And that was the beginning of my commitment to telling the truth, to lifting the veil, to shattering the silence about black women in American history.”
Hine received a National Humanities Medal from President Obama for her groundbreaking studies on African-Americans, especially the accomplishments of African-American women.
Mirena Fontana (BPS ’12) began her career at Romanucci & Blandin as an intern while earning her degree and parenting three small children. Today the senior paralegal works on cases that involve police misconduct, civil rights actions and other personal injuries. She helped fortify the case in the civil suit for George Floyd’s family.
Dr. Shelly Davis-Jones (EdD ’13) is the superintendent of Dolton School District 149, a school district with about 2,700 students. In Illinois, women make up 78% of public school educators, but only 28% of superintendents. Davis-Jones is determined to change that by creating new pathways for students and educators.
As co-chair of the Coalition to Ban Petcoke, Gina Ramirez (MA Sociology, ’14) spoke with aldermen and senators to fight for crucial environmental protections. Their protests triggered EPA investigations and the removal of dangerous petcoke piles from the Southeast Side.
Actors and Artists
Nicknamed the "mother of the Black arts community," Abena Joan Brown (BA Sociology, '56) was a sharp-eyed businesswoman and a passionate advocate for the arts. She founded eta Creative Arts Foundation, the first African American full-service cultural arts collective in the country.
As a stage producer, she wanted to create a place where the stories of Black people will be told "in the first voice."
Carolyn Rodgers (BA English, '81) was a leading voice of the Black Arts Movement. She authored five collections of feminist poetry, including a finalist for the National Book Award.
Danitra Vance (BA Theater, ’77) was classically trained in acting at the Chicago College of Performing Arts. In the 1980s, she became the first African American woman to appear in Saturday Night Live’s main cast. She is remembered for breaking barriers in theatre, from Chicago to New York to London.
Merle Dandridge (BFA Musical Theatre, ’98) is the star of Oprah Winfrey Network’s Greenleaf.
Born in Japan, raised in Nebraska and educated in Chicago at Roosevelt University, Dandridge began her acting career with leading roles on Broadway in Spamalot (Lady of the Lake), Rent (Joanne), Aida (Aida), Tarzan (Kala) and Jesus Christ Superstar.
She has toured Europe six times, and is also known for her award-winning turns in video games including Alyx Vance in the Half Life 2 series, Marlene in The Last of Us and Kathrine Collins in Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture for which she won the 2016 British Academy for Television and Arts Award for Best Performer.
Also known for recurring roles in TV series including Sons of Anarchy and The Night Shift, Dandridge got her start on the Chicago theatre scene while attending Roosevelt University’s theatre program, which since has joined CCPA as the Theatre Conservatory, now celebrating its 20th anniversary.
Of winning the Distinguished Artist Award, she said, “There is a precious and sweet satisfaction in hearing ‘job well done’ from the University that first invested in my potential, then backed it up by giving me a tool box full of gifts to ensure my success."
Courtney Reed (BFA Musical Theatre, ’06) starred as Jasmine in Aladdin, which debuted at the New Amsterdam Theatre. “To have the experience of playing a leading lady on Broadway is a dream come true for me,” she said.
Adrienne Walker (MM Vocal Performance, ’11) starred on Broadway as Nala in Disney’s The Lion King. In 2019, she took on the role of Hattie in the Tony-nominated Broadway revival of Kiss Me, Kate.
Updated February 23, 2022. The original version of this story was written by history professor emerita Lynn Weiner.
