Macalester Women’s Club records

The Macalester Women’s Club was formed in 1907, just fourteen years after the college granted women admittance to the institution with “equal rights and on the same conditions as young men.” The club’s original constitution states that its purpose is “to promote good fellowship among its members and to cooperate in any enterprise to advance the interests of the college”. Club membership was open to female faculty, staff members, and spouses to foster women’s active role in the Macalester community.

The Women’s Club organized annual events (holiday parties, potlucks, dances, etc.), and programs such as the Club-a-thon, Macalester Bridge Group, Armchair Travel, Wallace Child Care Fund, Bloodmobile, and Neighborhood News to provide women with ways to get involved and connect with others in the Macalester community. The Women’s Club also created programs to benefit students, including the Off-Campus Club, which aimed to incorporate women students who lived off campus into campus life; the Thrift Shop Scholarship Endowment, generated through sales from the Club’s Thrift Shop; the Grants-In-Aid Program for female seniors; and the Jennie Hodgman Loan Fund, which granted loans without interest primarily to female students.