The Sarah Isom Center

The Sarah Isom Center for Women was established at The University of Mississippi in 1981 to address the changing roles and expectations of women students, faculty, and staff. The University has provided educational opportunities for women longer than any other state university in the South. When UM opened its doors to women in 1882, eleven women registered for classes. Today, women constitute half the student body.

 

Dr. Joanne Hawks

Joanne V. Hawks, affectionately known as 'Jan', was born January 10, 1932, in Columbus, Georgia. Her family moved first to Montgomery Alabama and then to Thomaston, Georgia where she completed her elementary and secondary education. She completed her B.A. at Agnes Scott College, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. From the fall of 1960 -- when she began her graduate work -- until her death, the University of Mississippi was her professional home. She completed her M.A. in 1962 and her Ph.D. in 1970. while completing her doctoral work she held a teaching position at Blue Mountain College in Mississippi. In 1972 she became Dean of Women and Assistant Professor of History. In 1981, she became the founding Director of the Sarah Isom Center. In 1998, the year of her death, the University accepted her proposal for a minor in Gender Studies.

Dr. Hawks participated in a variety of venues related to her interest in the history of southern women. She also made things happen for other women historians. As SAWH president in 1986-97, Dr. Hawks' leadership led to the first SAWH conference in 1989 at Converse College. She was an active member of the Mississippi Historical Society and the Southern Historical Association. She was also the national advisor for the Intercollegiate Association for Women Students. She found time, as well, to publish as number of articles based on her research on the role of women legislators in southern politics in history. She co-edited the papers for Sex, Race, and the Role of Women in the South (1983). She brought to the fore women scholars and scholarship on women in the many programs and lecture series she conducted under the auspices of the Center.

The collection has 107 boxes. While some of the materials document the activities of the Isom Center proper, the bulk of the materials reflect the strong inter-connection between the Isom Center and the life and work of its founder, Dr. Joanne V. Hawks.

The collection has a broad range of materials including correspondence (personal and institutional notes, letters, and memos), images (photographic prints and slides), ephemera (including clippings, flyers, and broadsides), teaching materials (classroom teaching notes and presentations, and prospectuses for theses and dissertations), and business records (receipts and papers).

Collection is open for research. Several folders throughout the collection may not be copied. These files are flagged "Do Not Photocopy" on the folder.

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