Virginia Onderdonk
Virginia Onderdonk | |
|---|---|
 Onderdonk, from the 1929 yearbook of Wellesley College | |
| Born | February 22, 1908 Evanston, Illinois, U.S. |
| Died | August 1, 1994 (aged 86) Westwood, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Occupations | Philosopher, college professor, college dean |
Virginia Onderdonk (February 22, 1908 – August 1, 1994) was an American philosopher, college professor and dean. She taught at Wellesley College from 1937 to 1973.
Early life and education
Onderdonk was born in Evanston, Illinois, the daughter of William Holmes Onderdonk and Catherine Hamilton Onderdonk. Her father was a real estate executive in Chicago.[1] She graduated from Deerfield High School in 1925,[2] and from Wellesley College in 1929.[3] She pursued graduate studies at the University of Chicago, and studied with Wittgenstein at Cambridge.[4] At Wellesley she was president of the student government,[5][6] and the campus May Queen in 1926.[7]
Career
Onderdonk returned to Wellesley College to teach philosophy,[8] and became an assistant professor in 1939.[9] She was named Alice Freeman Palmer Professor of Philosophy in 1957, served as dean of the college from 1964[10] to 1968, and retired in 1973. Richard Rorty recalled her as a helpful department chair and influential for his reading, when he was a young faculty member at Wellesley in the 1950s.[11] She was a member of the Association for Symbolic Logic, the American Philosophical Association, and Phi Beta Kappa.[8][10]
Personal life and legacy
Onderdonk died in 1994, at the age of 86, in Westwood, Massachusetts.[4] The Virginia Onderdonk Library, a book fund, and a professorship at Wellesley are named for her.[4][12]
References
- ↑ "Holmes Onderdonk; Vice President of the Chicago Tribune Building Corporation". The New York Times. January 15, 1938. p. 15. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
- ↑ Deerfield High School (1925). Deerfield 1925. Highland Park Highland Park Public Library, via Internet Archive. p. 25.
- ↑ Wellesley College (1929). The Wellesley Legenda. Wellesley College Library, via Internet Archive. p. 79.
- 1 2 3 "Virginia Onderdonk, 86; Former dean of Wellesley College". The Boston Globe. 1994-08-03. p. 13. Retrieved 2026-07-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Miss Onderdonk is Named Dean of Wellesley Class". Chicago Tribune. 1940-02-16. p. 29. Retrieved 2026-07-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Wellesley Leaders 7 to 1 for Hoover". The Buffalo News. 1928-10-19. p. 8. Retrieved 2026-07-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "A May Queen from a Fairy Book". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 1926-05-16. p. 69. Retrieved 2026-07-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 Wellesley College (1937). The Wellesley Legenda. Wellesley College Library, via Internet Archive. pp. 28, 33.
- ↑ "Wellesley Appoints Several to Faculty; Dr. Patzelt of Vienna Will Be Visiting History Professor". The New York Times. 1939-04-02. p. 59. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2026-07-21.
- 1 2 "Miss Onderdonk Named Dean at Wellesley College". The Patriot Ledger. 1964-02-21. p. 5. Retrieved 2026-07-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Voparil, Christopher J.; Bernstein, Richard J. (2010-08-09). The Rorty Reader. John Wiley & Sons. p. 11. ISBN 978-1-4051-9831-8.
- ↑ "Philosophy". Wellesley. Retrieved 2026-07-21.