Agatha Tiegel Hanson (1873-1959) is regarded as a seminal figure in Deaf history for her writing, advocacy, and leadership, though her accomplishments merit recognition within the larger context of American history as well. Barely fifteen years old in 1888, Tiegel Hanson became one of the first women to attend the nation's only college for Deaf students, the National Deaf-Mute College, now known as Gallaudet University. Amid the hostility and skepticism of male students and faculty, she achieved exemplary academic success and was the first woman to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree from the college. Upon facing stringent campus restrictions and exclusion from male-only organizations and activities, Tiegel Hanson cofounded a society for female students. Her prerequisite graduation presentation, "The Intellect of Woman," was a powerful oratory that urged women to “move on till all barriers crumble and fall.”

Throughout her life, Agatha Tiegel Hanson worked to advance the rights of Deaf people and women, and she was a passionate advocate of sign language rights. Her contributions include creative written works as well as influential treatises. She served in leadership positions at several Deaf organizations and, along with her husband, noted Deaf architect Olof Hanson, she played a vital role in the Deaf cultural life of the time. In Agatha Tiegel Hanson: Our Places in the Sun, author Kathy Jankowski presents a portrait of this trailblazer, and celebrates her impact on the Deaf community and beyond. This biography will be of interest to those already familiar with Tiegel Hanson’s legacy as well as to readers who are discovering her extraordinary life for the first time.

Kathy Jankowski is a former dean of Gallaudet University’s Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center. She was previously the first Deaf and first female superintendent of the Minnesota State Academy for the Deaf and the Central North Carolina School for the Deaf. Jankowski has also been a communications professor, a program director at a nonprofit advocacy organization, a school counselor, and an American Sign Language instructor. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Gallaudet University, a master’s degree from the University of Arizona, and a doctorate from the University of Maryland. She is also the author of Deaf Empowerment: Emergence, Struggle, and Rhetoric, and has published chapters and articles in books and other publications.

Contents

Preface vii

1 Agatha’s Pittsburgh Roots 1

2 Agatha’s World Suddenly Changes 3

3 The Beginning of Coeducation at Gallaudet 9

4 College: To Be or Not to Be? 22

5 A New Era 25

6 The Two-Year Experiment: Success or Failure? 31

7 Life at the National College with Female Students 36

8 Time for Their Own 72

9 Permanence at Last 87

10 The Greatest Achievement: Graduation 90

11 Beyond the Female Trial 105

12 Agatha’s Journey after Graduation 107

13 A Soul Mate for Life 142

14 Settling Down in Faribault 148

15 New Horizons Westward 164

16 On the Political Front 186

17 The Great OWLS Dispute 195

18 On the Homefront in Seattle 204

19 A Struggle Begins 207

20 The Grass Is Greener in the Midwest 213 

21 Seattle, for Better or for Worse 238 

22 A Difficult Journey 267 

23 Moving on to New Pastures 279 

24 Global and Family Matters Weigh 293 

25 To the Hustle and Bustle of the East 301 

26 . . . And Back to the West 312 

27 A New Direction for the OWLS 328 

28 The West Is Home 332 

Epilogue 342 

Notes 345 

Selected Bibliography 396 

Index 397