From the beginning, women have been a driving force behind the development and expansion of SUNY Oneonta. You may already know their names from the buildings named after them – Matteson, Tobey, Hodgdon – but do you know the women behind these names?
Almost all were educators. They authored books and articles and traveled the world. Many received their teaching degrees from the Oneonta Normal School (the original SUNY Oneonta) and then returned to work there. Almost all earned master's degrees, and several earned their doctorates, many having attended Columbia, Harvard or Oxford University.
Scroll on to meet 10 influential women from SUNY Oneonta's past.
Florence Matteson began teaching history at the Oneonta Normal School in 1893 and later became head of the History Department and Dean of Women. She was a charter member of the Women’s Club and DAR Oneonta chapter, and was a chairman of the Red Cross. In 1968, Florence was recognized for her 40 years of service with the dedication of a residence hall in her name.
Katharine Tobey joined the faculty at Oneonta Normal School in 1908 and taught reading methods, grammar, literature and history. In 1934, she was appointed the first Dean of Students. In this role, she instituted two college traditions – the Candlelight Ceremony and Moving Up Day exercises. She loved to travel and, in 1935, visited Hawaii, South America and South Africa. In 1961, Tobey Hall was dedicated in her honor by Gov. Nelson Rockefeller.
Caroline Jenkins joined (and later chaired) the Art Department of Oneonta Normal School in 1908. She helped prepare a drawing syllabus and contributed a number of articles to the student newspaper, then called The Oneontan, including “Why Draw?” and “You are a Designer.”
Caroline was a member of many community organizations including the Oneonta Women’s Club, for which she designed the club’s logo in 1950. Jenkins retired in 1936.
Jessica Alden was the first librarian at Oneonta Normal School, a position she held from 1912 until her retirement in 1944. In addition to running the library at “Old Main,” she frequently met with the Library Club and invited its members to her home for tea and refreshments. Beyond the school, she was involved in the community and was an active member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and the Society of Mayflower Descendants.
In her retirement book, she is remembered by Dr. Albert Fitzelle:
“…many of our present student body and our alumni will look upon the affairs of the world differently as a result of your influence… you are of all people most definitely identified with our library. Your presence will ever be there.”
Her memory lives on, and it is fitting that a room on the third floor of Milne Library, which houses the special collections and archives, is named in her honor.
Anne Scott traveled extensively in the United States and Europe and taught in public schools on Long Island before joining the teaching staff at Oneonta Normal School in 1913. She became the head of the Geography Department four years later. She was also the faculty advisor for the Clionian Sorority. Anne retired in 1940.
After working in army hospitals throughout the U.S. and then teaching for several years, Irene Mereness joined the Oneonta Normal School faculty in 1933. She taught Tests and Measurements and was also responsible for Admissions.
Mereness passed away unexpectedly in 1942 after an illness, but her impact on the college is evident in Betty Pugh’s April 1942 Pen Dragon article written in her remembrance:
“…Miss Mereness was to us more than a revered faculty member. She was a friend, consultant, and confidant… we know this memory will always remind us of the necessity in life for sympathy, and understanding and kindness.”
Vera Sanford joined the faculty at the Oneonta State Normal School in 1933. She was instrumental in the expansion of the Mathematics Department, increasing the math faculty from one when she began to six at her retirement in 1959. A prolific author who was highly regarded in the field of mathematics, she was famous for her 1930 book, A Short History of Mathematics. She also authored and co-authored four other books, along with many articles, book reviews, translations and two mathematics-related articles for the Encyclopedia Brittanica.
Today’s Sanford Society, a student club for those majoring or interested in mathematics, computer science or statistics, is named in Dr. Sanford’s honor. One of the college’s largest lecture halls, IRC 3, is also named after her.
Evelyn Hodgdon joined the faculty in 1934. One of her major contributions was the initiation of the off-campus student teaching program. Her dedication to this program was so great that a story is told of her snowshoeing to meet with a student teacher she was supervising because the back roads leading to school were closed.
Hodgdon was a pioneer in the development of Rural Education Days and community studies, and she accompanied students on various field trips around the country. She served as chair of the Education Department and retired in 1959.
The Hodgdon Instructional Resource Center (or IRC) was dedicated in her memory in 1977.
Martha Pratt was the founder, organizer and director of the Home Economics Division at SUNY Oneonta. She joined the faculty in 1948. Under her guidance and wisdom, the new Home Economics building was constructed, and the training program for the division became famous throughout New York State. She retired in 1961. The Pratt Suite in the Human Ecology Building is named in her honor.
Martha Corry began teaching at SUNY Oneonta in 1951. At a time when geography was a predominantly male field, she was the driving force behind the creation of the college’s geography program and Geography Department, and she became its first chair, a position she held until her retirement in 1984.
Dr. Corry completed field studies in the U.S.S.R. during the Cold War in 1954 and 1967 and continued her education at the Summer School of the University of Geneva in Switzerland. In 1962, she was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship and studied at the Fulbright Summer Institute in Hyderabad, India.
In 1968, Dr. Corry was listed in the fifth edition of Who’s Who of American Women.
A special thank you to Archives, Milne Library, SUNY Oneonta for the archival photos and research. To learn more or to make an appointment in the library's Alden Room, contact Heather Stalter at heather.stalter@oneonta.edu.
© 2026 SUNY Oneonta
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