Radcliffe Dean Worked for Women's Rights

Bernice Veazey Brown born July 23, 1823 (d. 1983) in Calais, Maine grew up in Providence, Rhode Island. She entered Radcliffe in 1922, receiving her B.A. in 1916, her M.A. in 1918 and her P.h. D in 1920, specializing in government and international law. In 1915 and 1916, she won the Baldwin prize for essays pertaining to municipal government. From 1918 to 1920, she held a Carnegie Endowment International Law Fellowship. In 1920-1921, she was awarded a fellowship by the Commission for Relief in Belgium for advanced study in Brussels. Upon her return to the U.S. she was active in the School of Citizenship and Politics at Radcliffe. Brown was appointed Dean of Radcliffe College in 1923 when Ada Comstock became President. In 1934, she became Dean of the Radcliffe Graduate School, a post she held until 1959. She married Leonard Wolsey Cronkhite on July 21, 1933. She worked hard to promote the status of women graduate students at Radcliffe. One page 8"x 5 1/2", typed letter signed Bernice V. Brown, Dean, Radcliffe College, Cambridge, Massachusetts, dated March 11, 1925 to Mrs. Fred A. Wilson of Nahant, Massachusetts. "My dear Mrs. Wilson: I shall be very glad to serve as patroness of the Author Reading under the auspices of the Boston Branch on Wednesday evening, March the eighteenth. The author's reading was for the Association of American University Women, a national organization that promotes equity for all women and girls, lifelong education, and positive social change. The AAUW offers scholarship, action for gender equity, and support for personal and professional growth, community, leadership, and friendship.