March 8, 2020, marks International Women's Day. In celebration, we look to some of the trailblazing women of Youngstown State University over the years.
Eleanor North
Eleanor North was an English instructor and Dean of Women at Youngstown College from 1929 to 1937. She received Bachelor's and Master's degrees in English from Pennsylvania State University. North was later awarded graduate scholarships to study at Harvard, Cambridge, and Oxford Universities. At Youngstown College, she was the founding member of the Sigma Tau Delta international English honorary society. As Dean of Women, her office was referred to as “Friendship Village” where she served tea and counseled students.
Nellie Dehnbostel
Nellie Dehnbostel was a graduate of the Dana School of Music in Warren (1922), then transferred to Youngstown College with the merger of the two in 1941. She composed her own music throughout her career. She was interim dean of the school from 1950 to 1952, then stayed on as assistant to the dean until 1960. She received a master’s degree in biology from Kent State, and later transferred to the Biology Department at Youngstown University. She was head of the Natural Sciences dept until her retirement in 1969. She was very involved on campus and the local music community, serving on many committees and professional organizations including the Warren Music Club, Sigma Alpha Iota, and AAUP. She mastered 7 different languages.
Janet Del Bene
Janet Del Bene graduated from Youngstown State University with a degree in education and chemistry, then went on to get a PhD in Chemistry from the University of Cincinnati in 1968. Her dissertation on quantum chemistry is a “Science Citation Classic.” She was hired at YSU in 1970 where she specialized in hydrogen bonding. She has won multiple NIH and NSF grants using computers to research hydrogen bonding. In 1974, she was appointed to the American Chemical Society Division of Computers in Chemistry. From 1986 to 1992, she was active in the Ohio Supercomputer Center serving on committees and granted research time. Throughout her career she was part of the research team of Dr. John Pope at Carnegie Mellon University, and was one of the “Pople People” cited by him when he won the Noble Prize for computational methods in quantum chemistry in 1998. She has won numerous awards for teaching and research excellence.
Sally Hotchkiss
Sally Hotchkiss was the first woman Dean at Youngstown State University (Graduate Studies, 1982). She received her master's and PhD in psychology from University of Minnesota. Sally first joined the YSU faculty in 1968. The students’ interest in death prompted her to begin a “Death & Dying” class. Hotchkiss became associate provost in 1982 and acting provost from 1990 to her retirement in December 1992.
Cynthia Anderson
Cynthia Anderson was the first woman President at Youngstown State University. Anderson was also an alumnus (BA ’73), faculty member (hired in 1979 in Business Education and Technology), and administrator. She completed her Ed.D. in Education Administration for Higher Education and Student Personnel Services at the University of Akron in 1990. In 1995, she was named Vice President of Student Affairs, where she started an orientation program, Office of Veterans’ Affairs, Center for Student Progress, Office of Campus Recreation, the Emerging Leaders program, and the emergency alert notification system. Anderson was promoted to Professor of Marketing and Public Relations in 2000, with dozens of articles, conference proceedings, and presentations. She was President from 2010 to her retirement in 2013.
Many thanks to the staff at the University Archives and Special Collections for the preservation of photos and biographies like these. Check out more about YSU's past on the Maag Library website.