Susan Miller Dorsey
Susan Miller Dorsey | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Susan Almira Miller February 16, 1857 Penn Yan, New York, U.S. |
| Died | February 5, 1946 (age 88) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Educator, superintendent of schools |
Susan Miller Dorsey (February 16, 1857 – February 5, 1946)[1] was an American educator who served as the superintendent of the Los Angeles City Schools from 1920 to 1929.[2]
Early life and education
[edit]Susan Almira Miller was born in Penn Yan, New York,[3] the daughter of James Miller and Hannah Benedict Miller.[2] She graduated from Vassar College in 1877, and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa there.[4]
Career
[edit]Dorsey taught at Wilson College and at Vassar before marrying and moving to California with her husband in the 1880s.[5] She taught classics at Los Angeles High School, beginning in 1896.[3] By 1902, she was working as a school administrator. She was named an assistant superintendent in 1913,[6] and in 1920, Dorsey became the first female superintendent of Los Angeles City Schools. She would serve in that capacity until her retirement in 1929.[2]
Dorsey was a member of the board of trustees at Scripps College.[6] In 1937 she spoke to the prohibitionist Women's Law Observance Association and denounced realist literature that dealt with or included "the seamy things of life".[7] In 1937, Susan Miller Dorsey High School in the Crenshaw district of Los Angeles was dedicated in her honor.[3] It was an adult high school in the 1950s.[8]
Personal life and legacy
[edit]Susan Miller married the Rev. Patrick William Dorsey, and moved to California with him when he became minister of a Baptist church in Los Angeles.[9][10] They had a son, Paul Dorsey. Her husband took their son and left her, and Los Angeles, in 1895; both professional and personal misconduct were rumored to be involved, and the Dorseys were eventually divorced.[11][12] She died in 1946, at the age of 88, in Los Angeles.[6][13]
Dorsey Hall, a dormitory at Scripps College, is named for her. A 1928 oil portrait of Dorsey by John Hubbard Rich, which was de-accessioned by the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in the 1980s, was recovered in 2007 by Dorsey High School alumna and former teacher Janet Horwitz Colman.[14]
Notes and references
[edit]- ^ "California Death Index (1940 – 1997)". United States: California Bureau of Vital Statistics at Rootsweb. Retrieved 2008-04-19.
- ^ a b c "Susan Miller Dorsey". United States: Soroptimist International of Los Angeles. Archived from the original on 2007-11-09. Retrieved 2008-04-19.
- ^ a b c "Los Angeles School Named after Native of Penn Yan". Finger Lakes Times. 1936-12-30. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Cage, Crete (1938-02-13). "Dr. Susan Dorsey Typifies Pioneer Spirit". The Los Angeles Times. p. 58. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Susan Miller Dorsey Feted at Birthday Breakfast by Faculty". The Southwest Wave. 1944-02-17. p. 8. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "Dr. Susan Dorsey, Retired Head of City Schools, Dies". The Los Angeles Times. 1946-02-06. p. 13. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Cage, Crete (1937-02-04). "Dr. Dorsey Denounces Realism in Literature". The Los Angeles Times. p. 26. Retrieved 2020-04-26 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Adult Schools Give Diplomas to 291". The Southwest Wave. 1954-06-10. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "First Baptist Church; Rev. P. W. Dorsey Preaches His Sixth Annual Sermon". Los Angeles Herald. 1887-06-20. p. 7. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "The New Baptist Church". The San Francisco Examiner. 1890-08-11. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "He Seeks Pastures New; Rev. P. W. Dorsey Again Leaves Los Angeles". Los Angeles Herald. 1895-07-23. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-06-29 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Fled from Investigation; The Rev. P. W. Dorsey Has Left for Other Fields". Los Angeles Herald. 1895-06-21. p. 10. Retrieved 2025-06-29 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Chronicle of a woman". Daily News. 1946-02-08. p. 34. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Rasmussen, Cecilia (2007-05-13). "Dorsey devotee the picture of determination". The Los Angeles Times. p. 209. Retrieved 2025-06-28 – via Newspapers.com.