Roxana Vivian facts for kids
Roxana Hayward Vivian (born December 9, 1871 – died May 31, 1961) was an amazing American mathematics professor. She made history by becoming the first woman to earn a special high-level degree called a doctorate in math from the University of Pennsylvania.
Growing Up and School
Roxana Hayward Vivian was born in Hyde Park, Boston, Massachusetts, on December 9, 1871. Her parents were Roxana Nott and Robert Hayward Vivian. She attended Hyde Park High School. After that, from 1890 to 1894, she studied at Wellesley College. She earned her degree there in both Greek and mathematics.
Her Career in Math
After teaching high school for four years near Boston, Roxana went back to school. She started advanced studies at the University of Pennsylvania. In 1901, she earned her PhD in mathematics. Her special research paper was about "Poles of a Right Line with Respect to a Curve of the Order n". She then returned to Wellesley College as a math teacher. She was the first person in her department to have a doctorate degree. In 1906, she moved to Istanbul, Turkey, to teach at the American College for Girls. For two years, she was the acting president there. In 1908, she became an associate professor at Wellesley. She was made a full professor in 1918. From 1918 to 1921, she also directed a special department for health and physical education. In 1925–26, Professor Vivian taught for a year at Cornell University. She came back to Wellesley but soon left. In 1929, after living in Vassalboro, Maine, she became a math professor and dean of women at Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York. From 1931 to 1935, she taught math and was the dean of girls at Rye Public High School in New York. She passed away in Boston in 1961.
