Inez Beverly Prosser
American educator and researcher on segregated schooling
American educator who completed a University of Cincinnati doctorate in 1933 with a study of Black children in mixed and segregated schools. Some sources call her the first African American woman to earn a doctorate in psychology; others limit that claim.
Why this person matters
Prosser's dissertation compared the non-academic development of Black students in segregated and mixed schools. Her sample was small, and she acknowledged that some conclusions rested on non-significant results. Her degree came from a College of Education, which is why the 'first' claim is disputed.
Main contributions
Dissertation on mixed and segregated schools
Her 1933 dissertation, Non-academic development of negro children in mixed and segregated schools, matched 32 pairs of students and found that Black students did better on non-academic measures in segregated schools. It was designed to complement Mary Crowley's study, which had found no academic differences.
Teacher and administrator
She taught English and coached a girls' spelling team in the Austin area, then joined the Tillotson College faculty in 1927 to teach education and psychology. In 1930 she moved to Tougaloo College in Mississippi as faculty member, registrar and principal of Tougaloo High School.
Context and limits
The one profile read describes her both as among the first African American women to earn a doctorate and as the first to earn one in psychology, and notes that Ruth Winifred Howard became the first African American woman to earn a doctorate from a psychology department, in 1934. The claims differ in scope because Prosser's degree was from a College of Education. Her exact birth year is unknown (about 1895). She died in September 1934 after a car collision.
In your introductory course
Culture and diversity.She appears in history and culture chapters as an early Black woman doctoral researcher on school segregation, with the caveat about the first-woman claim.
Related course reading: Psychology 2e, section 1.2. This is course context rather than a biographical source.
Years of active work
- 1927
She completed a Master of Arts in education at the University of Colorado, largely through summer and correspondence courses, and joined the Tillotson College faculty.
- 1931
She enrolled in the doctoral programme of the University of Cincinnati's College of Education.
- 1933
Her dissertation was approved in June and she received her doctorate.
Sources
- Psychology's Feminist Voices, Inez Beverly ProsserArchive or museum. Institutional biography inspected.
- APA Monitor on Psychology, America’s first black female psychologistSociety or association. Institutional biography inspected.