Donna Shalala
Donna Shalala was the first woman to head a Big Ten university and the longest-serving secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Caroline Sandin
Caroline Sandin was a respected civic leader and served on the University of Wisconsin System’s Board of Regents.
Pleasant Rowland
Pleasant Rowland founded the American Girls Collection, a popular line of books, dolls, and accessories that features girls living throughout U.S. history.
Sister Joel Read
Sister Joel Read served for 35 years as president of Alverno College and became widely known and respected for her innovative education reforms.
Electa Quinney
Electa "Wuhwehweeheemeew" Quinney was Wisconsin's first public schoolteacher.
Katharine Lyall
Katharine Lyall was the first woman president of the University of Wisconsin System.
Patricia “Patty” Loew
Patricia "Patty" Loew is a celebrated journalist, filmmaker, and educator about Native Americans in Wisconsin.
Gerda Lerner
University of Wisconsin scholar Gerda Lerner founded the academic field of women's history.
Helen Connor Laird
Community leader Helen Connor Laird was the inspiration for the Laird Endowment Fund for the Arts in central Wisconsin.
bell hooks
Best known for her work on gender, race, and class, University of Wisconsin graduate bell hooks was a prolific writer, speaker, and scholar.