McMenamin, Joan Stitt (Mrs. Edward B.)
Biography
Joan Stitt McMenamin came to Nightingale in 1959, eventually serving as the fifth headmistress from 1971 until her retirement in 1992.
Mrs. McMenamin attended the Masters School in Dobbs Ferry, New York, followed by Smith College, where she earned an economics degree, and the Katharine Gibbs School for secretarial skills (per her father's wishes, who believed it would ensure her financial independence). She worked in Paris as secretary and researcher for the Marshall Plan and Paul Hoffman of the Ford Foundation. In 1953, she married Edward B. McMenamin and they lived in Paris and Washington, D.C., where Mrs. McMenamin worked for the European Coal and Steel Community doing general administrative and public relations work. In 1958, the McMenamins moved to New York City, where Mr. McMenamin became Deputy Provost of Columbia University and then Secretary of the University.
In 1959, at the urgent request of a friend and Nightingale Trustee, Mrs. McMenamin came to Nightingale to fill in for one week as a typist for Catherine Woodbridge, who was headmistress at that time. She stayed to help with scheduling and reaccreditation matters, and her education and talents led to her role as a history teacher, where she emphasized knowledge of current events. Mrs. McMenamin's activities outside of Nightingale included serving as a trustee at The Buckley School and The Town School and as an elder at the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church
The Joan Stitt McMenamin lecture was created following her death in 2004, with the first lecture given in November 2005.
Found in 83 Collections and/or Records:
Alice de Forest Sedgwick '26 biography file, 1979 - 1991
Alumnae Newsletter. 50th anniversary issue. Vol. 12, no. 1, 1970 Apr
Catherine [Kitty] Gordan speech given at Joan Stitt McMenamin memorial service, 2004
Biographical Records include records related to the life of Joan Stitt McMenamin, including resumes, biographical compilations, articles and speeches about Joan McMenamin, records of gifts she made to the school, legal records related to her death in 2004, reminiscences, and speeches, programs, a video recording, and visitor books from a service in memory of Joan McMenamin held at Nightingale on October 1, 2004.
Circular letter : [to] colleagues / Joan S. McMenamin, relating to beginning of 1985-1986 school year, 1985
Circular letter : [to] Colleagues / Mrs. Edward McMenamin, relating to administrative appointments, 1989 Aug 15
Circular letter : to Mrs. McMenamin, the administration, and teachers of the Nightingale-Bamford School / Maria Ferro '90, relating to diversity, c. 1986 - 1990
Circular letter : [to] Parents / Mrs. Edward B. McMenamin, relating to form and philosophy of the school, 1971 Sep
Circular letter : [to] Parents / Mrs. Walter A. Wichern, Mrs. Edward B. McMenamin, relating to teacher salaries, 1983
Dorothy Cundy letters relating to seventy-fifth anniversary celebration, 1996
Group portrait of faculty including Joan McMenamin, c. 1970 - 1989
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