Anne V. Ward
BornMarch 1877
Glasgow
DiedMay 31, 1971
Philadelphia
NationalityBritish, American
Other namesAnna V. Ward, A. V. Ward, Annie V. Ward
Occupationeducator
Years active1900-1946
Known forteaching blind students, especially at Overbrook School for the Blind

Anne V. Ward (March 1877 — May 31, 1971), sometimes written as Anna V. Ward, Annie V. Ward, or A. V. Ward, was a Scottish-born American educator. She was blind from youth, and taught at the Overbrook School for the Blind for 25 years, until her retirement in 1946.

Early life and education

Anne V. Ward was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1877, and moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with her parents as a young girl. Her father was a stonemason.[1] She left school worked as a servant from age 12 until she was 16 and became blind after surviving meningitis.[2] Ward then continued her education with help from Elizabeth Roe Dunning, principal of the Pennsylvania Institute for Instruction of the Blind. She completed an undergraduate degree at Vassar College in 1905,[3] and was believed to be one of the first blind women to earn a college degree in the United States.[1][4]

Career

Delaware and New Jersey

Anne V. Ward was Delaware's state-appointed teacher of blind adults as a young woman; in addition to teaching, she spoke to community groups and advocated for braille materials in the state's libraries.[3][5] She worked for the New Jersey Commission for the Blind as a home teacher from 1910 to 1918,[6][7] based first in Camden (where she organized the city's Blind Association),[8] and later in Trenton.[9] In 1911, she spoke to the Friday Club of Hightstown, New Jersey and the Country Club of Pennington,[10] on her work: "She with another teacher have charge of the southern portion of the state and it is their duty to visit every blind person whose name is found upon the last census report, and of course all others that they may hear of during the year," explained one report, adding that her monthly visits included educational and vocational assessment, instruction,[11][12] and referrals to adaptive programs and other community resources.[13]

Overbrook School for the Blind

Ward was employed on the faculty of the Overbrook School for the Blind for 25 years, until her retirement in 1946.[14] She was a member of the Pennsylvania Federation for the Blind, the Pennsylvania State Education Association, the American Association of Instructors for the Blind, and the American Association of Workers for the Blind.[1] While teaching at Overbrook, Ward worked with blind veterans of World War II, teaching braille. She also taught Mae Davidow, who would go on to become the first blind woman to earn a Ph.D. in the United States, at Temple University in 1960. Davidow recalled of Ward that "many of her students will remember her as a good, strict, kind teacher, always aiming to prepare the blind to take their place in the sighted community. She was my inspiration."[4] In 1966, her former students threw a birthday celebration for her, at the nursing home where she lived.[2]

Personal life

Ward lived her later years at the Chapin Home for the Aged Blind in Philadelphia. She died in 1971, age 94.[1][15]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Anne V. Ward Dies, Teacher of Blind, 94" The Philadelphia Inquirer (June 2, 1971): 53. via Newspapers.com
  2. 1 2 Lloyd, Jack (March 11, 1966). "Pupils Fete Tutor They Never Saw". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 27. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. 1 2 "Aiding the Blind; Miss Anne V. Ward Now at Work in this City". The Morning News. July 13, 1906. p. 1. Retrieved October 23, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 "First Blind Woman to Win College Degree Dies at 94" The Progress (June 3, 1971): 6. via Newspapers.com
  5. ↑ "Teaching the Blind". The Morning News. June 22, 1907. p. 2. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Legislature, New Jersey (1912). "Commission on the Amelioration of the Condition of the Blind". Documents of the Legislature of the State of New Jersey. p. 389.
  7. ↑ New Jersey Commission for the Blind (1918). Annual Report of the New Jersey Commission for the Blind, 1918. Inc American Printing House for the Blind. New Jersey Commission for the Blind. pp. 4.
  8. ↑ "Blind of City to Form Club". Courier-Post. December 9, 1912. p. 8. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "State Commission for Blind Active". Trenton Evening Times. February 5, 1914. p. 12. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ "Untitled news item". The Morning Post. April 1, 1911. p. 5. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Latest Doings in Northeast Section". The Morning Post. February 21, 1911. p. 9. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ "Untitled news item". The Morning Post. February 5, 1915. p. 5. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "Work for the Blind". Freehold Transcript. December 15, 1911. Retrieved October 24, 2019 – via Internet Archive.
  14. ↑ Annual Report of the Managers of the Pennsylvania Institution for the Instruction of the Blind. Inc American Printing House for the Blind. Veterans Administration. 1947. pp. 10.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  15. ↑ "Funeral Held for First Blind Woman to Win U. S. Degree". The Kane Republican. June 4, 1971. p. 6. Retrieved October 23, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
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