Associate Professor
Chair of Women's and Gender Studies
The late Dr. Laura C. Harris was a pioneer in the medical profession and the embodiment of the Denison ideal. A member of the Class of 1916 (earning the Ph.B., or Bachelor of Philosophy), Dr. Harris was the first woman ever to receive a medical degree from Syracuse University. She also did post-graduate study at the University of Pennsylvania before beginning her medical practice in New York in the 1920s.
A pioneer medical educator among women, she was appointed a clinical professor of pediatrics at the State University of New York Medical Center at Syracuse. Her teaching career spanned more than 30 years. In 1951, Dr. Harris was honored with a Denison Alumni Citation and in 1981 with an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. She died in 1987 at the age of 93.
The Laura C. Harris Endowment, the result of a major bequest from Dr. Harris’ estate, stands as a tribute to her memory, evidence of her clear commitment to women’s achievement and reinforcement of her belief in the importance of undergraduate education. The objective of the Laura C. Harris Series is to enhance and promote the education of young women as students and as professionals and serve to promote the career opportunities and carry on the pioneering spirit of women students at Denison University.
