Ellen Swallow Richards Accepted at MIT

Ellen Henrietta Swallow Richards (1842-1911) was the first woman to be accepted at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). After her graduation, Richards helped establish the Women’s Laboratory at MIT, an institute offering degree courses for women in natural sciences, where she was head from 1876 to 1883. Through this endeavor, she enabled many women to take part in natural sciences programs, which were previously denied to them. From 1887 on, Richards surveyed the national water supply on behalf of the US Department of Health. Her efforts led to the establishment of a course called “sanitary engineering” at MIT, through which she instructed students on the analysis of water, sewage, and air. For her commitment to the rights of women and ecological studies, she is considered a pioneer of both ecofeminism and environmental hygiene.