The Lesley University Archives

Edith Lesley Wolfard, 1909-1943
"Kindergarten Education in America will soon become established as a permanent unit in national educational philosophy. I plan not merely to set up another training school; I plan for us to be different; to consider the individual of basic importance; to inculcate the ideal of gracious living; and to foster the tradition of American democracy."
- Edith Lesley Wolfard

Marguerite R. Franklin, 1943-1944
"Be of good courage in the knowledge that educated teaching and informed homemaking may well be your best contribution to War – or Peace."
- Marguerite R. Franklin to the graduating class of 1944
The Leslyan, 1944

Trentwell Mason White, 1944-1959
"Teacher education is the most completely selfless of all possible professional backgrounds since it instructs its students in learning to develop someone else."
- Trentwell Mason White
Commencement Address, Summer Session, August 16, 1957

Don Orton, 1960-1984
"Over the past two decades or so, I think Lesley has acquired its own unique ethos, one that has placed high and appropriate emphasis upon 'experiential learning' as the centerpiece of its philosophy. Lesley had and has a large number of risk takers. We value people and doing our jobs well and our students are committed."
- Don Orton
Furlong, Kathryn. "Recapping Twenty-Four Years of a College Presidency," The Lesley College Lantern, v. 11, n. 1 (Summer/Fall 1984): 1-2.

Margret A. McKenna, 1985-2007
"I always remember that the students are at the heart of it, and I ask myself, 'Will this make the lives of students better?' I want our students to have an impact on the world, and I want to give them the tools to do it."
- Margaret A. McKenna
Handle, Louisa. "20 Years," Lesley Magazine, Fall (2005): 16-21.

In 1909 Edith Lesley [Wolfard] opened "The Lesley Normal School" ("normal" at the time designating teacher training schools) in her home on Everett Street in Cambridge, Massachusetts to train young women to become kindergarten and early elementary teachers.

Born on January 27, 1872 in what is now the country of Panama, Edith was raised in Bangor, Maine where her family's circle of friends was active in the new Kindergarten movement. Edith received her teacher training at the Page Normal School in Boston, Massachusetts. In the late 1890s, she was working as a Kindergarten teacher in the Riverside and Houghton Schools in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Edith attended, as a special student, Radcliffe College where she studied philosophy. When she completed her studies at Radcliffe, she founded the Lesley Normal School.

The first day of classes began on September 18, 1909. Influenced by the philosophy of German educator Friedrich Froebel, Lesley's two-year curriculum stressed the importance of physical activity – singing, dancing and gardening – and play, particularly with blocks and similar objects. Edith Lesley also stressed the values of treating students as individuals and the importance of 'gracious living.' Edith taught philosophy, child study, and the theories and methods of Friederich Froebel. Her sister, Olive, taught folk dancing, games and storytelling. Eleven students graduated at the First Parish Church in Harvard Square on June 10, 1911. In the following year classes in household arts were added and in 1918 a department known first as Domestic Science, later (1939-1940) as Home Economics, was established, offering a one- or two-year program which prepared students to work in various public institutions, including schools and hospitals.

By the 1920s the school, now "The Lesley School," had twenty-two instructors, had acquired three buildings for dormitories and had built Alumni Hall for assemblies and classes. Extra-curricular activities came to play an important role, with Wednesday afternoons reserved for musical or theatrical student performances. Later in the decade a three-year kindergarten and early elementary program was offered in addition to the two-year course of study.

Edith taught at the school until the 1930s and then remained active in the administration of the school until the late 1940s. Beginning in the late 1930s as her health began to decline, Edith appointed Gertrude Malloch, who had joined the school as a teacher and administrator in its first decade, as chief administrator. In 1939 the school, to that point privately owned, became a non-profit institution through incorporation, and during the academic year 1939-1940 it added a four-year teacher-training program. In 1941, the first recorded meeting of the Corporation and the Board of Trustees took place. Edith numbered among the members of the Trustees, and her husband, Merl Wolfard, was named vice president of the board. Gertrude Malloch was named Principal of the Lesley School. The Corporation was charged with the task of taking over the Lesley School in order to "run a school or college with all the facilities incidental thereto."

The School was suffering a decline in both enrollment and financial generation at this time so that in 1942, Edith Lesley loaned the school $8,300. The School was then able to, in 1943, transition to Lesley College with Marguerite Franklin as the first President. Edith retained the titles of Founder and Director Emeritus but her influence by this time had dwindled. She continued to live in the house at 29 Everett Street with Merl until her death on May 16, 1953.

Marguerite R. Franklin
1943-1944
Marguerite Franklin was born in 1893 in Rhode Island to Julie A. Franklin, a superintendent of a settlement house and later a teacher, and Benjamin Franklin, a salesman. She graduated from Wheelock College in 1917 and may have taught there before being appointed as the President of the Lesley School in 1943.

Marguerite came to Lesley during a time of transition, marked by both an excitement around the transition to a college and a serious concern over a potential financial crisis. In December 1942, the school met all the requirements to be approved by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to grant degrees. However during this time the school was hobbled by declining enrollments: only about 60 students were enrolled in 1942-1943. Due to a loss of cash flow, many of the buildings on campus were in poor condition and the school was having difficulty paying off its debts. The tensions of the period created stress among the trustees, who were looking for a leader to make necessary changes.

In April 1943, the trustees appointed Marguerite, a teacher from outside the Lesley community to bring about the changes necessary for creating a college atmosphere. By November, Marguerite was making recommendations, such as discontinuing the three-year course in teacher training and concentrating on the four-year BS degree in Education; creating standards of "prestige" and "teacher ability" when hiring part-time teachers; and growing the library.

President Franklin's active administrative changes helped Lesley transition into its status as a college. At the end of 1944, President Franklin left Lesley to become a professor at the Massachusetts College of Art.

Don Orton
1960-1984
After the unexpected death of Trentwell Mason White, Don Orton was inaugurated on July 1, 1960. Don, born in 1918, earned his Bachelor's degree in English from the University of Utah, a Master's degree in Educational Administration from Ohio State University, and a Doctorate in Education from Harvard University. Prior to joining Lesley, he was a superintendent of schools in Utah, director of the University of Utah's College of Education, and lecturer at Harvard University's Graduate School of Education.

When Don arrived at Lesley, there were 631 undergraduate students. As the 1960s progressed, enrollment continued to grow and the college continued to offer a variety of student activities and clubs. During this time, Lesley undertook its largest building project to date, creating a quadrangle that encompassed the main section of the campus. The new buildings included a new library, dormitory, and classroom space to satisfy the needs of the growing student body.

During the 1970s, Lesley forged relationships with surrounding school districts, which helped Lesley maintain an impressive 90 percent placement rate for its newly-[graduated teachers. In the late 1970s, Don helped to found the National Center for Economic Education at Lesley, which sought to add the basics of economics into the elementary and high school curriculum, and received national attention, including the praise of President Carter.

The graduate school, under Don's tenure, increased its offerings to include 18 different programs in the 70s, and added management degree completion programs in the 80s. In 1981, Lesley initiated the School of Programs in Management for Business and Industry (PMBI), which later became the School of Management. By the mid-80s, the graduate school enrollment was over 3,300, and, additionally, Lesley launched its first off-campus program, the National Outreach program in Denver, Colorado. In 1982, an academic and living-skills program for young adults with learning disabilities was also founded, called the Threshold Program.

Don Orton stepped down as president of Lesley College in 1984.

Margaret McKenna
1985-2007
In 1985, Lesley College inaugurated Margaret McKenna. During her 22-year tenure, Lesley College became Lesley University. Margaret led the transformation of the institution from a small college with 2,000 students in 1985 to a 12,000-student university with a national presence. Under her leadership, the university's endowment increased from less than $1 million to more than $77 million; the number of academic facilities doubled; the diversity of faculty, staff, and students increased; and the national programs expanded from eight states to 23, making Lesley one of the largest graduate schools in the nation. Some of the largest growth happened in the undergraduate school with the addition of the Art Institute of Boston in 1998 and the school becoming co-ed in 2005.

Soon after Margaret's inauguration, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) approved Lesley's first Ph.D. program. The first Ph.D. students were admitted in the fall of 1990. In the 1990s, Lesley continued to increase the size of its campus by purchasing the old Sears building at Porter Square, renaming it Porter Exchange, which doubled its classroom space. Lesley college also joined Division III of the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), distinguishing itself as an institution that encourages both physical and intellectual prowess. International programs increased, with offerings in Europe, the Middle East, and Canada. In 1996, the Graduate School of Education was officially established. In 1998, Lesley merged with the Art Institute of Boston.

The new millennium has proven to be one of success and distinction for Lesley. In 2000, Lesley officially became a university, and its undergraduate program was renamed Lesley College. In 2003, Princeton Review named the University as one of the "Best Northeastern Colleges," and in 2004 Backpacker magazine named Lesley's Audubon Expedition Institute as one of the "Top 5 Outdoor Education" programs. Lesley College went co-ed in 2005, admitting men for the first time. In the spring of 2006, President McKenna announced her retirement effective June 30, 2007.

Prior to becoming President, Margaret McKenna served as vice president of Radcliffe, deputy counsel in the White House and a civil rights lawyer in the U.S. Department of Justice. She served on multiple boards of directors for both non-profit and for-profit organizations and has authored several publications on education policy and reform. She has received numerous awards and honors from civic, educational and civil rights organizations, and holds seven honorary degrees.