Sally Van Schaick receives her degree from Union College in 1958. She was the first woman to complete undergraduate studies at the college.
Sally Van Schaick wasn’t trying to break new ground. She just wanted to get her degree, and Union College was right next door.
Fifty years ago this month, Van Schaick, a Long Island native who has lived in Schenectady since the end of World War II, completed her undergraduate education at Union College, becoming the first woman in the history of the school to receive a four-year degree.
"I was a bit sneaky," said Van Schaick, who took a semester’s worth of courses over a year and a half at Union to earn her English degree, something she began pursuing in 1939 at Duke University in North Carolina and then in 1941 at Stetson University in Florida. "I started taking some night courses, and I don’t think they were paying that much attention to me."
Few options
Back in 1958, women living in the Capital Region didn’t have that many options for their college education, and Van Schaick, who had five children at home, wasn’t about to head off to Saratoga Springs to go to Skidmore or all the way over to Troy and Russell Sage, two women-only schools at that time. From her home on Glenwood Boulevard, Union was within walking distance.
"The biggest virtue Union had was that it was a short distance from my house," said Van Schaick, a retired schoolteacher in the city school district and a former Democratic candidate for the state Assembly. "I could go to class and then get back home to take care of the kids."
Union had allowed Florence Fogler Buckland to earn a graduate degree in electrical engineering way back in 1925, but little advancement in the way of women’s studies was made after that until Van Schaick came along. But while Union allowed her to take some evening courses, classes during daylight hours were out of the question.
"Women were not supposed to be on campus during the day," said Van Schaick, who will be honored by Union College today as part of its ReUnion Weekend. "I did see a few other women during the evening division, but they were mostly grad students."
Staff breakthrough
Union’s all-male student body seemed to dictate an all-male faculty, and that included librarians up until 1952, when Ruth Anne Evans became the first women on staff, eventually becoming the first full female professor in 1973. Three years earlier, in the fall of 1970, Union began allowing its first undergraduate class of women on campus. Among the 425 students in that class of 1974, 126 were women.
Talk of changing to a co-ed campus began in 1967, and the following year, 10 years after Van Schaick earned her degree, the faculty voted in favor of the idea. Union was right on the heels of schools such as Colgate and Wesleyan that had made similar changes, and places like Bowdoin, Williams and Amherst would soon follow suit.
Van Schaick’s achievement wasn’t just big news on campus and in Schenectady.
"I felt like I was getting my 15 minutes of fame," said Van Schaick, remembering the graduation ceremonies that year. "It was acknowledged by the college, but not really overblown. It was outside the college that it became pretty big news. The press from all over the country was interested in the story."
Not everyone thought it was such a great occurrence.
"I can remember when I was student-teaching at Linton and one of the history teachers there was grumbling about the story," said Van Schaick. "He had no idea I was the one."
The honor of becoming the first female undergraduate at Union College earned Van Schaick status as a Schenectady Patroon, an award she received again last year, this time along with her husband, for their contributions to the city.
The Van Schaicks have worked on the board and as volunteers at the Schenectady County Historical Society, were integral in the formation of Friends for Educational Television — the forerunner of public television station WMHT — and also helped organize the MVP Health Plan.— so I started one myself," she said. "I also did the historical society newsletter for quite a while. I always thought that kind of work was fun."
Van Schaick, who moved to Stratford Road in the GE Realty Plot with her husband in 1976, came into the world as Sally Brown in 1922. Her parents weren’t college graduates, but they did believe in getting involved in the community.
"We kind of nibbled a bit at going to college and didn’t take it too seriously," she said. "Nobody had a degree, but I did come from a politically oriented family. My father used to tell us that democracy works best if everybody gets involved."
In 1942, while attending classes at Stetson, Sally Brown met John Van Schaick and six weeks later, before he headed off to the Pacific to help the U.S. cause during World War II, they were married.
"My mother was quite distressed because her protected daughter had been swept up and taken away," remembered Van Schaick. "I only had one semester left. I figured I could always make it up later on. Well, it took me 18 years before I got back to it."
Along with teaching, both Van Schaicks had earlier worked in the newspaper business in Florida. Getting the story right was always an interest of Sally’s.
"When I was 10, I felt my family needed a newsletter
In 1990, Van Schaick won the Democratic nod for state Assembly and gave current minority leader James Tedisco a real run for his money.
"She gave Jimmy a real battle and came within five points of beating him," said John Van Schaick. "But I don’t think she liked the experience that much. She kept on writing in her diary, ‘never run for office again.’ She had to remind herself."
"It really took away from your family," said Sally Van Schaick, who had six children. "It left you no time for them, and that’s what I really didn’t like about it."
Still involved
These days, the Van Schaicks are still involved with the Schenectady County Historical Society, but much of their time is taken up with their nine grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. And as fractured as her college experience was, Van Schaick wouldn’t change a thing.
"I enjoyed college very much, and I think it’s great that people go back when they’re in their 30s," she said. "I got a lot out of it, as opposed to younger people who just went to school because they thought they were supposed to. I can remember when John came home from GE with a raise and asked me if I wanted more insurance or if I want to go back to school. Well, ‘for heaven’s sake’ I remember thinking, ‘I only need another semester.’ It was a great idea."