Digital Collections

The Women and Leadership Archives digital collections showcase a range of artifacts and documents from the WLA's collections. They give researchers an idea of what our collections entail and only include a fraction of the information and documents available within the collections. The images and documents in these digital collections may not be downloaded, reproduced, or published without the express permission of the the WLA Director.

Browse WLA digitized materials or explore the featured items in the digital collections listed below.

	Feminism in Chicago: The Connie Kiosse Papers focuses on the Women’s Liberation Movement of the 1970s through highlighting documents from the Connie Kiosse Papers. Kiosse was an active member within Chicago’s Women’s Liberation movement throughout the 1970s and was among the founding members of The Feminist Voice, one of Chicago’s first feminist newspapers.
	Immaculata High School, also known as “T‌he Immaculata,” was a Catholic, all-girls school located in Lakeview on Chicago’s northeast side. The Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM) conducted the school from its opening in 1921 to its closing day sixty years later.
	Polish Women's Alliance of America: Głos Polek (The Polish Women's Voice), 1902-2007. Monthly (previously weekly) publication of the Polish Women's Alliance of America, originally a fraternal society that focused on the needs of women & their families.
	Mercedes McCambridge: Actress & Activist Mercedes McCambridge pursued careers in radio, theater and film and in 1945 won an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards for her portrayal of Sadie Burke in the feature film All the Kings Men. From 1969 until her death in 2004 she was a leading force in the international fight against alcoholism.
	Mundelein College Class Photos consist of class photos taken each year of Mundelein graduates from 1932–1993
	Mundelein College Foundations, 1929–1931 consists of 64 items, spanning from the groundbreaking for the school's Skyscraper building in 1929 to its dedication in 1931. The Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVMs) founded Mundelein College in answer to Cardinal George Mundelein's call for a Catholic college for women in Chicago. The college opened its doors to its first students in 1930 as the world's first self-contained skyscraper college for women.
	Mundelein College Photograph Collection highlights select photographs, slides, and negatives of Mundelein College student activities, faculty, and more.
	Mundelein College Records contains select items and materials documenting the history and activities of Mundelein College.
	Mundelein College: The Skyscraper Student Newspaper Mundelein College published the inaugural issue of its student newspaper The Skyscraper on January 30, 1931. The Skyscraper informed the Mundelein community about local and national events as well as "all the news, views, rumor, and humor of the students of Mundelein College." The newspaper was an entirely student-run operation and continued to be published until May 1969.
	Mundelein College Yearbooks include all eight of the yearbooks produced over the life span of the college. The years covered are 1931, 1932, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1971, 1972, and 1985.
	Peggy Roach: Civil Rights Pioneer explores Peggy's early life, her leadership in high school and college, her accomplishments as a front line civil rights activist in the 1960s, her continuing work for civil rights and social justice for the disadvantaged and poor, her commitment to justice through religious inspiration, and her many awards.
	Virginia Gaertner Broderick is one of the most well-known and influential religious artists of the 20th Century. The Virginia Broderick Exhibit highlights her artistic talents and her influence within the Christian community.
	Visions: A Highlight of Chicago Women Artists provides an overview of ten artists' careers through artwork, exhibition catalogs, press coverage, correspondence, photographs, resumes, artists’ statements, and other unique documents.
	Women and Social Justice focuses on the contributions of women through a variety of social justice activities in the 20th and 21st Centuries in the United States including women’s rights, civil rights, peace movements, workers’ rights, homelessness, poverty, business ethics, and healthcare reform.
	Women in Science focuses on the contributions women have made to the field of science over the past 100 years, highlighting several key collections in the Women and Leadership Archives, including the Alice Bourke Hayes, PhD Papers, the Katherine DeLage Taft Papers, the Mundelein College Archives, and the Visiting Nurse Association North Records.