From the Pages: Women in Management, 1979

In winter 1979, the University of Virginia Darden School of Business — then just over two decades old — published a special edition of its alumni magazine titled “Women in Management.”

At the time, the School counted 101 women among its graduates, compared to 1,786 men. The incoming Class of 1980 included 59 women among 220 students — a slight increase from the year before.

In that context, the pages of the magazine bring together a set of voices: a dean writing to alumni, an author offering career instruction, a professor describing management training and recent graduates describing their work in advertising, product management and construction.

Professor Allison Elias, whose research examines historical and contemporary issues of gender and work in organizations, recently uncovered the magazine issue while working in the Darden archives with librarians John Cocklin and Iuliia Nahirna.

Her work at Darden spans the classroom and the archive — from teaching negotiation in the Executive Education & Lifelong Learning Women in Leadership program and an MBA elective on women, gender and work, to building a growing collection of alumnae interviews that document women’s experiences during and after their time at Darden.

“You can see the institution starting to make sense of women’s place in it — not in hindsight, but as it’s happening,” Elias said of the 1979 issue of The Darden Report. “That’s what makes something like this so valuable.”

As Darden marks its 70th anniversary, here is a scrapbook-style look at what was said at the time — and what, in different ways, continues to surface in Elias’ work today.

The Dean

C. Stewart Sheppard, dean of the School from 1972 to 1980, writes to alumni:

“When it comes to women MBAs, many of the older alumni shake their heads in despair. They say: what can a woman MBA do? How can the School possibly handle 59 women when it had only one in 1965?”

He situates the moment against the School’s own recent past — coeducation still relatively new, enrollment rising.

And then looks forward:

“In all probability, it will be another ten years before women in any large numbers will acquire dominant positions in senior management. But their rise up the ladder is inevitable.”

“Women have indeed come a long way, and it is safe to predict that they are not going to stop short of the beautiful views from the executive suite.”

Illustration from feature on women in corporate careers in winter 1979 issue of The Darden Report.

The Author

Professor Derek Newton is cited for a forthcoming book on women in corporate careers.

He describes business in structural terms:

“Business is indeed a ‘game’ and… it has clearly defined rules.”

His formulation condenses those rules into the book title: Think Like A Man, Act Like A Lady, Work Like A Dog.

The intended audience is explicit — women entering organizations still largely led by men:

“Older men not only make the rules, but they determine who gets to play.”

Professor Charlotte H. Scott

The Professor

Professor Charlotte H. Scott writes about management development within organizations.

Her focus is not entry, but progression:

“Women aspiring to higher management levels need more than the advice and guidance that a mentor gives. They need the knowledge and skills learned when theory and principles are applied to concrete situations.”

She places responsibility partly within the firm:

“The teaching that women receive from their superiors will be important in moving them from first-line supervision and specialized positions into middle and top management.”

Portraits of Darden alumnae featured in winter 1979 issue of The Darden Report.

The Graduates

The profiles that follow move from Charlottesville into workplaces across industries.

Sharon McGavin (MBA ’73), a vice president and account supervisor in advertising in New York City:

“I see no limit to my goals. I’m in the right business, doing the right job for me. I just want to keep moving.”

“I don’t feel overshadowed by someone of equal talent. I work in an agency where performance and results matter. That’s it.”

“I’ve never felt I had to be anything I’m not. I just had to be me. There are important, wonderful differences between men and women. In business, however, there aren’t limitations.”

Susan Clifford (MBA ’74), a product manager at a medical supply business in Philadelphia:

“I started in nursing, which is predominantly a women’s field, and moved into business. I couldn’t have made the transition without the degree. It was absolutely imperative for me.”

“I’d like to find myself in general management, leading to higher management. I might even have my own company. I don’t know yet at what point I’d say I’m going no further. If I’m creative and autonomous where I am, I might be content to stay.”

Peggy Ann Echo (MBA ’76), president of her own building company in Washington, D.C.:

“The MBA was vital. I wish I could go back through the program now. It gave me management skills, marketing and advertising.”

“I feel I’m very successful. I know I’m not going to fail this project. I still want to strive and to achieve. But I don’t feel compulsive about it, and I feel good about what I’ve done.”

Across the profiles, the settings vary — corporate offices, product teams, job sites — but the emphasis is consistent: movement, responsibility, progression.

Credits & Sources

Archival clippings, images and quotes cited above are from the winter 1979 issue of The Darden Report magazine.