Leota Carolene Colpitts collection

Leota Carolene Colpitts was born on April 9, 1903, in Vinalhaven, Maine. Her father was Robert A. Colpitts and her mother was Lillian A. Colpitts. Colpitts graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the elite women’s school Wellesley College in 1924. In 1936, she graduated from Boston University, where she earned her master’s degree in biology.

Colpitts remained in academia after she graduated. She worked as an assistant in biology at the University of Delaware. She was the head of the science department at Knox School in Cooperstown, New York. She also instructed mathematics at Melrose High School in Massachusetts.

Colpitts began her long career as a dean at Ogontz Junior College in Pennsylvania, working as the Dean of Women. From there, she moved on to be the Dean of Women at DePauw University from 1943-1947. After leaving DePauw University, she began a long tenure as the Dean of Men and Women at Wheaton College in Massachusetts.

Colpitts never married or had children. She died on October 27, 1988, in Massachusetts.

Sources:

Ancestry.com. “Leota C. Colpitts in the U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2015.”

“Alumna Leaves Legacy of Kindness.” The Magazine of Wheaton College, September 28, 2022.

Office of the President Records. DePauw University Archives and Special Collections, Greencastle, Indiana.

This biographical note was created by Lindsay Hontz and Alden Small as part of the HIST278: Women's History from 1890-Present course during the fall 2024 semester. It was revised by Professor Sarah Rowley and the Coordinator of Archives and Special Collections Bethany Fiechter.