May 19 at 12:00 pm CT in person at the Archives or online for our May Food For Thought presentation. Historian Paul M. Pruitt Jr. will present “The Education of Julia Tutwiler: Training for Leadership.” Alabamian Julia Strudwick Tutwiler (1841-1916) was an educator, prison reformer, writer, and outspoken proponent of education for women.
During this presentation, historian Paul M. Pruitt Jr. will explore Tutwiler’s early life and her experience as the pupil of her father, Henry Tutwiler, who believed that women were the intellectual equals of men and should be educated the same way.
Pruitt will discuss how the experiences of her youth led to an appreciation of both the liberal arts and vocational training, setting Tutwiler on a path to transform and expand educational opportunities for Alabamians in the tumultuous years following the Civil War.
Pruitt is the Assistant Law Librarian at the Bounds Law Library at the University of Alabama, where he also serves as an adjunct professor at the School of Law. He holds a B.A. from Auburn University and a Ph.D. from the College of William and Mary. He currently serves on the Board of Directors at the Alabama Men’s Hall of Fame.
