Rachel Nicol (physician)

For the swimmer, see Rachel Nicol (swimmer).
Doctor
Rachel Jane Nicol
Born1845
Edgington, Illinois, USA
Died1881
Zurich, Switzerland
Resting placeCedar Creek Presbyterian Church near Little York, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
Other namesRachel "Jennie" Nicol
Alma materMonmouth College, B.A., Woman's Medical College of Pennsylvania, M.D.
OccupationPhysician
Known forCofounder of the first national (American) women’s fraternity (aka sorority)

Rachel Jane "Jennie" Nicol (1845–1881) was a founder of Pi Beta Phi and a physician. In 1867, she cofounded I.C. Sorosis at Monmouth College in Illinois, the first secret collegiate society for women patterned after men's fraternities, which later adopted the Greek name Pi Beta Phi (ΠΒΦ).[1]

Pi Beta Phi is now an international organization with over 300,000 members. At a time when there were only a few hundred women physicians in the United States[2] she received her M.D. degree in 1879.[3]

  1. ^ Clarke-Helmick, Elizabeth Allen (1915). "The History of Pi Beta Phi Fraternity, Page 27 | Document Viewer". Pi Beta Phi Fraternity. Archived from the original on 2014-04-08. Retrieved 2023-04-19.
  2. ^ Newcomer, Mabel (1959). A Century of Higher Education for American Women. New York: Zenger Publishing Company. ISBN 9780892010028.
  3. ^ Becque, Fran, ed. (November 17, 2012). "Doctors who Wore Badges: Fraternity Women in Medicine 1867–1902". Fraternity History & More. Retrieved 2023-06-07.