Margaret Alison Telfer

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Margaret Alison Telfer

OBE
Margaret Alison Telfer.png
Born(1904-10-21)21 October 1904
Lismore, New South Wales, Australia
Died24 May 1974(1974-05-24) (aged 69)
Wollstonecraft, New South Wales, Australia
NationalityAustralian
Alma materUniversity of Sydney (BA 1925, DipEd 1926)
OccupationUniversity administrator

Margaret Alison Telfer OBE (21 October 1904 – 24 May 1974) was a university administrator at the University of Sydney.

Early life and education[]

Telfer was born in Lismore, New South Wales[1] and attended high school in Tamworth and Newcastle. She entered the Women's College at the University of Sydney, completing a Bachelor of Arts in 1925 and a Diploma of Education in 1926.[1] Telfer served as secretary of the Sydney University Women's Union from 1926, and later was appointed adviser to women students in 1939.[2]

Career[]

She became deputy assistant registrar in 1944, and was promoted to assistant registrar in 1947 and deputy registrar in 1950.[3] In 1955 Telfer accepted the university senate's offer of the position of registrar, becoming the first woman to hold a top administrative post in any Australian university.[4]

In 1956 she was awarded a travel grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York which enabled her to study administration and student services in British and North American universities.[5]

Telfer was a member of the Board of Social Studies (1940–55), and in 1956 was appointed to the committee that surveyed secondary education in New South Wales. One of the key recommendations of this committee was to extend high school courses by one year, introducing the idea of a school certificate examination after completing four years of secondary schooling, followed by two additional years that would result in acquiring a higher school certificate that would be accepted for university matriculation.[6]

The committee also advocated for a wider curriculum rather than a secondary education system that comprised numerous specialised courses, their idea was that secondary schooling was "to educate for living and to awaken in the student the desire for knowledge"[7]

Telfer was the president of the Australian Federation of University Women between 1958 and 1960.[1][8]

In 1966, Telfer became the first woman to be appointed to the New South Wales Parole Board.[9]

Honours and recognition[]

In 1960 she was appointed as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.[10] In 1970, the University of Sydney conferred on her an honorary Doctor of Letters.[11]

An administration building at the University of Sydney was named the Margaret Telfer Building in her honour.[12]

Personal life[]

Telfer enjoyed skiing, and was described as dignified, efficient, courteous, patient and sympathetic. At the time of her retirement in 1967, Professor W. M. O'Neil wrote of her as a "traditionalist" in a period of change who was "constantly reminding us whence we came and where we originally set out to go." He further pointed out that "she has of course not been able to please everyone. That was not possible and she knew it. That, indeed, is why she has made her way to the top."[1]

Death[]

Telfer died on 24 May 1974, of a coronary occlusion, at her Wollstonecraft home.[13]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d Bygott, Ursula. "Telfer, Margaret Alison (1904–1974)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Retrieved 31 October 2014.
  2. ^ "Women Students' Adviser – Miss M.A. Telfer". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 March 1939. Retrieved 1 November 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
  3. ^ "New University Registrar – Woman As Deputy". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 February 1950. Retrieved 1 November 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
  4. ^ "Vol. 77 No. 3963 (25 Jan 1956)". nla.gov.au. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  5. ^ "Woman Registrar". The Age. 18 January 1960. Retrieved 1 November 2014 – via Google News Archive.
  6. ^ "Year Longer High School Course Urged". The Canberra Times. 21 November 1957. p. 1. Retrieved 31 October 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "More General Education Heeded Says C.W.A State President". The Farmer & Settler. Sydney. 28 January 1955. p. 21. Retrieved 31 October 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^ ""Battle for Brainpower" Presents a Challenge". The Age. 19 January 1960. Retrieved 1 November 2014 – via Google News Archive.
  9. ^ "Parole board's first woman". The Canberra Times. 22 December 1966. Retrieved 1 November 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
  10. ^ "The Order of the British Empire – Officer (Civil) (OBE(C)) entry for TELFER, Margaret Alison". It's an Honour, Australian Honours Database. Canberra, Australia: Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 11 June 1960. Retrieved 1 November 2014. Registrar of Sydney University
  11. ^ "Honorary awards – Margaret Alison Telfer OBE". University of Sydney. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  12. ^ "K07 Margaret Telfer Building at USYD Camperdown/Darlington". StudentVIP. Retrieved 2020-03-28.
  13. ^ "First woman uni registrar dies". The Sydney Morning Herald. 27 May 1974. Retrieved 1 November 2014 – via Google News Archive.
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