Elsie Clews Parsons

Who was Elsie Clews Parsons?

Elsie Worthington Clews Parsons was an American anthropologist, sociologist, folklorist, and feminist who studied Native American tribes—such as the Tewa and Hopi—in Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexico. She helped found The New School. She was associate editor for The Journal of American Folklore, president of the American Folklore Society, president of the American Ethnological Society, and was elected the first female president of the American Anthropological Association right before her death.

She earned her bachelor's degree from Barnard College in 1896. She received her master’s degree and Ph.D. from Columbia University.

Every other year, the American Ethnological Society awards the Elsie Clews Parsons Prize for the best graduate student essay, in her honor.