Jane Slocum

Jane Slocum (1842–1924) was an American educator and lecturer. She taught in the Freedman School, Yorktown, Virginia, during the last year of the Civil War, then in Howland Institute, Union Springs, New York (except 1871–72) till 1876. In 1876, she was one of four who founded Granger Place School at Canandaigua, New York, and conducted it 17 years. She went to New York City in 1893, where she gave parlor talks and had classes in social science in Carnegie Hall. Slocum was interested in civics, economics and the general welfare of the people, as well as bettering social conditions. She was a co-founder of the Idaho Industrial Institute, 1900, and served as principal of its girls' department before becoming a trustee, vice-president, and chair of its Educational Committee.

Career Before the close of the war, her zeal to take some active part in the conflict led her to join the first volunteers for teaching the Freedmen. She received an appointment to teach in Yorktown, Virginia. A little school building was erected on Darlington Heights, Virginia, on York River, and there she devoted eight months of labor to the new race problem. A severe attack of malarial fever made a return to that field impracticable. One school year was given to the teaching of a private school in Philadelphia, New York, and the summer was devoted to the study of bookkeeping in the commercial college in Rochester, New York. An imperative call to Howland School, Union Springs, New York, resulted in further association with old teachers, and for ten years, she continued to labor there, building up the first department for girls in civil government and political economy. established Granger Place School. Slocum was chosen vice-president. Her departments of instruction included civil government, political and social economy, psychology, logic and ethics. She assumed charge of the women's department of this institute in the year 1900, and subsequently devoted her time and energy to its upbuilding. Slocum taught civics and economics in the third year of each course.