Who was Dorothy Stratton?
Dorothy Stratton became the first full-time dean of women at Purdue in 1933 and served in that role until 1942. In her nine years at Purdue, Stratton forged a path for women wanting to study more than home economics, and she saw this effort pay off as enrollment of female students nearly tripled from 500 to more than 1,400.
In 1942, Stratton left Purdue to join the burgeoning war effort as the United States entered World War II. She was commissioned as a senior lieutenant in the U.S. Navy but later was transferred to the U.S. Coast Guard. Not long after, Stratton founded the Coast Guard’s Women’s Reserve and became its first director. She climbed in rank to lieutenant commander and then to commander in January 1944, then to captain one month later.
Stratton is who coined the nautical title SPAR, as the Women’s Reserve was commonly known. The acronym comes from the first letters of the Coast Guard’s famous fighting motto, “Semper Paratus,” and its English translation, “Always Ready.” Upon her retirement in 1946, Stratton was awarded the Legion of Merit medal for her contributions to women in the military.
Stratton died in 2006 at the age of 107.
