Thelma Jean Grossholtz (April 17, 1929 – February 9, 2021) was an American professor of politics and women's studies at

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

South Hadley, Massachusetts South Hadley (, ) is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 18,150 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts. South Hadle ...

. Beyond her academic work she was also known as an activist for peace and against forced prostitution, and as a senior bodybuilder.

Academic career

After completing undergraduate work at

Pennsylvania State University The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State or PSU) is a Public university, public Commonwealth System of Higher Education, state-related Land-grant university, land-grant research university with campuses and facilities throughout Pennsyl ...

in 1956, Grossholtz earned a master's degree at the

University of Denver The University of Denver (DU) is a private research university in Denver, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1864, it has an enrollment of approximately 5,700 undergraduate students and 7,200 graduate students. It is classified among "R1: D ...

in 1957, with a master's thesis on Germany–Spain relations in

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Grossholtz went on to earn a Doctor of Philosophy from the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

in 1961, where she trained as a specialist in South East Asian Politics. At Mount Holyoke, she became a founder of the women's studies program. She retired in 1999.

Other activities

Grossholtz was arrested as an anti-war protester over dates ranging from 1941 to 2014. She was one of several pacifists from the

Pioneer Valley The Pioneer Valley is the colloquial and promotional name for the portion of the Connecticut River Valley that is in Massachusetts in the United States. It is generally taken to comprise the three counties of Hampden County, Massachusetts, Ha ...

profiled in the 2005 documentary film ''The Peace Patriots''. Although she was unathletic until her 50s, when she was 65 she won a silver medal in

bodybuilding Bodybuilding is the practice of Resistance training, progressive resistance exercise to build, control, and develop one's skeletal muscle, muscles via muscle hypertrophy, hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to a ...

in the 1994 Gay Games . Grossholtz died February 9, 2021.

Selected publications

Grossholtz's publications include: * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grossholtz, Jean Pennsylvania State University alumni University of Denver alumni MIT School of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences alumni Mount Holyoke College faculty 2021 deaths American academics of women's studies 1929 births Place of birth missing Place of death missing