User:Katerina Papageorgiou/sandbox

LEGACY
The Ryan Family had many distinctions among their midst, such as Mary Ryan’s brothers and father, the first achieving honorable positions in the church or government and the latter running a successful business (obituary). With such an accomplished family, it is little wonder that Mary Ryan, herself,  rose to such a prestigious position in University College Cork as Professor of Romance Languages. Her Legacy continues with her receiving the Legion of Honor by the French Government, a prestigious award given to her for her contributions to the creation of the French Society and the promotion of her students to study in the University of Sorbonne. In addition to this, she was awarded a D.Litt from the National University of Ireland in 1952 a great reward for her efforts and published work on French Literature, such as that of Paul Claudel.

Her legacy however does not end simply in her academic achievements, though they also were immense. Mary Ryan was a formidable educator, whose love for learning was unmatched. This attitude to education was passed down to her students who loved her dearly. Two of her students, Kathleen O'Flaherty and Seán Ó Faoláin, left the University to become very successful in their according fields, the first becoming an internationally renowned scholar and the latter publishing many short stories of his own.

Though Mary Ryan has been dead for many years, her contributions to academic research can only be matched by what she represented to the society of the time. During her studies at University College Cork, it was unthinkable that women would attend university, let alone teach in them. In fact, Mary Ryan did not step foot into the University grounds except for when she had to sit the examinations to get her degree. Instead, she studied in St. Angela’s through private tutors, the Ursuline Nuns, and achieved success, even with society and social norms stacked against her.

Mary Ryan, being the first female professor to teach in the entirety of Great Britain and Ireland, is a shining example that hard work and effort can overcome prejudices and the patriarchal nature of the society she lived in. In her honor, the University of College Cork has created the 'Mary Ryan Language Scholarship', for students achieving more than 500 points on their Leaving Certificate, while at the same time petitions have been created to name the Student Hub at the University after her. However the crowning moment of recognition for this accomplished woman came in 2010 when former President of Ireland, Mary Robinson, spoke about her achievements as part of the celebrations in University College Cork, held to commemorate the accomplishment of a woman being appointed as Professor for the first time. Category:Mary Ryan Academic