In the short film Among pr♀fessors, five female professors speak about successes and obstacles in their academic career. Who or what helped them along the way? And how did they, after acquiring a professorial position, solidify a role in the academic world?

The stories of female professors

In 2017, a hundred years have passed since the appointment of the Netherlands’ first female professor, Johanna Westerdijk, at Utrecht University. In the light of the Westerdijk-commemoration year 2017, Atria now documents the portraits of five female professors:

• Jacqueline de Savornin Lohman, professor of social care, professor of child protection and child care (University of Amsterdam)
• Maaike Meijer, Opzij-leerstoel, professor of Gender Studies (Maastricht University)
• Anneke van Doorne-Huiskes, professor of Women in labour organisations (Wageningen University), professor of Social Sciences (Erasmus University), professor of sociology (Utrecht University)
• Iteke Weeda, professor of Gender equality issues (Groningen University)
• Toine Lagro-Janssen, professor of sex-specific medicine, professor of women’s studies medical sciences (Radboud University)

Their integral stories have been documented in sound and picture according tot the method of oral history. Based on their interviews, Atria has made a short compilation film (in Dutch).

Moving Women’s History

The video-interviews will be included in Moving Women’s History, Atria’s oral history collection. Thus, these women’s histories will be preserved and will be accessible for future generations, serving as a source of inspiration.