mnsss316 N. Beatrice Worthy Papers, 1954-1984 Finding Aid Encoding funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College

Northampton, MA

Finding aid exported into EAD from InMagic DB/Textworks 7.01. Encoded by Margaret Jessup and Jennifer Smar. 2006-04-07 Finding aid written in English. Sophia Smith CollectionSmith College N. Beatrice Worthy Papers, 1954-1984 Finding Aid MS 188 2005 Encoding funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Collection Overview Worthy, N. Beatrice, 1913- N. Beatrice Worthy Papers1954-1984 MS 188 1 box (.5 linear ft.) English Sophia Smith Collection

Smith College Northampton, MA

Business executive; Researcher; Affirmative action coordinator. The papers include correspondence, employment applications, writings, and printed material relating to her professional activities with the National Industrial Conference Board, the Commerce and Industrial Association of New York, Bell Laboratories, and AT&T. Also included are writings, and an oral history interview in which she describes her experiences as an African American professional woman, circa 1950s to 70s. Biographical Note

N. Beatrice Worthy was born in 1913 in Charlotte, North Carolina. After graduating from high school in Jersey City, NJ in 1933, she took a part time clerical position with a local youth program and began piano study. In 1935 she became secretary to the director of an adult education program for the Works Progress Administration, Negro Division. Between 1942 and 1954 Worthy worked with the Department of Defense in the New York Quartermaster Purchasing Department. She received a BS in 1948 and an MBA in 1954 from New York University School of Commerce and studied toward a Ph.D. during the late 1960s. Worthy held a research position with the National Industrial Conference Board (1955-62); managed the survey division of Commerce and Industry Association of New York (1962-64); held a personnel research position at Bell Laboratories in New Jersey (1964-75); and was affirmative action coordinator with AT&T in New York (1975-78). She retired in 1978.

Scope and Contents of the Collection

The N. Beatrice Worthy papers consist of correspondence,employment applications, writings, and printed material relating to her professional activities between 1954 and 1977, with the National Industrial Conference Board, the Commerce and Industrial Association of New York, Bell Laboratories, and AT&T. Worthy's M.A. thesis, "Contributions of Women to the Management of American Industry," is also included. The papers' arrangement corresponds to and is coded to an oral history interview conducted in 1983-84, in which she describes her experiences as an African American professional woman in the 1950s to 70s.

NOTE: The container list for this collection is available in the Sophia Smith Collection. Please contact us to request a copy.

Information on Use Terms of Access and Use

The papers are open to research according to the regulations of the Sophia Smith Collection.

Copyright to unpublished materials may be owned by the creator, or their heirs or assigns. It is the responsibility of the researcher to identify and satisfy the holders of all copyrights. Permission to publish reproductions or quotations beyond "fair use" must also be obtained from the Sophia Smith Collection as owners of the physical property.

Preferred Citation

Please use the following format when citing materials from this collection:

N. Beatrice Worthy Papers, Sophia Smith Collection, Smith College, Northampton, Mass.

Search Terms Worthy, N. Beatrice, 1913- AT&T--Employees--History Bell Telephone Laboratories, Inc.--History National Industrial Conference Board--History--Sources Affirmative action programs--United States--History--Sources African American women--Employment--History--Sources African American women in the professions--History--20th century--Sources Women--Employment--United States--History--20th century--Sources Women executives--United States--Biography--Sources