Griffin, Mary Annarose, 1916-1998.

Born December 25, 1916, Chicago, IL, died April 3, 1998, Chicago, IL. Distinguished educator, administrator, and author. Agnes Marie Griffin was born on December 25, 1916, in Chicago, Illinois. She received a Bachelor of Music Education degree from Mundelein College in 1939 and entered the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVMs), taking her initial vows in 1942. From 1942 to 1944, she taught English at the Saint Joseph Academy in Dubuque, Iowa. In 1944, she became a fully professed member of the BVMs, taking the name Sr. Mary Ignatia. She earned a Masters Degree in English in 1951 from the Catholic University of America and after graduating, resumed teaching English at Clarke College and later Mundelein College. In 1957, she received a Ph.D. in English from Fordham University. She returned to Mundelein College in 1961, serving as Academic Dean. During the 1960s, she was involved in the Civil Rights Movement and in the 1970s in the Feminist Movement. Influenced by the social and cultural changes of the 1960s and 1970s, Griffin chose to leave religious life in 1973. Griffin was a nationally recognized pioneer for her creative ideas in education. She served on many national and local education committees, and organized the Weekend College (1974) and Master of Liberal Studies Programs (1983) at Mundelein College. After her retirement, Griffin continued to teach at Mundelein College and later at Loyola University Chicago, until her death on April 3, 1998.