Professor Eva Maglott was honored on ONU's Founders Day this year because she represents the inclusiveness, determination and achievement of the university.

Eva Sisson was born in Ft. Smith, Ark., in 1860. She enrolled at Northwestern Ohio Normal School in 1876, graduating with an A.B. from the Classical Course in 1878. The school, of course, would later become Ohio Northern University. 

She returned to Ada in 1880 and married professor Frederick Maglott, one of ONU’s original owners. She herself joined the faculty in 1881, teaching mathematics and Latin.

In 1884, at a time when there were few female professors – and even fewer in the sciences – Eva began teaching mathematics and astronomy to ONU engineering students. 

She possessed a brilliant mind and was adored by her students, who called her “Mother Maglott.” Her role as an esteemed professor in those early years cemented the college’s view that engineering wasn’t the sole domain of men or a privileged class. At ONU, engineering was, and remains, a field without boundaries.

Eva taught at ONU until her death in 1916. Maglott Hall, the west wing of Founder’s Hall, was named after her and Frederick in 1973.