Maija Sibilla Blaubergs (February 20, 1947 – November 10, 2010) was a German-born Latvian educational psychologist, feminist scholar, and lawyer, raised in Canada. She taught at the University of Georgia, where she was the first coordinator of the school's women's studies program, and at the center of a national controversy over tenure decisions.

Maija Blaubergs
BornFebruary 20, 1947
Oldenberg, Lower Saxony, Germany
DiedNovember 10, 2010 (aged 63)
Occupation(s)Educational psychologist, feminist scholar, college professor, lawyer

Early life and education edit

Blaubergs was born in Oldenburg, Germany, the daughter of Oskars Gustavs Blaubergs and Valentine Kuznecovs. Both of her parents were displaced persons born in Latvia, and the family emigrated to Canada in 1950. She graduated from Westdale Secondary School in Hamilton, Ontario. She earned a bachelor's degree at the University of Toronto. In 1972, she completed doctoral studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara, with a dissertation titled "Intra-word Semantic Structures."[1] She attended law school at the University of Georgia in 1980 and 1981.[2][3][4]

Career edit

Blaubergs taught in the educational psychology department at the University of Georgia beginning in 1972,[3] and was on the advisory committee to develop the school's first women's studies program. In 1976, when it launched, she was the program's first coordinator. When she was denied tenure in 1977, she sued the university on the basis of sex discrimination.[5] The suit was eventually settled out of court,[6] but one professor was jailed for contempt of court in 1980,[7][8] and the case is remembered as "one of the most controversial and widely publicized suits dealing with sex discrimination in academia".[9]

In 1978, Blaubergs presented a report on nonsexist language at the World Congress of Sociology, held in Uppsala, Sweden.[10] She was active in the early years of the National Women's Studies Association.[11] From 1985 to 1992, she was a lawyer based in Washington, D.C., specializing in transportation law.[12]

Publications edit

  • "Are Structural Features of Word Meaning Reflected in Judgements of Semantic Similarity and Difference?" (1972)[13]
  • "Short-term memory limitations on decoding self-embedded sentences" (1974, with Martin D. Braine)[14]
  • "Semantic Anomaly from a Psychological Perspective" (1974)[15]
  • "Misunderstanding the Need for Eliminating Sexism in Language" (1974)[16]
  • "On 'the Nurse Was a Doctor'" (1975)[17]
  • "Encoding Self-Embedded Sentences" (1976)[18]
  • "The Interpretation of Semantic Anomaly in Context" (1976, with Kenneth H. Jarrett)[19]
  • "The Role of Semantics in the Application of Psycholinguistics to Language Assessment and Therapy" (1977)[20]
  • "Personality studies of gifted and/or creative females: A bibliography" (1978)[21]
  • "Changing the sexist language : the theory behind the practice" (1978)[22]
  • "Sociolinguistic Change Towards Nonsexist Language: An Overview and Analysis of Misunderstandings and Misapplications" (1978)[10]
  • "An Analysis of Classic Arguments Against Changing Sexist Language" (1979)[23]
  • "Creative women: their potential, personality, and productivity" (1979, with Marilyn Partridge Rieger)[24]
  • "Sex‐role stereotyping and gifted girls’ experience and education" (1979)[25]
  • "On the Usage of 'Ms.'" (1979)[26]
  • "The Processing of Metaphors and Their Paraphrases in Context" (1980, with Donald B. Yarbrough)[27]
  • "Jurisdiction over imports controversies after the Customs Courts Act of 1980" (1982)[28]
  • "Sovereign immunity - taxation - residence of foreign sovereign diplomatic and consular staff is immune from taxation under a bilateral agreement and the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act" (1982)[29]

Personal life edit

Blaubergs moved to Latvia in the 1990s.[30] She died in 2010, aged 63 years.[12]

References edit

  1. ^ Blaubergs, Maija Sybilla. "Intra-word Semantic Structures." PhD diss., University of California, Santa Barbara, 1972.
  2. ^ Krueger, Bill (1980-10-20). "Dr. Blauberg's Side: Sex Bias". The Atlanta Constitution. p. 33. Retrieved 2022-04-24 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b Green, Cliff (1980-09-21). "Central figure in Dinnan case has minor role". The Atlanta Constitution. pp. C1, C4. Retrieved 2022-04-24 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Toon, John (1981-07-12). "Woman in UGA Sex Bias Case Has New Life". The Atlanta Constitution. p. 31. Retrieved 2022-04-24 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Blaubergs v. Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, 625 F.2d 1146 (1980).
  6. ^ "History". Institute for Women's Studies, University of Georgia. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
  7. ^ "Professor Jailed Over His Refusal To Disclose a Vote Gets Hearing". The New York Times. 1980-10-05. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
  8. ^ Fiske, Edward B. (1980-09-14). "Jailing of a Professor Heightens Fears for Campus Independence". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
  9. ^ Leap, Terry L. (1995). Tenure, Discrimination, and the Courts. Cornell University Press. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-87546-348-3.
  10. ^ a b Blaubergs, Maija S (1978). Sociolinguistic Change Towards Nonsexist Language An Overview and Analysis of Misunderstandings and Misapplications. S.l.: Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse. OCLC 1061395407.
  11. ^ Reuben, Elaine; Blaubergs, Maija (1978-04-01). "NWSA News". Women's Studies Quarterly.
  12. ^ a b "In Loving Memory". Steptoe & Johnson Alumni Newsletter: 2. Fall 2011.
  13. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1972). Are Structural Features of Word Meaning Reflected in Judgements ofSemantic Similarity and Difference?. OCLC 911450435.
  14. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S.; Braine, Martin D. (1974). "Short-term memory limitations on decoding self-embedded sentences". Journal of Experimental Psychology. 102 (4): 745–748. doi:10.1037/h0036091. ISSN 0022-1015.
  15. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1974). Semantic Anomaly from a Psychological Perspective. OCLC 911424938.
  16. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1974). Misunderstanding the Need for Eliminating Sexism in Language. OCLC 911520923.
  17. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1975). On "the Nurse Was a Doctor.". OCLC 911442113.
  18. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S. (January 1976). "Encoding Self-Embedded Sentences". Language and Speech. 19 (1): 1–8. doi:10.1177/002383097601900101. ISSN 0023-8309. PMID 966898. S2CID 36057108.
  19. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S; Jarrett, Kenneth H (1976). The Interpretation of Semantic Anomaly in Context. OCLC 911460327.
  20. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1977). The Role of Semantics in the Application of Psycholinguistics toLanguage Assessment and Therapy. OCLC 911469819.
  21. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S. (1978-01-01). "Personality studies of gifted and/or creative females: A bibliography". Roeper Review. 1 (3): 7–8. doi:10.1080/02783197909552377. ISSN 0278-3193.
  22. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (March 1978). "Changing the sexist language: The theory behind the practice". Psychology of Women Quarterly. 2 (3): 244–261. doi:10.1111/j.1471-6402.1978.tb00506.x. ISSN 0361-6843. OCLC 942387827. S2CID 146604888.
  23. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1979). An Analysis of Classic Arguments Against Changing Sexist Language. OCLC 967445669.
  24. ^ Rieger, Marilyn Partridge, and Maija S. Blaubergs. "Creative women: their potential, personality, and productivity." Canadian Woman Studies (1979).
  25. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S. (1979-01-01). "Sex‐role stereotyping and gifted girls' experience and education". Roeper Review. 2 (3): 13–15. doi:10.1080/02783198009552454. ISSN 0278-3193.
  26. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S (1979). On the Usage of "Ms.". OCLC 966698202.
  27. ^ Yarbrough, Donald B.; Blaubergs, Maija S. (April 1980). "The Processing of Metaphors and Their Paraphrases in Context". Paper Presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association (Boston, MA, April 7-11, 1980).
  28. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S. 1982. “Jurisdiction over Imports Controversies after the Customs Courts Act of 1980.” Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law, March 22.
  29. ^ Blaubergs, Maija S. 1982. “Sovereign Immunity - Taxation - Residence of Foreign Sovereign Diplomatic and Consular Staff Is Immune from Taxation under a Bilateral Agreement and the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act.” Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law, June 22.
  30. ^ "Oskars Blaubergs". The Kingston Whig-Standard. 1995-04-17. p. 24. Retrieved 2022-04-24 – via Newspapers.com.