HELEN MANLEY: A PIONEER OF THE PAST WHO WENT WHERE OTHERS WOULD NOT GO! 

Donald J. Lawrence, Ed.D, Professor, Department of Advanced Studies, Azusa Pacific University 

Presentation at the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, Annual Convention, Baltimore, Maryland , March 15, 2007 

      Throughout centuries man has recorded history diligently.  His penchant in this activity speaks of his desire to leave a portion of himself and his world to those who will follow.  Such is the case in man’s desire to record the lives of those around us who have

had a considerable impact on our world.  They are and have been such powerful models and influences on our individual lives as well as our discipline and profession as a whole.

      Boswell states that “I esteem biography as giving us what comes near to ourselves” (Novarr, 1986). But, in our modern world, the state of biographical production is not as healthy as it was in the past.  Hormberger and Charmley’s observations seem to reflect our present day society’s attitude:

      Biography seeks to do what only the greatest art has ever done:  to convey

      the feel of an individual’s experience, to see the world as a single person saw

      it.  Few biographies last.  Not only do certain subjects seem, over time, to be more

      less interesting, but the frame of interpretation, the cultural luggage, can change

      so comprehensively, that the important biographies of one age are the library

      discards of the next (Hormberger, 1988). 

      This attitude is precisely why biographies of great leaders must be recorded.  Someone once said “that a page of history is worth more than a book of dialogue and man’s meaningless present day logic”.  There is much to learn from those that have pioneered in the profession and disciplines of health, physical education, recreation and dance. But the time is short.  Once they leave us, their hidden thoughts, their unspoken feelings and the story of life from their perspective is gone forever.

      Over the past few years I realized that many of the great leaders who have influenced and given our profession and discipline direction, were members of the American Academy. These folks were growing older and their stories of influence were not being recorded. Recently I have identified fifty-four Academy members who, by their membership numbers and age needed to be interviewed.  As in the 80’s, over the past two years I have recorded 16 pioneers legacies. Clearly I have been able to see historically, from their perspective, how the movement of our discipline and profession molded us into who and what we are today.

One of the pioneers that I have the privilege to interview prior to her death was Helen Manley. 

In a 1988 JOPERD issue, a tribute by Kinderfather and Immergoot summed up her contributions in this following paragraph.

      Helen Manley’s greatest accomplishment and the legacy she left to the profession

      was her effect on people.  She truly cared about every person she came in contact

      and her friendships spanned several generations.  She showed us that one can rise

      to the heights of one’s profession while remaining compassionate. 

      St. Louis was home for Helen Manley.  Born in 1894, Manley left a life-long impression on its residents.  Her untiring work in the field of education, specifically social health and sex education, set a standard of excellence that was hard to match even in today’s culture.

      The Manley’s were always a close family.  Six children were born to John and “Tilly”, the youngest one dying at the age of four.  Helen’s father was a hard-working manufacturer of buggies and carriages which, with the coming of the automobile, became as Helen stated, ‘his Waterloo.’ 

      Her parents believed in giving their children all the ‘life’ experiences that they could afford.  So the family attended concerts, shows, athletic events and other special community events.  Physical education was virtually non-existent at the time, but located near the Manley home was the only natatorium in St. Louis.  Her father bought season tickets for the entire family, so their winter months was filled with swimming as well as dancing and gymnastic lessons.  She fondly remembered that much of what she learned in sport was either “in the pool or on the floor above it.” (personal communication, 1982).

      Manley attended public schools in St. Louis, graduating from McKinley High School in 1911.  Such were her scholarship and leadership abilities, that she became valedictorian of her class.  The following year she was accepted and attended Wellesley College in Massachusetts, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in math and Latin.  In college, sports remained an interest as she continued to play basketball and swim.

      Upon graduation in 1915, Manley taught one year at Limestone College in South Carolina.  But her desire was to return to Missouri. When she was offered a position at Kirksville High School, she accepted.  The superintendent employed her to teach math, Latin, ancient history and physical education.  After a few years at Kirksville, Manley decided that she would like to move closer to St. Louis, for her mother was not well physically.  She applied to University City Public Schools and was hired to teach one-half day of math and one-half day of physical education.  At the completion of the first year, the superintendent was so pleased that he scheduled her for more physical education classes.  Soon she was full time in that field.

      In 1924, the president of the State Teachers College in Maryville offered her a position as Director of Physical Education.  According to Manley, “I only got the job because they wanted me to referee basketball” (personal communication, 1982).  During that time, most of the nation did not have interscholastic sports for women.  However, in this part of Missouri women’s basketball was extremely popular.  The leagues were so competitive that “. . . . many times I had to break up fights between those little, dainty girls” (personal communication, 1982).  Of course, most of you historians remember the “old way” of playing girls basketball, and Helen stated that as one of the top referees “….I could cover the entire floor pretty good for a women” (personal communication, 1982). 

      During the summers, like most professionals, she began to work on her Masters degree at the Teachers College at Columbia University.  Studying under Jesse Feiring Williams, Manley began to formulate a philosophy that would influence thousands of youngsters as well as adults.  She received her degree in 1932.

      After two years at Maryville, Manley was offered the position of Director of Health, Physical Education, Camping and Safety by the superintendent of the University City Public School system.  Realizing that the position “. . . . . was a real plum” (personal communication, 1982), she accepted that position (with the exception of a few brief interruptions)  for the remainder of her professional career.

      The constituents of University City were very accepting of Manley’s new energetic approach to physical education.  The school system was known to hire the best teachers available who were graduating from teachers’ colleges and these teachers did not want to teach physical education.  So Manley’s job continued to grow as each year physical education was added on to each grade.  Her approach was simple:  promote health and hygiene and physical education grows with that promotion.

      About 1930, Manley claimed that she was awakened to a new subject area that was not only controversial, but, in most of Americas regions was culturally dangerous and could have been professional suicide.  Students began asking Manley questions about their body, about their sexual feelings and boy-girl relational matters which led her to develop one of the most daring, but successful curricula in sex education in the country.  As she explained on one occasion, in those days “The word ‘sex’ is often confused with the act of sexual intercourse, but it is more than that.  Our sex is as much a part of us as any other living part” (personal communication, 1982).  As she developed the curriculum she was aware that the school system should not make this a special topic of education which would make it stand out among the rest of the subjects.  In order to make it flow into the general pattern of the teaching day, classroom teachers needed to learn how to teach the subject.  She was strongly convinced that it was not only the facts that needed to be discussed, but the morals that accompany those facts:

      If we are not differentiating between right and wrong, teaching moral values,

      then we are failing these kids.  We cannot help them with just the ‘Thou shalt

      not’s. We must be positive too.  (personal communication, 1982)

      Manley believed that total health, including sex education, should be taught in the school system.  She stated:

      Get these kids and see what they know.  They did not get it through education

      and certainly not at home.  Where are they learning it?  Do not forget that a

      youngster learns every minute of his life.  He learns on the playground, he learns

      from other kids.  And through his peer interest he learns the quickest.  (personal

      communication, 1982)

      Even though Manley thought that a child’s sex education should be taught primarily at home, she realized that most children do not receive adequate instruction from parents:

      Children are naturally curious about their body.  They are curious about their  genitals and touch and play with them.  We know that this is natural.  But one  must remember that to the child it is just another part of the body.  The child starts  off without any sex consciousness but the culture certainly teaches them and  sometimes in the wrong way.  Some say that they should just be left innocent. But  that attitude is not right. (personal communication, 1982).

      When asked what led her to develop such a strong interest in this area, she simply replied “Well, children’s needs, of course.”

      There was this little girl in my class, my health class during the depression years.   She was in and out of the class every few days.  Well, she was not doing very well  so I spoke to her and found out that she was a victim of rape.  Now, her mother  came from a well-to-do family and to spare the embarrassment they put her in an  orphanage.  I saw that all she needed was some love, understanding and someone  who cared.  If she would have known she probably could have had the problem  worked out, but it was too late.  Remember that old Archie Bunker episode where  the father did not want his daughter taught sex education in the school and then  she was the one who got pregnant?  If parents would only work through those  problems.  (personal communication, 1982)

      As the depression years set in, the superintendent of the University City school district had to make difficult choices regarding which faculty to retain, and who should be released.  He informed Manley that in order to reduce the faculty by one, he would release a physical education teacher and rotate the other teacher between the other schools.  She warned him that teachers at each school wanted physical education to be taught every day so that they would receive a period to rest and organize.  At first he denied the request, but Manley’s logic won him over when the faculty strongly protested.  They felt that physical education was such a vital and of course popular subject for the students and he finally relinquished to their demands and kept the physical educator on staff. 

      Helen Manley continued promoting the profession and along with a strong curriculum in the University City school system.  This eventually led to her 1936-38 appointment as President of Missouri AHPER organization, her 1940-44 presidency of Delta Kappa Gamma, her 1941 appointment to the Board of Directors of AAHPER and eventually in 1946-47 as president of AAHPER. 

      Manley was a tireless worker for the profession.  But, she did have a few hobbies. She was an avid fitness “nut” as she calls herself, and she loved to travel. She recalled winning a 1936 European trip which included the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, with additional travel to Denmark, Sweden and Finland.  Eventually her travel would take her worldwide almost to the day she passed away.

      Because of her travel and influence, she was able to bring some of the top professionals into her Central District’s workshops and conferences.  One of those was Jesse Feiring Williams, her mentor and professor.  Manley recalls one incident that showed that professional jealousy and malice sometimes is a product of man’s ego.

      In the thirties we had a very antagonistic leadership group leading us.  Williams,  Nash and McCloy to name a few.  McCloy was still clinging to those exercises  such as the airplane, somersaults and lots of exercises.  Williams came out and  expressed that you can get just as much exercise from a game as you can from  straight calisthenics.  He claimed that you should get your exercise from what you  enjoy.  Jay B. Nash was not in either camp.  He was an idealist.  Happiness is a  state of mind and doing what you wanted to do, recreation was the ultimate for  him.  I will never forget the time that Dr. Williams came so graciously to  Missouri to speak to our general district meeting. The whole way down in the car  he said how he was going to refute McCloy’s philosophies.  I warned him that I  was not sure that these people would understand what he was going to say, but he  carried on with his topic.  One by one those coaches crept out of the meeting until  there were not too many left. He was way beyond their level.  They just wanted  something practical.  (personal communication, 1982).

      Her reputation as a leader and specialist in the area of health and physical education increased and in 1943 she became an Honorary Fellow of the American Association of Health, Physical Education and Recreation.

      She lectured during the summers at various institutions such as New York University, the University of Wisconsin, the University of Indiana, the University of Alabama, Washington University, the Teacher’s College of Florence, Alabama and Utah State Agricultural College. 

      In 1946 she received a call from the United States Office of Education in Washington to serve as a senior specialist in Health and Physical Education. She accepted since at the time she was president elect for AAHPER.  She traveled representing both for the United States as well as AAHPER. 

      But, St. Louis was home and at the end of the year she moved back to University City.  During this time she was awarded the first ever, two Woman of Achievement Awards from the city of St. Louis. 

      AAHPER was in financial trouble after the war.  It was her turn at the presidency and it would have been so easy for her to administrate the convention in her hometown, St. Louis.  But, it was decided to have it in Seattle.  She successfully delegated all the on-site duties and the convention was a success. 

      Following that year, Manley was asked to go to Japan to help them reconstruct their physical education programs after the war.  She not only committed for a portion of that year, but came back the following year to make sure that it was being administrated properly. This relationship between her and the Japanese government continued for several years.

      In 1948 she was elected as a Fellow by the American School Health Association.  In 1949, the American Academy of Physical Education elected her Fellow, Number 75.  In 1951, AAHPER recognized the outstanding work that she had accomplished and bestowed upon her the Anderson Award.

      In 1952 she became secretary for the American Academy of Physical Education, traveled to Europe as a leader  in a Traveling Health Seminar to the Olympic Games in Helsinki, Finland and also co-authored her first book, Education through camping published by the Mosby Company.

      In 1954 she embarked on a “round the world” trip, placing her old friends in Japan on the agenda.  In 1956 she traveled extensively into Central and South America and in 1958 she covered the entire continent of Africa.  It was also this year that the American Association of Health, Physical Education and Recreation bestowed upon her its most prestigious award, the Luther Halsey Gulick Award.

      In 1960, Helen Manley officially retired from the position as director of Health, Physical Education, Camping and Safety of the University City Schools.  But, her dedication to the profession continued.

      In 1962 she conducted another ‘around the world’ educational trip and repeated it once more in 1964.  Also in 1964, she published A curriculum guide in sex education for the University City School system.  This led the National Education Association to encourage her to write and publish a guide Sex education in elementary school.  From those publications came a third major publication titled, Here you are, sex education for young adults, (1970).

      In 1967 such were her contributions that the American Academy of Physical Education presented her with the Hetherington Award.  Three years later the American Association of Health, Physical Education and Recreation lauded her service to mankind by honoring her with the R. Tait McKenzie Award.

      Between 1960 and 1969 she held the position of executive director of the social Health Association of Greater St. Louis.  Her work and travel continued into the 70’s as did her contributions.  She was elected Who’s Who in American Women and Who’s Who in American Education.  In 1985 she was awarded a Certificate of Recognition from the Life Crisis Services and in 1986, Washington University-St. Louis, bestowed an Honorary Doctor of Humanities upon her.

      On November 18, 1987, after a long and illustrious career dedicated to bettering mankind, Helen Manley passed away in St. Louis.  But memory of her is not forgotten.  May we not only honor her accomplishments, but let us honor her as the great person she was to all who passed her way. 
 

Helen Manley’s Personal and Professional Accomplishments 

Born: November 15, 1894  Died:  November 18, 1987

Birthplace:  St. Louis, Missouri

Educational Background:

      1915-  A.B. Degree, Wellesley College

      1932-  M.A. Degree, Teachers College at Columbia University

            New York University, all PhD work completed but

            Dissertation, committee dissolved during World War II  

Professional Experience: 

      1960-69- Executive director, Social Health Association of

                Greater St. Louis, Missouri

      1947-60- Director of Health, Physical Education, Camping

                and Safety, University City Public Schools, University

                City, Missouri

      1946-47- Senior Specialist in Health and Physical Education,

                U.S. Office of Education, Washington, DC

      1927-46- Director of Health, Physical Education and Safety,

                University Public Schools, University City, Missouri

      1924-26- Director of Physical Education, State Teachers College,

               Maryville, Missouri

      1920-24- Instructor, Physical Education, University City Public

               Schools, University City, Missouri

      1916-20- Instructor, Physical Education, Kirksville High School,

               Kirksville, Missouri 

Professional Contributions: 

      1929-1940- National Women’s board of Rating Officials

      1936-1938- President, Missouri AHPER

      1939-1940- President, Central District AHPER

      1940-1944- President, Delta Kappa Gamma

      1941-      - Board of Directors, AAHPER

      1946-1947- President, AAHPER

      1952         - Co-director of Traveling Seminars in Health,

                   Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri

      1952-1958- Secretary-treasurer for the American Academy

                    of Physical Education

      1959-1960- President, American Academy of Physical Education 

Other Notable Contributions: 

      - Started the first Girl Scout Troop in Missouri

      - Organized first school camping program in Missouri

      - Developed first sex education program in University City, Missouri

      - President, St. Louis County Teachers Association

      - Contributed numerous articles, pamphlets, bulletins, books and

         speeches to the profession 

Honors and Awards: 

      1943- Honor Award, AAHPER

      1946- Woman of Achievement Award, St. Louis, Missouri

      1951- William G. Anderson Award, AAHPER

      1955- Woman of the Year Award, St. Louis Chapter of UNICO

      1956- Woman of Achievement Award, St. Louis, Missouri

      1958- Luther Halsey Gulick Award, AAHPER

      1967- Hetherington Award, American Academy of Physical Education

              - Fellow, American School Health Association

              - Who’s Who in American Women

              - Who’s Who in American Education

       1970- R. Tait McKenzie Award, AAHPERD 
 
References

AAHPER.  (1970).  McKenzie award:  Helen M. Manley.  Journal of

      Health, Physical Education and Recreation, 42, (5), 48-49. 

      Bookwalter, K.  (1953).  Who’s who in our profession: Helen Manley. The

            Physical Educator, 10, (2), 64.

      Kinderfather, K., & Imergroot, L.  (1988). In memorium:  Helen Manley. 

            Journal of Physical Education, Recreation and Dance, 59, (3), 28-29.

Hormberger, J., & Charmley, J.  (1988).  The troubled face of biography.  New

      York, N.Y.  St. Martins Press

Manley, H.  (1949).  Good posture for boys and girls.  The Physical Educator, 6,

      (2), 14, 21.

Manley, H.  (1976).  Sex education in the elementary schools.  AAHPER (Ed.)

      HPER Omnibus (pp. 94-101).  Washington, DC:  American Alliance for

      Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance.

Manley, H.  (1964).  Sex education:  Where, when and how it should be taught.

      Journal of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, 35, (4), 21-24.

Manley, H.  (1955).  Traveling seminar in health.  The Physical Educator, 12, (1),

      6-7.