Dr. Dudley A. Sargent (1849-1924) was an influential figure in physical education. He asserted that women were not only capable of exercising like men, but that it was beneficial to their overall health. In 1881 he opened the Sargent School of Physical Education, which taught women how to run gymnasiums and physical education programs.
Bryn Mawr was an early adopter of Sargent’s theories, recruiting a graduate of the school, Carolyn Ladd, to be the Gym Directress in 1885. At the time of Bryn Mawr’s opening, Dr. Sargent was relatively unknown and his ideas were considered cutting edge. By the early twentieth century he was nationally renowned. Sargent’s ideas were progressive for the period, but he still emphasized differences between the sexes and claimed that women were physically inferior to men.