By Allison Duncan
When Mary Louise Cassidy Kramer ’70 was a sophomore in high school, her mother told her, “If you want to go to college, you have to get a scholarship.” Kramer was the firstborn of 12 children. Neither of her parents had a college education, and she said they had limited guidance for her about how to pay for her education.
Some of Kramer’s high school teachers were IHM Sisters, and because they were instrumental in her development, she wanted to continue her education at Immaculata. The college had a great reputation, she said, and she could commute there from her family’s home in Cheyney, Pennsylvania. But, Kramer said, “without financial support, college was beyond my reach.”
After Kramer applied, a letter arrived from then-president Sister Mary of Lourdes, IHM, announcing that Immaculata was offering Kramer a full-tuition scholarship. She was overwhelmed and relieved at this dream come true. “I could, at last, see a future,” she said. “To say that receiving the scholarship was transformative does not begin to capture how meaningful the scholarship was.”
Kramer chose to study English at Immaculata and enjoyed learning from her professors, including Sister Marian William Hoben, IHM—“a real gem”—and Dan Machon, Ph.D. “It was a wonderful major. It opened up worlds,” Kramer said.
Kramer’s experiences outside the classroom also broadened her horizons. Immaculata hosted events with high-profile speakers and performers, such as a debate between two U.S. senators about the Vietnam War and a concert by a world-class string quartet. These political and cultural events complemented her academic experience at Immaculata, exposing her to ideas and experiences she wouldn’t otherwise have encountered.
Kramer says her education at Immaculata gave her the courage to go to law school. She was accepted to the University of Richmond and began her studies as one of just a handful of women in her class. “I did very well at Richmond and realized Immaculata equipped me for the rigors of law school and the legal profession.”
Kramer went to work at a Richmond law firm where she became the first woman lawyer and later the first woman partner. She spent 34 years there, and she is proud of growing her workers comp practice group from a part-time practice into a group of six full-time partners and five associates.
“I’d love to see more lawyers coming out of Immaculata,” Kramer said, mentioning her hope that Immaculata’s six-year bachelor’s and law degree partnership program with Widener University Delaware Law School will continue to grow. Kramer is also pleased to see other new programs Immaculata has introduced, the many improvements to the campus and the new First@IU program for first-generation students like her.
She served as a member of the Alumni Board of Governors and currently serves on the Board of Trustees, where she is co-chair of the advancement committee.
Out of gratitude for her education, Kramer worked with her husband to establish a scholarship. “Immaculata was the launching ground,” Kramer said. “We wanted to give someone else the same opportunity I had.” She and her husband chose not to put restrictions on their gift, but she hopes first-generation students benefit from it as she benefited from her scholarship.
“Who was that generous benefactor who reshaped my life?” Kramer wondered. “I am embarrassed to say that it took me years before I had that ‘aha’ moment that prompted my first meaningful contribution. I am trying to make up for lost time. What now can I do for all Immaculata did for me? Call it ‘paying it forward’; call it ‘return on investment’; call it simply, ‘thank you, Immaculata.’”
