ABSTRACT
This chapter proposes that proto-feminist education theory shaped Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton as a kind of servant-leader. After providing an overview of Seton’s life, the chapter explains the concept of servant-leadership, including Deborah Eicher-Catt’s critique of it, which is that servant-leadership, while appearing to promote egalitarianism, actually reinforces patriarchal oppression. Also considered is Kae Reynolds’s response to Eicher-Catt, which suggests that, despite the patriarchal influence, servant-leadership can still be a viable model for feminists. In light of Eicher-Catt’s and Reynolds’s work, the author proposes that Seton, as a proto-feminist servant-leader, does indeed exemplify the problem that Eicher-Catt cautions against while also intimating a modified form of servant-leadership influenced by proto-feminism in a manner consistent with Reynolds’s proposal. The chapter concludes by demonstrating how Seton’s model of leadership could be useful in a variety of scenarios by promoting collaboration and providing greater opportunities for women and minorities.
