The title of Esther McDonald Lloyd-Jones’ dissertation is Student personnel work at Northwestern University. With her Columbia University Teachers College Ph.D. in hand, she became a pioneer in the field of Student Personnel. From 1935-37 Lloyd-Jones served as the seventh President of the American College Personnel Association (ACPA). ACPA’s Esther Lloyd-Jones Professional Service Award was named in her honor.
A 1923 summa cum laude graduate, she was first in her class at Northwestern University. Esther McDonald was initiated into the Illinois Epsilon chapter of Pi Beta Phi on February 21, 1920. She served as the chapter’s Vice-President and President and she was her chapter’s delegate to the 1921 Convention at Charlevoix, Michigan.
Her chapter’s report in the June 1922 Arrow of Pi Beta Phi announced that she had been unanimously elected president of the Y.W.C.A. as well as May Queen. The report in the December 1922 edition noted that as president of Y.W.C.A., she “introduced the practice of having every girl say ‘hello’ to every other girl she meets on the campus, thus creating a friendly spirit.”
In March 1924 she was the subject of an Arrow feature, “Pi Phis in the Public Eye”:
There is always honor in achievement! The honor increases in volume compared to the competition which one has to meet in endeavoring to achieve.
To have accomplished all of the things and to have won all of the honors that Esther McDonald, Illinois E, did at Northwestern University brings to the attention of Pi Beta Phi the record of one of its most promising members, ESTHER McDONALD, Illinois E.
At present Esther McDonald is attracting much attention on account of the exceptional work which she is doing as a graduate student in educational psychology at Teacher’s College, Columbia University, this year. She is also prominent as a member of the National Executive Board of the Y. W. C. A.
Esther Leone McDonald was born at Lockport, Illinois on January 11, 1901 and attended the Lockport Grade and High Schools through the junior year. She spent her senior year at Grafton Hall, Fond du Lac, Wisconsin where she was graduated with honors in June, 1918.
In the fall of 1919, she entered Northwestern University and during her four years there was connected with all of the largest activities and movements in the university and twice won the beauty contest.
Her college activities were varied and yet everything which she attained — every organization into which she was chosen for membership – carried with it honor. She was president of Alethenai, literary society; made the freshman hockey team; was May Queen in her junior year; president of Y. W. C. A., senior year; delegate to the national Y. W. C. A. convention; charter member of Mortar Board; elected to Shi-ai, inter-sorority organization; made Ro Ku Va literary organization; belonged to the Women’s athletic association and to Epsilon Phi, senior women’s fraternity.
Esther McDonald was elected to Psi Xi, honorary psychology fraternity, to Phi Beta Kappa and won the Bowright Prize for scholarship.
She was very active in chapter life serving as scholarship chairman, vice-president and president. As an example of an all around fraternity woman, Esther McDonald holds a foremost position.
After she left Northwestern, she headed to Teachers College at Columbia, where she earned a Master’s and Ph.D. She was on the faculty there until 1966, the year her husband Silas Lloyd-Jones died. She spent the following ten years in San Diego, California, as the Distinguished Professor of Human Behavior at the United States International University.
There is a building named for her at the Pratt Insititute where she spent two decades as a Trustee. She was also a Trustee at Elmira College and Briarcliff College. In addition, she served AAUW (American Association of University Women) as a Director.
Esther Lloyd-Jones, Ph.D.
Esther McDonald Lloyd-Jones died in 1991.
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