Pioneering Education for Girlsis a fascinating history of the men and women who established formal educational institutions for girls in six different countries: the USA, India, Britain, Singapore, Uganda and Azerbaijan. . . . Sperandio shows convincingly how social entrepreneurs produced social change. She brings to light some extraordinary individuals, who not only challenged opposition to girls’ education but devoted their lives to providing it. The stories of their interventions in girls’ lives are thrilling, but also have an element of sadness when they reveal that the dependence of pioneering schools on private and sometimes philanthropic funding added to their vulnerability and the unpredictability of their survival. This remains a problem in the world today.

History of Education: Journal of the History of Education Society

This book purposefully and passionately examines the quest for the effective education of girls in different locations across the globe. Dr. Sperandio brilliantly captures the struggles, strife, and successes in the endeavor toward equal educational opportunities across time and geographical location. The themes of entrepreneurship, advocacy, and agency are guideposts to all of us who are concerned about truly equitable schools for all students.

Dr. Floyd D. Beachum, Program Coordinator for Educational Leadership, Bennett Professor of Urban School Leadership, College of Education, Lehigh University

Jill Sperandio’s book provides a fascinating and inspiring account of the irrepressible role that girls’ education plays in the intersection of entrepreneurship and equality. Educating girls and the innovation that educated girls bring to their communities – both large and small – has often been a highly risky venture due to cultural, political, and social restrictions placed on women and girls worldwide. Sperandio recognizes and examines the risk and innovation associated with girls education to life in her study of six schools across time and space. More well-researched and equally fascinating work like this is needed in the field of comparative and international education broadly speaking!

Alexander W. Wiseman, Texas Tech University

According to UNESCO (2016) 15 million girls of primary school age will never enter a classroom. So, Jill Sperandio’s research into advocates and entrepreneurs in girls’ education, that spans geography and time, has resonance for educators and educationists today. Themes cross time and space such as expanding empires, the modernizing of societies, domestic ideology, and social and religious responsibility. But there is resonance today between the differences such as the reassessment of women’s status, their rights to an education and their role in families and communities. In her final chapter, Jill Sperandio reminds readers of the philanthropy of Safeena Husain, Oprah Winfrey, Melinda Gates and the ongoing advocacy for girls’ education by Malala Yousafzai. This book is a must read for everyone with an interest in the education of girls and women.

Kay Fuller, University of Nottingham