| Date Span: | 1952-2006 |
| Creator: | Muehl, Lois Baker (1920-) |
| Extent: | 2.10 linear feet. |
| Collection Number: | IWA0470 |
| Repository: | Iowa Women's Archives |
| Summary: | University of Iowa rhetoric professor who published children's books and taught English as a second language at refugee camps in Thailand, Korea, and China. |
Lois Baker Muehl, educator and writer, was born on April 29, 1920 in Oak Park, Illinois. She received her BA in English in 1941 from Oberlin College in Oberlin, Ohio. On April 15, 1944, she married Siegmar Muehl. The couple had four children, Erika, Sigrid, Torsten, and Brian.
Muehl earned an MA in English Education from the University of Iowa in 1967. In the late 1960s, she took two years off from her position as a rhetoric professor at the University of Iowa to teach in a program for African American college students in Charlotte, North Carolina. A rich part of Lois Muehl's professional life included her experiences teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) in refugee camps in Thailand; Kyungnam University, Korea; Hohai University in Nanjing, China; and in Merced, California.
A freelance writer, Lois Baker Muehl published numerous poems along with articles, and children's books, of which one was a Junior Literary Guild selection and another was on the New York Times' "100 Best" list. Her poetry and light verse appeared in such publications as Capper's , Country Woman , Midwest Poetry Review, and The Saturday Evening Post , as well as in the books If We'd Wanted Quiet We Would Have Raised Goldfish , and More Phonics Through Poetry . Muehl also published academic articles and a textbook/reader for college level rhetoric students. In collaboration with her husband, she wrote Trading Cultures in the Classroom , focusing on the couple's experiences teaching English as a Second Language in China prior to the Tienanmen Square incident of 1989.
Lois Baker Muehl retired from her position as associate professor of rhetoric and director of the Developmental Reading Lab at the University of Iowa in June 1985. During her retirement, she continued to write and publish children's work, short stories, poetry, essays, and non-fiction. She remained active in several writing clubs and organizations, including the American Pen Women and the University Club Writers.
Alternate Extent Statement: Photographs in box 5.
Arrangement: Three works have been transferred to the Iowa Women's Archives printed works collection: Trading Cultures in the Classroom , 1993; The Hidden Year of Devlin Bates , 1967; Worst Room in the School , 1961.
Access: The papers are open for research. Prior to January 1, 2060, researchers may not cite any actual names from the Chinese Diaries and other items directly relating to the diaries.
Use: Copyright has been retained by the donor until her death, at which point copyright will be transferred to the University of Iowa. While Lois Baker Muehl is living, permission to quote from her papers for publication must be obtained from the donor. Researchers wishing to use the Chinese Diaries must first sign the "Conditions of Access" form.
Acquisition: The Lois Baker Muehl papers (donor no. 709) were donated by Lois Baker Muehl in 2000 and subsequent years.
Preferred Citation: Lois Baker Muehl papers, Iowa Women's Archives, The University of Iowa Libraries, Iowa City.
| Repository: | Iowa Women's Archives |
| Address: | 100 Main Library University of Iowa Libraries Iowa City, IA 52242 |
| Phone: | 319-335-5068 |
| Curator: | Kären Mason |
| Email: | lib-women@uiowa.edu |
| Website: | http://www.lib.uiowa.edu/iwa |
Browse by Series:
Series 1: BIOGRAPHICAL
Series 2: CHINA
Series 3: PROFESSIONAL
Series 4: UNPUBLISHED WORK
Series 5: PUBLISHED WORK
Series 6: Photographs and Slides
This collection is indexed under the following subject terms.
