Peru: Doris Mary Clark Núñez
Born in 1901 in Arequipa, Peru, Doris Mary Clark Núñez is considered the first Peruvian woman architect. She was also the first woman to study at the Escuela de Ingenieros del Perú (School of Engineering of Peru) in Lima, Peru (1924). She began her education with a focus on civil engineering in the Sección de Construcciones Civiles; she transferred to the Sección de Arquitectos Constructores of the institution (1927), where she graduated and became the first woman in Peru to earn a diploma in architecture (1931). As a student she worked as a draftsman for the Ministry of Public Works and Development in Lima, where she was promoted after graduation to Ingeniera Ayudante (Assistant Engineer) then Arquitecta de Estado (State Architect). She also worked as an appraiser for the Technical Appraisal Corps (1930–1934). Doris Mary Clark Núñez was the first woman admitted as an associate to the Sociedad de Ingenieros del Perú (Society of Engineers in Peru, 1928). She also served as president of the Organizing Committee of the First National Congress of Women of Peru; founded the Peruvian branch of the Union of American Women (UMA, 1935–1937), which advocated for women’s civic rights throughout North and South Americas; and she was also involved in the Legión Femenina Pro-Cultura, and the Federación de Universitarias Graduadas in Peru. Doris Mary Clark Núñez died in 2004 in Lima.
References
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