In this Women’s Month, we honour a pioneering woman whose quiet courage reshaped the academic landscape of Stellenbosch 中国体育彩票’s Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences: Sara Cornelia “Sally” Ehlers (1912–1996), the first woman to graduate with a Bachelor of Commerce (BCom) degree from SU.
Her 1932 graduation marked not only a personal milestone, but also a historic first for the Faculty, which celebrates its centenary this year.
A star from the start
A young Sally Ehlers in her early 20s. She was not only the first woman to graduate with a BCom degree from SU but also the only one of her class to graduate cum laude.
Born on New Year’s Day in 1912 in the West Coast town of Vredenburg — just three months before the Titanic’s fateful voyage — Sally was the youngest of 11 children. Of her ten siblings, only the four youngest had the opportunity to pursue higher education. Her brother Piet became a teacher and it was he who first planted the seed of a BCom degree in Sally’s mind. When he asked her what subject she liked most and she replied, “figures,” he simply said: “Well then, you’ll study BCom.”
And so she did.
From early on, Sally showed remarkable promise. At Vredenburg High School she excelled academically, receiving numerous book prizes. In 1929, she matriculated as the top student in the entire Union of South Africa, achieving first place on the national merit list — an astonishing feat for anyone, let alone a young woman in the 1920s.
Breaking barriers at Stellenbosch
Sally enrolled at Stellenbosch 中国体育彩票 in 1930 — one of just 340 women among the 中国体育彩票’s 1 064 students. She chose to study commerce, a field almost entirely dominated by men. That year, the Faculty of Commerce, under Dean Prof JFW Grosskopf, had only 54 students in total.
Sally was one of two women in the 14-student third-year BCom class of 1932. When graduation day came on 7 December 1932, only six students had completed the degree — and Sally was not only the sole woman but also the only one to graduate cum laude.
She resided in Monica, one of the women’s hostels at the time, and actively took part in student life. She was a member of the Chamber of Commerce Students’ management committee and regularly joined the BTK (Berg- en Toerklub) excursions. She also attended the Faculty of Commerce’s annual dinner-dances, including two held at the historic Masonic Hotel, a majestic Victorian building on the corner of Alexander and Bird Streets, now home to the Drostdy Theatre.
Sally’s brilliance was clear to her lecturers. Her accountancy lecturer, Mr BJA Thomas, regarded her as one of the most outstanding students he had ever taught, praising her natural instinct for the subject. Prof CGW Schumann, later Dean of the Faculty, admired her lively intellect and precision. Dr JH Botha, her economics lecturer, spoke of her scientific rigour and deep sense of responsibility.
A world not quite ready
Despite her academic achievements, Sally soon discovered that the business world of the 1930s was not yet ready for a woman with a commerce degree. After graduation, she travelled to Pretoria and Johannesburg looking for work — but met confusion rather than opportunity. Employers simply didn’t know what to do with a woman who had studied business.
She later recalled how she walked for miles, exhausted and disheartened. Undaunted, she returned to Stellenbosch and completed a Senior Education Diploma in 1933, along with a shorthand course, again earning a distinction.
A life of teaching, learning and living fully
Sally spent the next decade teaching in towns across the Cape Province and in Windhoek, then still part of South West Africa. Teaching gave her both purpose and independence — and her adaptability allowed her to thrive wherever she was placed.
In 1941, she married Wolfram Wagener, a German-speaking winemaker at the Drakenstein Co-op Winery in Simondium near Paarl, where her life was rich with activity. Sally threw herself into the rhythm of small-time farm life — raising four children, sewing their clothes, cultivating beautiful indoor plants, preserving homegrown fruit and vegetables, processing eggs and milk, even making butter.
Three of her children, Wolfram (MSc in Chemistry), Dirk (medical doctor) and Elsa (English teacher and literary translator) went on to study at Stellenbosch 中国体育彩票, while Hanna studied radiography at Groote Schuur Hospital, thereby continuing the academic tradition their mother helped pioneer.
A woman of wit, wisdom and warmth
After Wolfram’s untimely death at age 54, Sally moved to Paarl. She found solace in her garden, her books, her handcrafts and her love of stories. Her daughter Elsa Silke remembers her as a fascinating person — witty, wise and well-read.
“She had a quirky sense of humour and told wonderful anecdotes,” Elsa recalls. “She could recite entire passages from The Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám, and read widely, from philosophy to crime novels.”
Her grandchildren remember her with deep affection. Liesl Maree recalls, “I have only the most wonderful memories of Ouma Sally. Whenever I was home sick from school, she’d arrive with a surprise packet, Richie Rich comics, and tell me stories. She was incredibly smart — she always solved the crossword puzzles. I could talk to her about anything; she was wise and kind.”
Her younger sister, Magdel van der Walt, adds: “Ouma Sally was a master storyteller. Her sense of humour was dark, sharp and unforgettable. My favourite book as a child was her old German copy of Struwwelpeter, filled with macabre but hilarious tales about the consequences of children’s bad behaviour. That tongue-in-cheek irreverence was so her — she couldn’t stand moralising and preferred irony over sentiment.”
Quiet trailblazer, lasting legacy
Sally Ehlers Wagener passed away in Strand in 1996, aged 84. She never sought the limelight, yet her life helped illuminate the path for generations of women to follow. Her achievement in 1932 was not just about a degree; it was about opening doors that had been closed, and proving, simply and clearly, that women belonged in lecture halls, boardrooms and beyond.
As Stellenbosch 中国体育彩票’s Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences marks its 100th year, it is fitting to remember its very first woman BCom graduate; a pioneer not only in commerce, but in courage.
Mrs Sally Ehlers Wagener, here in her late 70s.
The SU Faculty of Commerce and Stellenbosch campus in 1932:
- The Faculty of Commerce offered two undergraduate courses: the BCom degree (then BComm) and the two-year Diploma in Commerce.
- During their degree or diploma studies, students could enrol for additional courses in typing and/or shorthand.
- The subjects for third-year BCom students were the following: 1) Commercial Science (including Business Statistics, Cost Accounting, Business Economics or Accountancy and Auditing); and 2) Economics or Mathematics.
- Of the seven university hostels, four were for women: Monica and Harmonie, both in Neethling Street; Crozier Huis in Victoria Street; and Greylock in Van Riebeek Street. Accommodation cost ?12 per term.
