Klara Wolf
| Born: |
10-10-1914 |
| Faculty: |
Philosophical School |
| Category: |
Expelled student |
Klara WOLF, born on October 10
th, 1914 in Vienna/Austria (entitled residency ('heimatberechtigt') for Vienna/Austria, Citizenship: Austria), daughter of Chaim Moses/Moritz Wolf (accountant, 1885-1944) and his wife Cilla (née Kutten, 1882-1944), lived in Vienna's 9
th district, Wilhelm Exnergasse 22. On June 19th, 1933, she had passed her school-leaving examination (Matura) at the Girls' Realgymnasium of the Frauenerwerbsverein in Vienna's 6
th district, and in the fall term of 1933/34 she began to study psychology at the University of Vienna, with a minor in ethnology. Parallel to her studies, she also practiced in Vienna's municipal kindergartens from 1933 to 1935 and passed the state examination for kindergartens in 1935. She was enrolled finally in the fall term of 1937/38 at the Philosophical School in the 4
th and last year of her studies and took courses in Psychology and Anthropology ("Absolutorium" was certified on February 14
th, 1938).
She had registered for the final examinations/viva voce ("Rigorosen") in psychology on February 14
th, 1938, and passed the "one-hour viva voce" in the minor subject of ethnology/ethnology on February 19
th, 1938 (examiners: Prof. Koppers, Prof. Weninger). After the "Anschluss" in 1938, she was forced to discontinue her studies for racist reasons, but on June 28th, 1938, she was able to submit her dissertation entitled "On the Problem of Motion Perception" (originally supervised by
Prof. Charlotte Buehler, after her expulsion it was evaluated by Prof. Tumlirz and Prof. Eibl), which was approved on July 7
th, 1938. On July 8
th, 1938, she was also able to take part in the two-hour viva voce examination (examiners: Tumlirz, Eibl). Thus, after a longer period of uncertainty, she was able to complete her studies and to receive her doctorate on July 21
th, 1938, amidst numerous symbolic discriminations in the context of a "non-Aryan doctorate", while at the same time being banned from her profession in the entire German Reich.
She had to flee Vienna and went to England in 1938 and was able to obtain a U.S. visa at the Embassy in London on January 18th and emigrated to USa on January 27
th, 1939 with
SS President Harding from Southampton/Great Britain, arriving in New York, NY on February 4
th, 1939.
Her parents were unable to escape Vienna in time and were deported to Westerbork/Theresienstadt on January 20
th, 1944 and from Theresienstadt to the Auschwitz concentration camp on October 28
th, 1944 and did not survive.
Klara Wolf worked as a Research Assistant at the Community Service Society in New York between 1942 and 1945 and then as an Administrative Assistant at the U.S. State Department until 1947. She became Executive Secretary at the San Mateo County Child Guidance Clinic in California in 1947 until 1950 when she accepted a position as Ass. Prof. and Acting Director at the Child Guidance Clinic of the College of Medicine Evangelist in Los Angeles.
Lit.: Archive of the University of Vienna/enrollment forms ("Nationale") PHIL 1933-1938, final examination registry and file ("Rigorosenakt und -protokoll") PHIL Nr. 14213, graduation registry ("Promotionsprotokoll") PHIL 1931-1941 Nr. 2847; GEUTER 1986, 281; KEINTZEL/KOROTIN 2002, 821; WEITZEL 2000, 93; POSCH/INGRISCH/DRESSEL 2008, 501; POSCH 2009, 367; www.genteam.at www.ancestry.de www.doew.at.
Katharina Kniefacz and Herbert Posch
