Esther Neira de Calvo (1890–1978) was a prominent educator, feminist and women's right advocate.
Esther Neira de Calvo was born on May 1, 1890, in Penonomé, Coclé, when the Isthmus of Panama was a Colombian Department.
She spent the next eight years studying at the Pedagogic Institute Wavre Notre Dame, Belgium, affiliated with the universities of Leuven and Brussels.
She also earned certificates as a nurse for community hygiene, a first aid attendant from the Belgian Red Cross and as voice professor, endorsed by the Antwerp Conservatory of Music.
[1][2] Esther Neira returned to Panama in 1913 and began her professional career as a professor of pedagogy at the Normal School for Women.
In 1923, she accepted the position of Inspector General of secondary, normal and professional education in the Secretariat of Public Instruction until 1927.
Esther Neira de Calvo had been involved in Panama's feminist movement since the second decade of the 20th century, fighting for the recognition of women's civil, political, economic and cultural rights.
Neira de Calvo also worked with feminist leaders from Latin America, such as Brazilian Bertha Lutz and Chilean Amanda Labarca.
[2][1] Esther Neira de Calvo was a founding member of the National Opera School in 1925, a private institution subsidized by the Panama Government.
With Professor Graziani and some of its advanced students, the School began to show its accomplishments by presenting operas at the National Theatre a year later.
[1][3] Esther Neira de Calvo played a predominant role in the country's social work history.
[2][1] During the more than five decades of continuous professional work, Esther Neira de Calvo received honors and acknowledgements.
[1][6] Foremost among them: Three USA academic institutions distinguished her with honorary degrees:[2][6] In 1963, Esther Neira de Calvo was offered a National Tribute in her native country Panama, as organizer and first Directress of the Women's Lyceum, on the occasion of the Silver Anniversary celebrations of the Lyceum Foundation.