Mary Olivia Gowan (1888–1977) was an American nurse and Benedictine nun known for founding the nursing school at the Catholic University of America.
Mary Olivia Gowan was born on March 15, 1888, in Stillwater, Minnesota to William and Margaret Lawler.
[2] While a student of sociology at the Catholic University of America, she worked with James Hugh Ryan to establish the university's nursing school in 1932, and in 1935 she would be appointed as dean of the school.
[3] After the Second World War, Gowan was cited by the American Red Cross for her service as an advisor and consultant to the medical division of the United States Department of the Navy and the Veterans Administration.
[4] She retired in 1957 back to the College of St. Scholastica, where she died on April 2, 1977, at the age of 89.