One of the first two female graduates of the institution (BA 1895; MA 1899), Elma Ellis became professor of Latin and Greek at Lynchburg College in Lynchburg, Virginia. Prior to taking that post, she was professor of Greek and Latin at Milligan College, Tennessee, for three years; professor of Greek and German at Virginia Christian College in West Virginia, for two years; professor of Greek and Latin at Milligan College for seven years; and professor of French and Latin at Martha Washington College for two years.