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Thank you again Re: Influential African-American mathematicians and scientists question 

Hello all,

Below is the list of suggestions that I received regarding African and 
Caribbean American Women in Math and Science. Thank you to all who made 
suggestions; this is a great community and resource. My friend at 
Essence was happy to receive all of these suggestions.

Best,
Cheryl

~~~~~~

Gloria C. Hewitt recently retired from The University of Montana. She 
was the third African American woman to earn a PhD in Mathematics. She 
has had a very influential career. She has a chapter in a recently 
published book on Women in Mathematics that I believe was published by 
the MAA or AMS.

The Catalog of the National Women's History Project  has 
many such names, albeit mostly historical.

The Nov. 02 Discover magazine has an article on the top 50 women in 
science. The blurbs are very brief, but it includes Shirley Ann 
Jackson, President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, stating she is 
the second African-American woman in the U.S. to earn a doctorate in 
physics. Another place to check with would be at Stanford. Prof. A. B. 
C. Walker (unfortunately he died in 2001) assisted in helping Stanford 
produce the most minority Ph.D. physicists in the U.S. Perhaps someone 
there could be of help with more names.

Is Shirley Ann Jackson on your list? She was the second 
African-American woman in the U.S. to earn a doctorate in physics. She 
is currently president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Two that come to mind: Shirley Jackson, president of RPI 
http://www.rpi.edu/web/President/index.html 
and Paula Hammond, of the MIT Chemical Engineering Dept. 
http://web.mit.edu/newsoffice/nr/2002/isn.html 
http://web.mit.edu/cheme/people/faculty/hammond.html

Does this include famous pediatricians such as Jocelyn Elders, MD, 
FAAP, former surgeon general, and longtime professor of pediatrics, 
Rosalyn Epps, MD, FAAP, Natalia Tanner, MD, FAAP, Helen Nash, MD, FAAP 
(first black woman pediatrician in St. Louis and long active in 
community health care), to name just a few? 

Dr. Vivian Pinn earned her bachelors degree from Wellesley College. In 
1967 she was among the first African-American women to graduate from 
the University of Virginia School of Medicine; she was the only woman 
and the only minority in her medical school class. She is currently the 
Associate Director for Research on Women's Health and the Director of 
the Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH) at the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH). [The ORWH serves as a focal point for 
women's health research at the NIH. The ORWH promotes, stimulates, and 
supports efforts to improve the health of women through biomedical and 
behavioral research. ORWH works in partnership with the NIH institutes 
and centers to ensure that women's health research is part of the 
scientific framework at NIH and throughout the scientific community. - 
From the ORWH Web site http://www4.od.nih.gov/orwh/overview.html Dr. 
Pinn's numerous honors include the Elizabeth Blackwell Award from the 
American Medical Women's Association in 1995; the Commonwealth Fund's 
Margaret E. Mahoney Award for Outstanding Service in 2000 for her work 
in advancing the quality of health care for women everywhere; and the 
Distinguished Alumna Award from the University of Virginia Women's 
Center in 1992. Additional information about Dr. Pinn may be found at 
http://www.nih.gov/news/nf/womenshealth/difference.html and 
http://www.nih.gov/news/nf/womenshealth/1.html.

1980 The first book on African American Mathematicians, Black 
Mathematicians and their Works, finally published by Virginia K. 
Newell, Joella H. Gipson, L. W. Rich, and B. Stubblefield. 

1985 Gloria Gilmer co-founds ISGEm, the Ethnomathematics Organization.

1990 AMUCWMA - The African Mathematical Union Commission on Women in 
Mathematics in Africa is founded with Grace Lele Williams as Chairman.

1992 Gloria Gilmer is the first woman to deliver a major National 
Association of Mathematicians lecture (the Cox-Talbot Address). 

1997 Kate Okikiolu becomes the first Black to be awarded Mathematics' 
most prestigious young person's award, the Sloan Research Fellowship. 
She also won the new $500,000 Presidential Early Career Awards for 
Scientists and Engineers. 

2000 The first school to graduate three African American women Ph.Ds in 
one year: The University of Maryland also graduates its first 
Mathematics women Ph.D. (Knight's 1971 degree was in Education). They 
are Tasha Inniss, Sherry Scott and Kimberly Weems. 

2001 Kate Okikiolu 
becomes the first Black woman to publish in the best mathematics 
journal, The Annals of Mathematics. 
http://www.math.buffalo.edu/mad/wohist.html 

Here are a couple of suggestions: Dr. Sylvia Bozeman, Department of 
Mathematics, Spelman College, Dr. Fern Hunt, NIST, Washington, DC, and 
Dr. Tasha Innis, Department of Mathematics, Trinity College, 
Washington, DC.

Dr. Deborah Jackson, Physicist  
Dr. Claudia Alexander, Physicists  
Ms. Izeller Snead, Electrical Engineer  
Dr. Aayanna Howard, Mechanical Engineer-Robotics and Artificial Intelligence  
Ms. Shonte'  Wright, Thermal Engineer  
Mrs. Sandra Mimms, JPL Teacher Intern- Pasadena Unified School District 
Science Teacher (she is incredible!) 

Dr. Vanessa Northington Gamble, M.D., Ph.D. 
Dr. Vanessa Northington Gamble, a physician and medical historian, 
chaired the Presidential committee on the legacy of Tuskegee (the 
infamous Tuskegee Syphilis Study conducted by the U.S. Public Health 
Service from 1932-1972) that secured an apology from the government in 
1997. (see 
http://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2002/jul/tuskegee/commentary.html)
She is "a health policy and medical education consultant who has had 
twenty years of experience as a researcher, teacher, and administrator 
in issues related to race and American medicine. Previously [she] was 
Vice President of the Division of Community and Minority Programs at 
the Association of American Medical Colleges and Director of the Center 
for the Study of Race and Ethnicity in Medicine at the University of 
Wisconsin School of Medicine. [She is] also a member of the National 
Advisory Council of the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality." 
(From "Testimony - Vanessa Northington Gamble, M.D., Ph.D., Institute 
of Medicine Committee for Guidance in Designing A National Health Care 
Disparities Report, March 20, 2002" 
--http://www.iom.edu/iom/iomhome.nsf/Wfiles/Disp-Gamble/$file/Disp-Gamble.doc)

here's some of my favorites: 
1) Bath, Patricia - ophthalmologist, invented a cataract surgery 
technique. 

2) Bigby, JudyAnn - more public health/medical edu than science, but in 
case it is broadly defined - revolutionary work in the treatment of 
substance abusers. 

3) Canady, Alexa Irene - 1st African American neurosurgeon in the U.S. 
- has developed a valve for hydrocephalus. 

4) Douglas, Janice - scientist, physician, educator, - has won over $20 
million in grant money and researches race and health and hypertension. 

5) Margaret Hamburg - vice president for biological programs at the 
Nuclear Threat Initiative and former NYC health commissioner. 

6) Jemison, Mae C. - 1st African American woman in space, runs the Mae 
Jemison foundation for scientific research and education.
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