![]() ![]() ![]() She is the first black woman to earn a doctorate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the first black woman to preside over a top-ranking university. (in Physics) and her PhD (in Theoretical Elementary Particle Physics) from MIT. Born on August 5, 1946, She earned both her B.S. It starts with changing the narrative around who we recognize as contributors in the engineering and STEM fields.Īnd now, in no particular order, here are eight Black women engineers and scientists who made incredible contributions to their fields.ĭr Shirley Jackson is the current president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Normalizing and retaining women and women of color in STEM requires redefining what it means to look like an engineer and scientist. US workplaces also struggle to retain women of color, according to a 2019 Catalyst survey, with 52% of Black women surveyed planning to leave their employers in the next two years. However, according to the Society of Women in engineering, only 6% of engineering bachelor’s degrees are awarded to Black Women. The eight highlighted are just a few of the many, without whom we would not be enjoying many of the technological advances we take for granted today.īlack women represent 12.9% of the US population. In today’s blog, you’ll hear the stories of 8 inspirational Black women engineers and scientists - who should be household names - that have defied the odds and paved the way for future women. You’ll also notice that none of them are women. There’s irony in the fact that three of the four above dropped out of college, and none of them have an engineering degree. When I’ve asked non-engineers to name some “engineers”, often I receive the following names as responses: The contributions of women of color in engineering and STEM have long been downplayed in both mainstream society and among engineers themselves. February is Black History Month and also includes Engineers Week. ![]()
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