The following is a list of notable African-American women who have made contributions to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
An excerpt from a 1998 issue of Black Issues in Higher Education by Juliane Malveaux reads: "There are other reasons to be concerned about the paucity of African American women in science, especially as scientific occupations are among the most pivotal and highly compensated in the occupational spectrum. Yet, both leaks in the pipeline and gender stereotyping contribute to the under-representation of African American women in the sciences.
Organizations like Dr. Shirley McBay's Quality Education for Minorities (QEM) have done significant work in creating a climate that encourages success in math, science, and engineering for minority students. Yet, efforts like this struggle for funding in an atmosphere that is hostile to affirmative action and to targeted educational opportunities. The evidence to support targeting, though, is in the gaps revealed by the data. Too many gaps reflect the relative absence of sisters in science.
There are organizations that offer scholarships in STEM in the hopes of attracting more women and moronity candidates, like Ralph W. Turner Foundation and UNCF STEM Scholarships for undergraduate education, however many students remain unaware of their availability. The US National Science Foundation also makes efforts to support women in STEM.
Yet, women like Jemison, Jackson, and McBay offer stellar and motivational examples of what can be done in science careers. These sisters in science are true pioneers, women who make it possible for so many others to see work in science as an option for African American women[1]."
Believed to be the first African-American woman to gain a degree in meteorology and known to be the first African-American woman to be a televised meteorologist.
Researched self-esteem and self-concept in African-American children, which was used in 1954 civil rights case Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka Kansas
American professor and author known for her work in the field of human-centered computing and broadening participation in STEM. She is a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science at Duke University.
Michael B. Voorhies Distinguished Professor in the Division of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Louisiana State University, 19th African American woman to obtain a PhD in a physics-related field in the US
One of the first African-American women to earn a Ph.D. in electrical engineering, and one of the few at a primarily white institution rather than a historically black institution (HBCU); Founded Software Tailoring
Fields was the first woman, and first African American to head the NOAA Corps, first woman and first African American to command a NOAA ship, and the first woman to command a ship in the United States uniformed services for an extended assignment
First African American female Ph.D. chemist to work in a professional position at the Dow Chemical Company, considered an early African American pioneer in science
one of the first African-American women to gain a scientist position at a science agency (The NIH) in Washington, D.C.; may have been the first African-American scientist at the FDA; led the team that exposed the common substance in Krebiozen
pioneer in the study of bacterial antibiotic resistance and one of the first two African-American women to gain the degree of Doctor of Veterinary Medicine; co-developed the Mueller–Hinton agar
Best known for her career as a biophysicist and research chemist at American Cyanamid along with research in the Polaroid Corp Emulsion Coating and Analysis Laboratory
First African-American woman to complete her PhD in astrophysics at Yale; member of Joe Biden's presidential transition Agency Review Team; founder of Vanguard: Conversations with Women of Color in STEM (VanguardSTEM)
Researcher of human-plant co-evolution and anthropological genetics; first African-American to receive the Charles R. Darwin Lifetime Achievement Award
President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; first African-American woman to have earned a doctorate at MIT; second African-American woman in the United States to earn a doctorate in physics
Former vice president of the General Mills Corporation; the former president, executive director, and chairman of the board of trustees of the General Mills Foundation
Contributed to understanding of gastric response to chronic inflammation; chief of the University of Arizona Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology; inaugural member of the NIH Council of Councils
Okoro is known for her efforts in promoting diversity in STEM fields, and she has held multiple positions in several organizations related to diversity and inclusion. Okoro has served on the council of the American Geophysical Union as an early career scientist and was the Diversity & Inclusion task-force chair.
possibly the first African-American woman scientist to receive a fellowship to study abroad, and the first female biology instructor at Morehouse College
Art Director and Game Developer . Lisette has contributed to some of the industry's highest profile games, including Tiger Woods Golf, The Simpsons, Dante's Inferno, Dance Central 3, SIMS 4, South Park, and Transformers Age Of Extinction for Android and iOS. Her most recent project is Psychonauts 2 with Double Fine Productions.
known for her lifelong dedication to community service and for establishing programs that promote minorities in STEM fields, scientific research, and basic research
one of the first black professors hired at Lincoln University; first black woman to head a college science department; may have been the first black woman to hold a full professorship at any U.S. college or university
Carey, Charles W. (2008). African Americans in science: an encyclopedia of people and progress. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 51–52. ISBN9781851099986.
^"About ABPsi - History". www.abpsi.org. The Association of Black Psychologists (ABPsi). Archived from the original on 15 February 2019. Retrieved 14 February 2019.
^Carey, Charles W. (2008). African Americans in science: an encyclopedia of people and progress. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 142–144. ISBN9781851099986.
^Brown, Jeannette E. (2012). African American women chemists. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 111–114. ISBN9780199742882.
^Brown, Jeannette E. (2012). African American women chemists. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 18–19. ISBN9780199742882.
^Carey, Charles W. (2008). African Americans in science: an encyclopedia of people and progress. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 150–152. ISBN9781851099986.
^"Cora Bagley Marrett". National Academy of Sciences, African American History Program. Archived from the original on 2015-02-24. Retrieved 2015-02-24.
^Carey, Charles W. (2008). African Americans in science: an encyclopedia of people and progress. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 169–171. ISBN9781851099986.
^Brown, Jeannette E. (2012). African American women chemists. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 151–156. ISBN9780199742882.
^Carey, Charles W. (2008). African Americans in science: an encyclopedia of people and progress. Vol. 1. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO. pp. 208–210. ISBN9781851099986.
^NOAA Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, Maritime Heritage Program. "Deep Sea Dawn". Voyage to Discovery: Untold Stories of African-Americans and the Sea. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on 16 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
^Richardson, Julieanna. "Dawn Wright". The HistoryMakers: The Nation's Largest African American Video Oral History Collection. The HistoryMakers: ScienceMakers. Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
^Brown, Jeannette E. (2012). African American women chemists. New York: Oxford University Press. pp. 12–18. ISBN9780199742882.