1. Susan McKinney-Steward
McKinney-Steward was the third black woman to earn a medical degree in the United States and the first in New York State. She paid her own way through medical school by teaching singing lessons and also graduated valedictorian of her class.
2. Aisha Bowe
Bowe is an aeronautical engineer and entrepreneur who manages a multi-million dollar defense contracts and private-sector technology clients. She also is committed to teaching young girls all over the world about the endless possibility of pursuing a career in STEM.
3. Aprille Ericsson-Jackson
She was the first African American woman to receive a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from Howard University and the first African American woman to receive a Ph.D. in engineering from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center. She helps manage science instruments, like the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS).
4. Nola Hylton
Hylton played a major role in the development of MRI technology for the detection and diagnosis of breast cancer. She was one of the first scholars named the Susan G. Komen for the Cure’s Scientific Advisory Council and co-leader for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Women’s Health International Group.
5. Dr. Ashanti Johnson
Johnson is often called one of the leading oceanographers of her generation, Ashanti Johnson is the first ever African American female chemical oceanographer and the first African American to earn a Ph.D. in oceanography from Texas A&M University.
6. Mae C. Jemison
She was the first black woman to travel in space. She served as an astronaut aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour in 1992.
7. Katherine Johnson
Johnson is an African-American mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics as a NASA employee were critical to the success of the first and other U.S. spaceflights. Her story was told in the 2016 film Hidden Figures.
8. Kimberly Bryant
Bryant is the founder for Black Girls Code, which has helped thousands of girls across the country learn coding basics.
