Hidden Figures: Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee #BlackHERstoryMonth 21/28 (Patreon)

Hidden Figures: Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee #BlackHERstoryMonth 21/28

Barbara Ross-Lee, D.O., has worked in private practice, for the U.S. Public Health Service, and on numerous committees, and in 1993 was the first African American woman to be appointed dean of a United States medical school. Born in Detroit, Michigan, and raised in a housing project, Barbara Ross-Lee faced discrimination as a young African American woman. Growing up in inner city Detroit, she and her sister shared a fondness for show business, performing with their brothers and sisters in the church choir. But while Diana Ross pursued a career in music that led her from urban poverty to celebrity as the lead singer of the "Supremes," Barbara Ross made her mark in the sciences. Barbara Ross began her pre-medical studies at Detroit's Wayne State University in 1960, during the growth of the Civil Rights movement. Although a few medical schools offered admission to minority students there were no federal or private funding to help support students from poor families. At Wayne State, her pre-medical advisor did not believe women should be physicians, and so she declined to authorize Ross's request to study human anatomy as her major. Ross graduated with a bachelor of science degree in biology and chemistry in 1965 and, abandoning her original goal of practicing medicine went on to train as a teacher. She joined the National Teacher Corps, a federal program, in which she could earn a degree while teaching simultaneously in the Detroit public school system. After completing the program in 1969, a new educational opportunity arose. Michigan State University opened a school of osteopathic medicine in Pontiac, a Detroit suburb, and so Ross applied and was accepted. After graduating from the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine in 1973, Dr. Ross-Lee ran a solo family practice in Detroit until 1984, when she joined the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as a consultant on education in the health professions. In 1991 she was also the first osteopathic physician to participate in the prestigious Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellowship. In 1993, Ross-Lee became the first African American woman dean of a United States medical school. She remained dean of the College of Osteopathic Medicine of Ohio University until 2001. During her tenure there, she reformulated the entire course of study, and drafted a women's curriculum, earning a reputation as a "change agent." In 2001, Dr. Ross-Lee was appointed vice president for Health Sciences and Medical Affairs at the New York Institute of Technology, and in 2002, she became dean of the New York Institute of Technology's New York College of Osteopathic Medicine. In late 2017, she announced her retirement. #BarbaraRossLee #HiddenFigures ****************** Merchandise! MAKE SURE U GETTA SHIRT!! https://www.teepublic.com/user/sssseren Follow me on social media! Twitter: @seren_sensei Instagram: @sensei_aishitemasu Personal Tumblr: http://sensei-aishitemasu.tumblr.com Tumblr for my work: https://sssseren.tumblr.com Snapchat: sssseren GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/tc5wh7q Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/seren_sensei ****************** Did you know I wrote a book? ☺️ 'So, About That... A Year of Contemporary Essays on Race and Pop Culture' Paperback: https://www.amazon.com/About-That-Contemporary-Essays-Culture-ebook/dp/B013V0CHK6 Kindle: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013V0CHK6 Digital download (e-book): https://gumroad.com/l/IkUa ****************** Links: Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee (Vimeo): https://vimeo.com/169296076 'Barbara Ross-Lee, Osteopathic Medicine Pioneer and Visionary, Announces Retirement:' https://www.nyit.edu/news/news_releases/barbara_ross_lee_osteopathic_medicine_pioneer_and_visionary_announces_retir Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee: https://cfmedicine.nlm.nih.gov/physicians/biography_279.html 'Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee, National Expert on Health Policy and Pioneer in Medicine, Delivers Keynote at Seventh Commencement of Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine:' https://tourocom.touro.edu/news--events/press-releases/tourocom-harlem-commencement-2017.php '‘Courageous impact’: Barbara Ross-Lee, DO, trailblazer for women and minorities, retires:' https://thedo.osteopathic.org/2017/05/courageous-impact-barbara-ross-lee-do-trailblazer-for-women-and-minorities-retires/ 'Trailblazer Barbara Ross-Lee breaks ground as dean of new medical school:' https://www.fiercehealthcare.com/practices/trailblazer-barbara-ross-lee-continues-to-break-new-ground-as-dean-new-medical-school 'Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee Is a Star in Her Own Right:' http://www.ebony.com/black-history/womens-history-diana-ross-sister 'MEET DIANA ROSS’ SISTER, GROUNDBREAKING DOCTOR BARBARA ROSS-LEE!' https://blackdoctor.org/471335/diana-ross-isnt-the-only-boss-meet-her-sister-the-groundbreaking-doctor/ DR. BARBARA ROSS-LEE: http://www.thehistorymakers.org/biography/dr-barbara-ross-lee-41