Hidden Figures: Annie Easley #BlackHERstoryMonth 24/29 (Patreon)

Hidden Figures: Annie Easley #BlackHERstoryMonth 24/29

Born in Birmingham, Alabama on April 23, 1933, Annie Easley was encouraged by her parents to get an education despite growing up during segregation in the Jim Crow-era South, when educational opportunities were limited. She attended Holy Family High School and was valedictorian of her graduating class, and in 1950 she went to HBCU Xavier University in New Orleans. She majored in pharmacy. In 1954, she returned to Alabama, and became an advocate for Black American voting rights. As Black Americans were required to pass a literacy test and pay a poll tax in order to vote, she helped other Black Americans prepare for the test, preparing them for the test and helping to raise money for poll taxes. In 1955, she read a story in a local newspaper about twin sisters who worked for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) as human "computers". Although Easley had never heard of NACA, the story included that they were hiring people with math skills, so she applied for a job the next day and was hired two weeks later - one of four Black Americans out of about 2500 employees. She continued her education while working for the agency, and in 1977, obtained a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Cleveland State University. As part of a continuing education, Easley worked through specialization courses offered by NASA. Throughout the 1970s Easley advocated for and encouraged female and Black American students to work in STEM careers. Her 34-year career included developing and implementing computer code that analyzed alternative power technologies, supported the Centaur high-energy upper rocket stage, determined solar, wind and energy projects, identified energy conversion systems and alternative systems to solve energy problems. Easley's work with the Centaur project helped lay the technological foundations for future space shuttle launches and launches of communication, military and weather satellites. Her work contributed to the 1997 flight to Saturn of the Cassini probe, the launcher of which had the Centaur as its upper stage. She became an adept computer programmer, using languages like the Formula Translating System (Fortran) and the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) to support a number of NASA’s programs. She developed and implemented code used in researching energy-conversion systems, analyzing alternative power technology—including the battery technology that was used for early hybrid vehicles. Later in her career, she took on the additional role of equal employment opportunity (EEO) counselor. In this role she helped supervisors address issues of gender, race, and age in discrimination complaints at the lowest level and in the most cooperative way possible. She also helped pave the way for women’s rights at the NACA when she wore pantsuits to work, stating: “…it did cause quite a stir, but there was one woman who said, ‘I was just waiting for the first one to wear pants.’ You know, we took the emphasis off [of] what you’re wearing. It’s more like what you’re actually producing.” She retired in 1989, and Annie Easley died on June 25, 2011 in Cleveland, Ohio, at 78 years old. When asked about the discrimination she faced working in STEM, Easley said: “My head is not in the sand. But my thing is, if I can’t work with you, I will work around you. I was not about to be [so] discouraged that I’d walk away. That may be a solution for some people, but it’s not mine.” #HiddenFigures #AnnieEasley ****************** Merchandise! MAKE SURE U GETTA SHIRT!! https://www.teepublic.com/user/sssseren Follow me on social media! 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: 'Annie Easley, Computer Scientist:' https://www.nasa.gov/feature/annie-easley-computer-scientist Easley, Annie: https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/news-wires-white-papers-and-books/easley-annie-j 'Meet Annie Easley:' https://massivesci.com/articles/annie-easley-facts-stem-mathematician-nasa-scientist-discrimination/ 'Meet Annie Easley, the barrier-breaking mathematician who helped us explore the solar system:' https://www.salon.com/2018/12/25/meet-annie-easley-the-barrier-breaking-mathematician-who-helped-us-explore-the-solar-system_partner/