Mae Jemison

Mae Jemison was born on Oct. 17, 1956 and graduated from Stanford University with degrees in both chemical engineering and African-American studies. Immediately following her graduation from Stanford, she attended medical school at Cornell University, where she avidly followed her interest in international medicine. During her studies, she volunteered at a Thai refugee camp for a week and then continued studying in Kenya, eventually graduating in 1981.After completing her graduate studies, Jemison moved to West Africa, where she participated in the Peace Corps and U.S. embassy health care program as a Peace Corps medical officer. During her stay, she also helped conduct research with the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control.

Upon her return to the U.S., she applied to become a NASA astronaut, and in October 1986, became one of 15 applicants selected from a pool of 2,000 applicants. She was trained to become a mission specialist, initially helping to ensure that shuttle equipment and software was secure. Jemison was later assigned to aid research that America and Japan were conducting; she utilized her knowledge of chemical engineering and human biology to research life sciences and materials processing. It was not until 1992, six years following her acceptance into the NASA program, that Jemison took her first flight on the spacecraft Endeavor, making her the first black female astronaut in space.

Information has been compiled from Encyclopedia Britannica Online School Edition.