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Mary Jackson Essay

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Mary Jackson was an African American mathematician who worked for NASA as an aerospace engineer. She helped launch the space program and worked for women’s working rights. This is the story of the life of Mary Jackson. Mary was born Mary Winston in Hampton, Virginia. She was born April 9 1921. Mary was born to Frank Winston and Ella Scott Winston. She also grew up in the town of Hampton, Virginia. She had a dual degree when she graduated from high school. Her duel degrees were in math and physical science. She went to work as a school teacher in Maryland before she retuned back to Hampton. Later Mary Winston became Mary Jackson when she married Levi Jackson. During her marriage with Levi she had 2 children. Mary and Levis children were Carolyn …show more content…

There was Mary and one other African American women working in the East Computers. The other lady was Dorothy Vaughan. Mary and Dorothy helped NASA by providing important information that was later used in the early days of the NASA space program. Mary worked at NASA back in the time of segregation as well. This was when African Americans were not allowed to use any areas that the Whites used. This meant Mary had to use different restrooms and eat in different locations made especially for African Americans. Mary worked with the West Computers for 2 years and then she went to work with Kazimierz Kanreki. He was an engineer working on high speed wind tunnels. While she worked with him he offered her the idea to go back to school to study to become an engineer. For Mary to take classes she had to get permission. She had to obtain permission because Virginia school had not desegregated at the time. Mary got to take her classes and she became an engineer. She got to become NASA’s first African American women to have a degree in engineering in 1958. Mary worked for about 20 years as an aerospace engineer. She had some of her most dedicated work toward the work of the air the surrounded the outside of an

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