Mary W Jackson
By
John C Abercrombie
Today is day 20 of 31, featuring Mary W Jackson one of the major players in the book and movie “Hidden Figures”. Featuring Black women who excelled in the sciences and were critical in the American space race. It is impossible to understand how these heroes could have been excluded from history but… the book and movie are possible because of Margot Lee Shetterly who knew them and did the research necessary to bring the story to the attention of so many people.
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The name of Mary W Jackson may not seem familiar, but she is actually known by many for her amazing work in the field of mathematics and the American Space race. She has been featured in the well-known book and Movie “Hidden Figures”.
Jackson was the first Black Female Engineer to work for NASA and her work contributed to putting man on the moon.
She was born Mary Winston April 9, 1921 in Hampton, Virginia. Her parents were Ella Scott and Frank Winston. She attended segregated all-Black schools and graduated with high honors from George P Phenix Training School in 1937. George P Phenix was a White educator but advocated for a modern school for Blacks.
It may be difficult to imagine today, but during most of the United States the school facilities and resources of Blacks were no on par with that of whites. Up to 10x was spent on White education as that of Blacks. Class sizes were much larger for Blacks, limiting the attention afforded by teachers through no fault of the teachers.
Another factor in the recognition of Blacks is the loss of names due to segregation. Many Black schools were named for honored Blacks. Segregation saw many of the schools “demoted” and finally eliminated from the school systems. Destroying the historical significance.
5 years after graduating from George P Phenix Training school she earned dual bachelor’s degrees in mathematics and physical science from Hampton Institute. Now known as Hampton University. Hampton University was founded in 1868 by Black and White leaders of the American Missionary Association to provide education to freedmen. It is also home to the Hampton University Museum, the oldest museum of the African diaspora in the United States and the oldest museum in the commonwealth of Virginia.
Today it is difficult to imagine getting a degree and being limited in what you can do with it. Job opportunities were limited for Blacks, they were limited for women and more so for Black women. It was like starting with 2 strikes against you.
Mary took one of the few jobs open to women that of a schoolteacher, later as a bookkeeper and receptionist. Finally, in 1950 she found a job at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) now NASA in Langley, Virginia working in the West Computer section.
President Franklin D Roosevelt issued an executive order prohibiting discrimination in the entire defense industry, but Virginia hung on to segregation holding on to state law. This required separate restroom and cafeterias. There were signs of “White” and “Colored”. Some of the effects of discrimination are not fully understood. In the movie the impact of having to go to another building to use the restroom is understated.
Black women had to leave the building and go to another that had a “Colored” bathroom. Whites could eat in the cafeteria, while Blacks had to sit at their desks to eat.
This was done day in and day out and emphasized the second class status of Blacks. It was very “in your face”. Blacks considered these policies an indignity and rightly so.
These “Separate and Unequal” accommodations had a high negative effect on Blacks and Jackson had had enough and was considering resigning until a chance encounter with a supervisor that changed her mind. Kazimierz Czarnecki heard of her trials and tribulations and offered her to work with him in the Supersonic Pressure Tunnel.
He quickly saw her potential and encouraged her to take engineering classes, but it was not as easy as enrolling. The school where the classes were taught was segregated and she had to get permission from the government to attend.
In time, she was promoted to aeronautical engineer which made her the First Black Female Engineer to work for NASA. She developed expertise working with wind tunnels and analyzing data on aircraft flight experiments.
By 1978, she realized that she had reached the glass ceiling and could go no further without entering supervision. She then turned to human resources administration as an administrator realizing that she could advocate in the Federal Women’s Program and the Equal Opportunity Program as the Affirmative Action Program Manager, working there until retiring in 1985.
She helped women and minorities advance their career and steps to take to increase the chances of their promotion.
In 2016 the story of Jackson and colleagues Katherine G Johnson and Dorothy J Vaughan were celebrated in the book and movie “Hidden Figures” where Jackson was portrayed by Janelle Monáe.
At this point it is necessary to spotlight an extremely important figure in this story and getting the information out to the public. Margot Lee Shetterly a Black non-fiction writer. Born in Hampton, VA in 1969, her father was a research scientist at Langley Research Center, her mother was an English professor at Hampton University an HBCU. She personally knew many of the Black families that worked at NASA.
The story of Lee Shetterly points out other people that get involved in relating such valuable information, investigative reporters, historians, researchers, English teachers and others have a role. At times, the most important people are those who have an interest and willingness to do the work. As you develop skills in your chosen field, you find you have a role to play, don’t underestimate your worth.
In 2018, Jackson Elementary School named for President Andrew Jackson was renamed Mary W Jackson in honor of the groundbreaking NASA engineer.
Andrew Jackson was the American president who signed the Indian Removal Act that relocated the tribes of the Southern United States West of the Mississippi River. This was tantamount to genocide of the tribes leading to the “Trail of Tears” half of the 16,000 died on the way to the reservation. This is also the reason some Native Americans shun the $20.00 bill.
This is also a tribute to the people of Utah with a small percentage of Blacks were willing to honor Mary W Jackson and areas much larger fail to recognize Blacks while honoring those willing to die to maintain slavery and suppress people and deny them the rights of American citizenship.
In June 2020, NASA renamed its DC headquarters after Jackson to The Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters.
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Hidden No More┃The Legacy of Mary W. Jackson
As one of the core figures from NASA’s history, Mary W. Jackson’s legacy continues to represent a commitment to excellence, diversity, inclusion and teamwork.
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Science and Math
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The life of the space engineer, Mary Jackson
Find out about Mary Jackson, the inspiration woman whose brilliant brain helped land men on the moon. She battled racial and sexual inequality to get to the top of her field and then set about helping other women get ahead. Super brilliant, tenacious and undaunted, she worked hard to find success against all the odds. Let’s not forget her!
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Mary W. Jackson journey to become NASA 1st black woman engineer
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We see in the post on Mary W Jackson that many talented people succeed because they found a way to use their talents. It takes more than just being talented to succeed, it takes opportunity. Many talented students are not willing to challenge themselves and take on the larger tasks. This you do at your own peril. We also see that so many other occupations and skills come forth and show their importance. It takes more than science to lead the world. Follow your passions!