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Black Mathematicians

Black Mathematicians. By: Alana Alexander June 1, 2006. Purpose for Students. The purpose of this presentation is to recognize the black mathematicians that achieved great achievements in mathematics during a time when blacks were looked at as inferior.

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Black Mathematicians

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  1. Black Mathematicians By: Alana Alexander June 1, 2006

  2. Purpose for Students • The purpose of this presentation is to recognize the black mathematicians that achieved great achievements in mathematics during a time when blacks were looked at as inferior. • Young black students as well as all students need to know that even tough mathematics is looked at as a tough subject it can be achieved with great perseverance.

  3. Purpose for Teachers • The purpose of this presentation is to make teachers aware of great black mathematicians. • Teachers can use this information to help their students, especially minority students relate to mathematics and find encouragement from those who persevered in mathematics.

  4. Introduction • There were many successful black mathematicians who went through great difficulty in trying to attain self-confidence in mathematics. • Most of the people in this presentation are professional people who have earned degrees in mathematics and have taught mathematics to other mathematicians. • This is a remarkable achievement for people who did not have all the rights and freedoms as other groups of people.

  5. Introduction • The history of blacks in mathematics dates back to the 1700’s. • The first recognized black mathematician recognized was a male. • It was almost 200 years before women appeared in mathematics.

  6. Benjamin Banneker • Benjamin Banneker was the first Black recognized as a mathematician. • He had little formal education. • He displayed great talent in mathematics. • He produced an almanac and was commissioned to survey Washington D.C..

  7. Thomas Fuller • It has been said that he is the first known mathematician. • Fuller was a slave shipped from Africa. • Like Banneker, Fuller had no formal education. • He possessed remarkable powers of calculations. • He acquired these great mathematical abilities from Africa.

  8. Kelly Miller • The first Black mathematics graduate student in 1887. • The first African American student admitted to John Hopkins mathematics program. • He received a Master of Arts in Mathematics in 1901. • He continued his work in mathematics by being a professor of mathematics and sociology.

  9. Elbert F. Cox • He showed great abilities in mathematics and physics in high school. • The first African American to earn a Ph.D. in Mathematics in 1925 from Cornell University. • There were only 28 Ph.D.’s that were given in 1925 all over the country. • Cox’ s achievement of a Ph. D. in mathematics was remarkable.

  10. Dudley Weldon WoodardandWilliam Schieffelin Claytor • Woodard (1928) and Claytor (1933) were the second and third black men to earn a Ph.D. in Mathematics.

  11. Dr. Dudley Woodard • Dr. Woodard established the M.S. degree program in mathematics at Howard University. • He helped to establish a mathematics library at Howard University. • Woodard taught many of the upcoming black mathematicians to come.

  12. William Claytor • William Waldron Schieffelin Claytor earned his A.B. and M.A. from Howard University under Woodard. • Dr. Claytor was the first African American to publish mathematics research.

  13. African American Women of Mathematics • It wasn’t until 1943 that a woman earned a Ph.D. in mathematics.

  14. Euphemia Lofton Haynes • She became the first African American Woman to earn a Ph.D. in Mathematics. • She taught in the public schools of Washington, DC for forty-seven years. • She was the first woman to chair the DC School Board. • Dr. Haynes established the mathematics department at Miners Teacher's College.

  15. African American Women (cont’d) • There were many women to follow in Dr. Hayes foot steps: • Evelyn Boyd Granville • Marjorie Lee Browne

  16. Evelyn Boyd Granville • The second woman to earn a Ph.D. in Mathematics. • She earned her Ph.D. from Yale University in 1949. • Evelyn Granville first worked as a mathematician with The National Bureau of Standards and IBM. • She became an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at California State University. • She taught prospective elementary school teachers “new math”.

  17. Marjorie Lee Browne • The third woman to receive a Ph.D. in mathematics. • This was just six months after Evelyn Boyd Granville. • Marjorie Lee Browne received her B.S. in Mathematics from Howard University(1935). • She received her M.S. in Mathematics from the University of Michigan in 1939. • She received a Ph.D. in Mathematics from the University of Michigan (1950).

  18. Marjorie Lee Browne (cont’d) • She authored four notes for secondary school teachers: • Sets, Logic, and Mathematical Thought (1957) • Introduction to Linear Algebra (1959) • Elementary Matrix Algebra (1969) • Algebraic Structures (1974)

  19. Conclusion • There were many more African American Mathematicians. • These were just the first few African Americans who helped pave the way for pursuing mathematics.

  20. Conclusion • As you can see, the people mentioned in this presentation helped to teach mathematics to others. • This was a great achievement to give back to others, the knowledge that they gained from mathematics.

  21. Conclusion • Mathematics was and still is a very difficult subject. • Many people shy away from mathematics. • This is why teachers have to get students interested in mathematics. • This presentation is just a start to inform students of great mathematcians who went against the odds of achieving in mathematics.

  22. Resources • To find out more about great African American Mathematicians, check out these websites and books: • http://www.math.buffalo.edu/mad/madhist.html • Newell, Virginia K. Black mathematicians and their works (1980) • http://womenshistory.about.com/od/sciencemath1/ • http://www.news.cornell.edu/Chronicle/02/2.28.02/ElbertCox.html • http://www.archives.upenn.edu/histy/features/aframer/math.html

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