The Arts
Member of the Metropolitan Opera Company
Mirian Anderson
Known as a “human computer,” and was part of a team that did mathematical calculations to help launch satellites—and later humans—into space. Her accomplishments were the focus of the book and movie Hidden Figures
Dorothy Johnson Vaughan
Female Olympic Gold Medalist
Alice Coachman
She served as the first black female attorney general
Loretta Lynch
She won an Oscar for Best Actress in 2002
Halle Berry
This was the first black woman to win a Grammy
Ella Fitzgerald
African-American mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics helped NASA employees get to the moon.
Katherine Johnson
The first African American woman to be appointed dean of a United States medical school. (OU)
Dr. Barbara Ross-Lee
She was the first black American ambassador
Patricia Harris, 1965
This female became the first AA television host.
Oprah Winfrey
She was the first principal dancer with the American Ballet theatre
Missy Copeland
African American chemists developed an injectable herbal extract that was the most effective treatment for leprosy during the early 20th century.
Alice Ball
Considered the fastest woman of all time based on the fact that the world records she set in 1988 for both the 100 m and 200 m still stand.
Florence Joyner
Became the first black woman elected to the United States Congress, representing New York's 12th congressional district for seven terms from 1969 to 1983
Shirley Chisholm
She made history by becoming the first black anchor for a major US network newscast
Carole Simpson
World-renowned performer, World War II spy, and activist in the 1960s
Josephine Baker
First African-American woman to earn a doctorate in nuclear physics at MIT.
Dr. Shirley Jackson
She was the first back woman to win the Glam Slam Tournament - The French Open
Aletha Gibson
She was the first black woman appointed to a presidential cabinet, and to what position
Patricia Harris, HUD
This female became the first AA Billionaire in 2003.
Oprah Winfrey
She is the first black woman to win the coveted EGOT
Whoopi Goldberg
The first African American woman to travel in space
Dr. Mae Jemison
First licensed NASCAR Driver
Tia Norfleet
She was the first black US Senator
Carol Moseley Braun
An African-American investigative journalist, educator, and an early leader in the Civil Rights Movement. She was one of the founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.
Ida B. Wells