Ever feel like you can’t accomplish something because of your background or who you are? Aprille Ericsson Jackson felt that way too, but she made huge advancements in the male-dominated field of aerospace engineering!
Introduction:
Have you ever felt like you don’t belong? Have you ever watched a movie or a TV show and wondered why there isn’t anybody who looks like you? It’s easy to feel like you’re incapable of doing something when you seem to be an outsider. Take, for example, Dr. Aprille Ericsson-Jackson— she was the first woman to earn a master’s degree from her university, and worked in a male-dominated field as an aerospace engineer. Let’s take a look at her story.
Biography:
Aprille Ericsson-Jackson was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was the eldest in her family of four sisters. Her mother, Corrinne Elaine Breedy, always pushed her to follow her dreams, and supported her in whatever she wanted to do. Ericsson-Jackson remembers watching the Apollo missions on television throughout her childhood, which was the spark that ignited her passion for science. In her junior year of high school, she attended the MIT UNITE program over the summer, where she learned more about science and aeronautics. After this experience, she was determined to work at NASA. She went on to graduate high school with honors, and was accepted to MIT, where she graduated with a Bachelor’s of Science in Aeronautical/Astronautical Engineering.
Soon afterwards, she gained her master’s degree in engineering from Howard University, making her the first African-American woman to receive this degree at that university. Ericsson-Jackson also became the first African-American woman to obtain a PhD in engineering at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center.
In her work at NASA, Ericsson-Jackson has helped lead us to the future of space flight, and has added to the existing knowledge of our solar system. She has designed and developed instruments for spacecraft along with satellites to help us gain a better understanding of the earth. In addition to her work as an aerospace engineer, Ericsson-Jackson also teaches at Howard University, in both mechanical engineering and mathematics. For her dedication and hard work, she has been awarded by NASA’s Goddard Honor Awards, the National Technical Association, and many other organizations and groups.
Her Message
Ericsson-Jackson is proud to be both an aerospace engineer and an activist for women and minorities in STEM. As a female, African-American engineer, she has directly experienced the unique hardships and alienation that minority groups face in the working world. She believes that diversity is more important than ever, and that the lack of women in STEM fields is not an issue with capability, but rather an issue with discouragement.
"The United States cannot afford to lose more than half of its talent and the fresh perspective that women and minorities can bring to these critical fields. We must work together across the boundaries of skin color and gender.”
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