MAE JEMISON: First Woman of Color in Space!
http://teacher.scholastic.com/space/mae_jemison/
Write to her!
Dr. Mae C. Jemison
The Jemison Group, Inc.
P.O.Box 591455
Houston, TX 77259
Mae Jemison was born in Decatur, Alabama, in October 1956. When she decided she wanted to be a scientist as a kindergardener, many people didn't believe that she could do it. There were very few women in science at that time, let alone colored women! Despite what many people expected, Mae stuck it out and worked hard, reading many books at the library, taking dance lessons, and generally learning about everything she could. She was active in student government and participated in school plays.
Mae attended Stanford University, where she studied physical and social sciences. She learned to speak Russian and Swahili. She also studied medicine and became a doctor.
Dr. Jemison was selected to NASA in 1987. She became the first colored woman in space when she flew aboard the shuttle Endeavour in 1992. As she put it, "I felt like I belonged right there in space." Although she is no longer with NASA, Mae says that she would love to fly in space again, especially on a flight to Mars or another planet beyond the solar system.
Since leaving NASA, Mae has worked to bring technology to all of the world's people. She is also very active in promoting science and space flight to girls. She wants every girl to know that they are not restrained by the limitations of others, even if other people don't believe in them, and that they can be anything they want.
Mae has also written an autobiography, "Find Where the Wind Goes," and she would like to someday write a science fiction novel. (Mae is a sci-fi fan - she once acted in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine!)
Mae encourages everyone to pursue their dreams - but she prefers to use the expression "pursue what you want to do," because the word "dream" implies something that can't happen. "You have as much right as anyone else to be in this world, and to be in any profession you want." Her motto is simple: Purpose.
