Black History Month biography

Editor's Note: In honor of Black History Month, the Daily Collegian will publish a series of biographies of several great black Americans. Thanks to Black Caucus for providing the text.

Mae Jemison (1956-?) was an American astronaut who became the first black woman to travel in space. Born on Oct. 17, 1956, in Decatur, Ala., Jemison moved to Chicago with her family when she was three years old.

She received a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Stanford University in 1977 and graduated from Cornell University's medical school in 1981. Jemison then served in the Peace Corps in West Africa from 1983 to 1985.

Jemison joined the space program at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 1987. In 1992 she embarked on a mission aboard the space shuttle Endeavor to study the effects of zero gravity on people and animals, becoming the first black woman in space. In 1993 Jemison resigned from NASA and established the Jemison Group, a company that researches, develops and markets advanced technologies.