Mar 29, 2007 - Claremont, Calif. - Jemison made history as the first woman of color to go into space when she and her shuttle Endeavor crew were launched into orbit September 12, 1992. The space flight was just one in a series of accomplishments for this dynamic woman. Born in Decatur, Alabama, and raised in Chicago, she graduated from Stanford University with a B.S. in chemical engineering and an A.B. in African and Afro-American Studies. She earned her M.D. at Cornell University Medical College. Jemison served as a NASA astronaut for six years as science mission specialist. On board the STS-47 Spacelab J flight, a joint mission with Japan, she conducted experiments in life and material sciences, and was a co-investigator of the Bone Cell Research experiment. Jemison is a fierce advocate of a liberal arts education with an emphasis on the sciences. She is a former professor of environmental studies at Dartmouth College and currently the A.D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University. She has received numerous awards and honors, including a doctorate in humanities from Princeton University. She was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame, given the Kilby Science Award and selected as one of the People magazine’s 1993 “World’s 50 Most Beautiful People.” She has served as host and technical consultant for the Discovery Channel’s “World of Wonder” series, appeared in an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation and was the subject of the PBS documentary The New Explorers. Prior to joining NASA in 1987, Jemison worked in both engineering and medicine. She was a general practitioner in Los Angeles, spent two and one half years (1983-1985) as an area Peace Corps medical officer for Sierra Leone and Liberia, and later worked as a general practitioner with CIGNA Health Plans of California. In 1993, Dr. Jemison founded The Jemison Group, Inc. to focus on the beneficial integration of science and technology into our everyday lives. Company projects have included consulting on the design and implementation of solar thermal electricity generation systems for developing countries and other remote areas, and the use of satellite-based telecommunications to facilitate health care delivery in West Africa. Dr. Jemison founded and currently chairs The Dorothy Jemison Foundation for Excellence, a non-profit organization. One program of the foundation, The Earth We Share, is an annual international science camp where students from around the world, ages 12 through 16, work together to solve global dilemmas. Currently, Jemison is building a new business, BioSentient Corporation, a medical technology company that develops and markets mobile equipment that monitors vital signs and trains people to respond favorably in stressful situations. Jemison published her first book, a series of autobiographical anecdotes titled, “Find Where the Wind Goes: Moments from My Life,” in spring 2001. For additional information about Commencement 2007: http://www.hmc.edu/studentlife1/studentservices1/commencement.html
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