Dorothy Lavinia Brown was the first African American female surgeon. She practiced in the Southeastern U.S. during the 1900s. Born in Philadelphia in 1919, she spent a large part of her youth at the Troy orphanage. Determined to continue her education, Brown graduated at the top of her class from Troy High School and received a full scholarship to Bennett College. In 1944, three years after receiving her B.A., Brown began her studies to become a physician at the Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN. During her career Dr. Brown served as a teacher and mentor to African American students, chief of surgery at Nashville Riverside Medical Hospital, was elected as the first woman to serve as a representative in the Tennessee legislator, served as a consultant for the National Institute of Health and the recipient of a plethora of honors and awards. As she often said, she was proud to be a role model, “not because I have done so much, but to say to young people that it can be done.”
Dr. Marie M. Daly was the first African American woman to earn a PhD in chemistry in the U.S. She earned her doctorate from Columbia University in 1947 and devoted her life to research and education, teaching and working as a biochemist. A native of New York, Daly was raised in a household that understood the importance of education and her love of reading was buttressed by her mother Helen who read to her often about history and science. After receiving her Ph.D. from Columbia, Daly initially conducted research on the human digestive system later linking the effects of high cholesterol on clogged arteries. In addition to her research, Dr. Daly taught biochemistry classes and fought for equitable opportunities for students of color. In 1988, Daly instituted a scholarship for under privileged students at her Alma Mater Queens University.