Women’s History Month: Celebrating female pioneers

March 8, 2018 in Features Uncategorized

In honor of Women’s History Month, we asked University of Indianapolis faculty who their role models were.

Many thanks to our contributors! Take a look at the slide show to see who they chose to commemorate.

Communications faculty:
Stephanie Mahin joined the University as assistant professor in fall 2017 and teaches classes in strategic communication, public relations, public speaking and other aspects of communication.

Stephanie Wideman is director of the University’s Forensics Speech and Debate Program and an assistant professor.

Sciences faculty:
Kimberly Baker, an assistant professor of biology, specializes in molecular genetics, cell biology and cancer biology.

Ann Cutler, associate professor of chemistry, is a longtime editor of the Journal of College Science Teaching and has research interests in science text comprehension.

Sandy Davis, associate professor of biology, is an expert in botany, plant reproductive biology and evolutionary biology.

Krista Latham, associate professor of biology, is the director of the University of Indianapolis Human Identification Center. Her work in the Texas borderlands identifying the remains of migrants who died making the perilous journey across the border has been covered by national media. She has published several books on forensic techniques.

Arts faculty:
Rebecca Sorley, professor of music, is Director of Student Support and Coordinator of the Music Business Concentration. She teaches piano to all levels from pre-college through piano majors.

Biochemist Jennifer Doudna (1964-) is one of the pioneers of the CRISPR genome editing technique and most likely a future Nobel laureate. - Kimberly Baker
Ida B. Wells-Barnett (1862-1931) – She was known as an anti-lynching crusader, suffragist, journalist and publicist who spoke out against racial and gender injustice. Wells-Barnett worked on grassroots campaigns before Plessy V. Ferguson vilified Jim Crow laws in the south. In 1909, she became one of two African-American women who signed “the call” to form the NAACP. - Stephanie Mahin
NASA mathematician Katherine G. Johnson (1918-) played a pivotal role in calculating the orbital equation for John Glenn’s Friendship 7 mission . Her work was also crucial in the Project Apollo mission, the Space Shuttle and the Earth Resources Satellite, among many other projects. - Kim Baker
Ann Richards (1933-2006) – The longtime Texas governor was well-known for her leadership and engaging speaking style. What you might not know is that she’s been studied in the field of rhetoric for her expert blend of feminine narrative and public policy in her speeches. Her keynote speech at the 1988 Democratic Convention brought the house down. - Stephanie Wideman
Alice Brues (1913-2007) was one of the first female forensic anthropologists, and is credited as one of the founders of the field. She received her Ph.D. from Harvard but had to sit in the hallway during lectures because females were not allowed in the classrooms at that time. She became best known for her innovative research involving the genetics of modern human variation and her use of computers to simulate natural selection, genetic drift, mutation and gene flow. - Krista Latham
Amy Beach (1867-1944) - She was the first American woman composer to become well-known during her lifetime, and the first woman to have her work performed by a major American orchestra - the Boston Symphony. Beach was discouraged in her quest to become a composer since some doctors at this time thought that a woman's brain was not equipped to handle the rigors of composing music. Fortunately, her husband, a doctor, was not of this mindset and did encourage these pursuits. - Rebecca Sorley
Inez Kaiser (1918-2016) – A pioneer in the field of public relations, Kaiser grew up in Kansas in the 1930s and 40s. She became a teacher in Missouri, but her column, “Fashion-wise and Otherwise,” changed the course of her career when it was published in newspapers across the country. In 1957, she became the first African-American woman to head a public relations firm when she opened Inez Kaiser & Associates. It was also the first African-American owned business to open in Kansas City, Missouri. - Stephanie Mahin
Rosalind Franklin (1920-1958) - Her work on X-ray diffraction images of DNA led to the discovery of the DNA double helix for which James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1962. Watson later suggested that Franklin should have received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for her work. - Sandy Davis
Judith Lang Zaimont (1945-) - Zaimont edited The Musical Woman: An International Perspective highlighting careers of lesser-known woman composers. Her music has been performed around the world and she is one of the most prolific of American women composers alive today. - Rebecca Sorley
Ann Hunt is a chemist who worked at Eli Lilly for many years. She has made many contributions the community through her work with the local section of the American Chemical Society, and has contributed financially to our local museums. I see her name on plaques and I smile because I also know how truly genuine she is! - Ann Cutler
Sojourner Truth (1797-1883) – An African-American abolitionist and women’s rights activist, she was renowned for her speaking and singing abilities, including her famous “Ain’t I a Woman” speech delivered in 1851, at the Ohio Women's Rights Convention. Smithsonian magazine listed her among the “100 Most Significant Americans of All Time.” - Stephanie Wideman
Chen Yi (1953-) is a Chinese-American composer who left China in a cultural exchange to study at Columbia University. While enduring the Cultural Revolution in China, Chen Yi was forced to give up the study of violin and piano and work in the fields for a time. She secretly still practiced quietly to keep up her skills during this time. She is a Distinguished Professor at the University of Missouri -Kansas City and will be visiting UIndy later in March. - Rebecca Sorley
Michelle Obama (1964-) – The First Lady’s stirring speeches drew praise and recognition, including her famous first speech at the Democratic National Committee and her last major speech as First Lady. The Washington Post called her October 2016 speech a “master class” in authenticity. “With inclusive and personal stories, emotionally strong yet vulnerable tone and body language, and a passionate appeal rooted in her own experiences, Obama embodied the widely praised but rarely replicated feat of seeming ‘real’ that escapes so many leaders,” the Post wrote. - Stephanie Wideman