Marjorie Lee Browne

Marjorie Lee Browne

Born: September 9th, 1914
Died: October 19th, 1979

Famous For: Marjorie is famous for many things, including being one of the first Black women in the United States to earn a Ph.D. She was also one of the first women to obtain a Masters Degree in mathematics from the University of Michigan. Marjorie wrote a thesis called On the One Parameter Subgroups in Certain Topological and Matrix Groups, and taught math at North Carolina College. In the summer Marjorie wrote sets of notes to be used by secondary school teachers for Math, and because of her work she as the first person to ever win the ‘W W Rankin Memorial Award for Excellence in Mathematics Education’, given to her by the North Carolina Council of Teachers.

Challenges Faced: Not only was Marjorie a woman trying to achieve great things during a time when women weren’t thought of as highly as men, she was also African-American in a time that prejudiced against any African-Americans, especially women. Her dad and step-mom had to keep encouraging her to study mathematics and to study to the best of her ability. Also, during the time when Marjorie would go to university, the Great Depression hit. Luckily, Marjorie could afford tuition at Howard University by loans, jobs, and scholarships.

Interesting Facts:
- Marjorie’s mother passed away when Marjorie was two, so she was raised by her dad and step-mom that were both “math whizzes”
- For 25 years while Marjorie worked at the North Carolina College she was the only faculty member in her department to have obtained a Ph. D.
- Marjorie used her money to support students by paying for a $60,000 computer for her school.
- Marjorie also helped students in the later years of her life by giving money to gifted math students to pay for their education.
- Marjorie helped whoever came to her to earn their Ph. D. and follow in her footsteps.