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, »V *.■ . w i';iUWA-’AaFirst black woman in space wastes no time in achievingby CHARLES A. PETERSON Sentinel EditorThere are 86,400 seconds in each day. As far as Dr. Mae Jemison is concerned, they’re all precious.“We can do exactly with those seconds what we want to,” said the first African American female astronaut to members of Denison University’s freshman class.Jemison’s goal is simple. “1 want to feel connected in this world. I want to know that it made a difference that I was here.”The occasion last Wednesday night was the university’s first convocation of the year, bearing the freshman theme, “Jump at the Sun, encouraging students to take risks and to try challenging things, said Laurel Kennedy, dean of first-year students.Jemison, who became a medical doctor after considering careers in dancing and studio arts, said in an interview that her biggest risk in life was taking her first baby step.From there it was a whirlwind of experimenting with both the arts and sciences. But, at her mother’s urging, when it was time to decide between a career in dance or in medicine, she chose the latter.Jemison obtained her medical degree at Cornell University in 1981, and now serves as director of the Jemison Institute forAdvancing Technology inDeveloping Countries.Dr. Mae Jemison, the world’s first African American female astronaut, sits among the works of art submitted by Denison University freshmen for the “Open Skies” exhibit. (Photo by Charles A. Peterson)Her multi-dimensional, dizzying success was an inspiration to some of her listeners.“I was veiy inspired,” said freshman DeVon McRavion of New York. “With my youth being very rough, she gave me a (reason) to still be strong. She made me want to go out and do all I can without any limits.s“Talking to her personally made me realize that, yes, I can do it,” said DU freshman Sameer Baral of Nepal, who wants a career as an astronaut.Deniece Williams of Columbus, a student at Capital University, was attracted to Granville by Jemison’s “stature, finding that the stories she told brought life to her talk.Jemison, who joined thecrew on the shuttle Endeavor, where she conducted experiments in life and material sciences, did not intend to be the first black female astronaut.“I always assumed I'd go into space,” she said. “I thought, by now, we’d be going into space like you were going to work.Growing up during the turbulent sixties, Jemison remembers the decade not for its anarchy, but for the belief that everyone could participate. That made her want to be part of the “world of explosive new ideas.”“I thought, by now, we’d be going into space like you were going to work.”- Dr. Mae JemisonJemison, who also chairs an international science camp for teenagers, hopes that she isn’t considered special for veiy long, although since her foray into space, no black woman has followed her, even though there are three such astronauts in training.Jemison’s hope is that people’s images give way to recognition of their skills, allowing them to excel.“We can’t afford the talent base in this country not to be utilized, she said. “It's the right thing that we have people involved.”At the same time, Jemison decided she didn’t need to be an astronaut forever, and urged her youthful audience to be willing to make changes.“People asked me, ‘What can you possibly do to top being a NASA astronaut?’” That’s when she started her business, BioSentient Corp., which investigates applications of new technologies in health and human performance.“Each of us has choices in this world. What we choose makes a difference, Jemison said.
Newspaper Details
Granville Sentinel
Granville, Ohio, US
Thu, Sep 09, 2004
Page 11
Full Page
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CA, USA 30 Jun 2019
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