This featured figure story was written by Amaris-Anna Elliott, a Monroe Science Center Teen Volunteer participant.
The Monroe Science Center would like to honor Dr. Willie Hobbs Moore, the first African American woman to earn a PhD in Physics. She earned her degrees at the University of Michigan College of Engineering, finishing her education in 1972 and blazing the way for others with the same dream.
Dr. Willie Hobbs Moore was born on May 23, 1934, in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Growing up, she had a brilliant mind and excelled in complicated STEM subjects. Her guidance counselors encouraged her to pursue a degree in engineering, later leading her and her sisters to become first-generation college graduates. Dr. Moore went to the University of Michigan in 1954, the same year that the five-year case of Brown vs. Board of Education began to abolish segregation in public educational institutions. She graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering in 1958 and, in 1961, her Master of Science in Electrical Engineering.
After earning her Master’s degree, Dr. Moore began her engineering career at the Bendix Aerospace Systems Division as a junior engineer. There, she calculated and wrote proposals on electromagnetic radiation that emits light from plasma, a state of matter in which gas’s energy causes atoms to ionize. She also got a job at Barnes Engineering Company, where she made comparisons to the infrared radiation emitted from space reentry vehicle wakes, which are the trails of air that a spacecraft makes when it reenters Earth’s atmosphere. After working in the industry for a while, Dr. Moore returned to the University of Michigan to earn a PhD in physics. In 1972, Willie Hobbs Moore became the first African American Woman to earn a PhD in physics after Edward Alexander Bouchet, the first African American to earn a PhD from an American university in 1876. He was also a physicist and educator like his fellow successor.
After graduating, Dr. Willie Hobbs Moore worked as a lecturer and researcher at the University of Michigan, where she studied the spectroscopy of proteins, the absorption and emission of light and radiation from matter, with Professor Samuel Krimm until 1977. Later that year, she became an engineer and executive at Ford Motors. She assisted in implementing Japanese manufacturing and engineering methods to provide a more efficient production process. Ebony Magazine later recognized her as one of the top 100 most promising Black women in 1991.
After a life of inspiration, success, and a drive to improve STEM education for underrepresented minorities, Dr. Willie Hobbs Moore passed away on March 14, 1994. She inspired many in the field through her achievements and impact on the engineering industry and the Black community. In 2013, the Office of Women in Science and Engineering at Michigan University established the Willie Hobbs Moore: Aspire, Advance, Achieve Award to recognize the inspirational and significant achievements of individuals who faced challenges in pursuit of their education and career. Dr. Willie Hobbs Moore's legacy highlights the importance of education and leadership in inspiring change and motivating success.