Marjorie Lee Browne
Encyclopedia
Marjorie Lee Browne was a notable mathematics educator, the second African-American woman to receive a doctoral degree in the U.S., and one of the first black women to receive a doctorate in mathematics
in the U.S.
in 1914. Her mother died when she was only two years old, and she was raised by her stepmother and her father, Lawrence Johnson Lee. Her father, a railway postal clerk, was also a "math whiz" who shared his passion for mathematics
with his children. She attended LeMoyne High School, a private Methodist school started after the Civil War
to offer education for African-Americans.
She attended Howard University
, majoring in mathematics and graduating cum laude in 1935. After receiving her Bachelor's degree, she taught high school and college for a short term, including at Gilbert Academy in New Orleans.
She then applied to the University of Michigan
graduate program in mathematics. Michigan accepted African-Americans, which many US educational institutions did not at the time. After working full-time at the historically black
Wiley College
in Marshall, Texas
, and attending Michigan only during the summer, Browne's work was recognized and she earned a teaching fellowship at Michigan, attending full-time and completing her dissertation in 1949. Her dissertation, "Studies of One Parameter Subgroups of Certain Topological and Matrix Groups," was supervised by George Yuri Rainich
. She was one of the first two African-American women in the US to earn a doctorate in mathematics, along with Evelyn Boyd Granville
who also earned a Ph.D. in 1949.
Browne then joined the faculty at North Carolina College (now North Carolina Central University
(NCCU)), where she taught and researched for thirty years. She was also the head of the department for much of her time at NCCU, from 1951 to 1970.
Browne's work on classical groups demonstrated simple proofs of important topological properties of and relations between classical groups. Her work in general focused on linear
and matrix algebra
.
Browne saw the importance of computer science
early on, writing a $60,000 grant to IBM
to bring a computer to NCCU in 1960 -- one of the first computers in academic computing, and probably the first at a historically black school
.
Throughout her career, Browne worked to help gifted mathematics students, educating them and offering them financial support to pursue higher education. Notable students included Joseph Battle, William Fletcher, Asamoah Nkwanta, and Nathan Simms. She established summer institutes to provide continuing education
in mathematics for high school teachers.
Marjorie Lee Browne died of a heart attack in Durham, North Carolina
, on October 19, 1979.
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
in the U.S.
Biography
Browne was born in TennesseeTennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
in 1914. Her mother died when she was only two years old, and she was raised by her stepmother and her father, Lawrence Johnson Lee. Her father, a railway postal clerk, was also a "math whiz" who shared his passion for mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
with his children. She attended LeMoyne High School, a private Methodist school started after the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
to offer education for African-Americans.
She attended Howard University
Howard University
Howard University is a federally chartered, non-profit, private, coeducational, nonsectarian, historically black university located in Washington, D.C., United States...
, majoring in mathematics and graduating cum laude in 1935. After receiving her Bachelor's degree, she taught high school and college for a short term, including at Gilbert Academy in New Orleans.
She then applied to the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
graduate program in mathematics. Michigan accepted African-Americans, which many US educational institutions did not at the time. After working full-time at the historically black
Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Historically black colleges and universities are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before 1964 with the intention of serving the black community....
Wiley College
Wiley College
Wiley College is a four-year, private, historically black, liberal arts college located on the west side of Marshall, Texas. Founded in 1873 by the Methodist Episcopal Church's Bishop Isaac Wiley and certified in 1882 by the Freedman's Aid Society, it is notable as one of the oldest predominantly...
in Marshall, Texas
Marshall, Texas
Marshall is a city in Harrison County in the northeastern corner of Texas. Marshall is a major cultural and educational center in East Texas and the tri-state area. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Marshall was about 23,523...
, and attending Michigan only during the summer, Browne's work was recognized and she earned a teaching fellowship at Michigan, attending full-time and completing her dissertation in 1949. Her dissertation, "Studies of One Parameter Subgroups of Certain Topological and Matrix Groups," was supervised by George Yuri Rainich
George Yuri Rainich
George Yuri Rainich was a leading mathematical physicist in the early twentieth century.-Career:Rainich studied mathematics in Odessa and Munich, eventually obtaining his doctorate in 1913 from the University of Kazan...
. She was one of the first two African-American women in the US to earn a doctorate in mathematics, along with Evelyn Boyd Granville
Evelyn Boyd Granville
Evelyn Boyd Granville was the second African-American woman in the U.S. to receive a PhD in mathematics....
who also earned a Ph.D. in 1949.
Browne then joined the faculty at North Carolina College (now North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University
North Carolina Central University is a public historically black university in the University of North Carolina system, located in Durham, North Carolina, offering programs at the baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral levels....
(NCCU)), where she taught and researched for thirty years. She was also the head of the department for much of her time at NCCU, from 1951 to 1970.
Browne's work on classical groups demonstrated simple proofs of important topological properties of and relations between classical groups. Her work in general focused on linear
Linear algebra
Linear algebra is a branch of mathematics that studies vector spaces, also called linear spaces, along with linear functions that input one vector and output another. Such functions are called linear maps and can be represented by matrices if a basis is given. Thus matrix theory is often...
and matrix algebra
Matrix algebra
Matrix algebra may refer to:*Matrix theory, is the branch of mathematics that studies matrices*Matrix ring, thought of as an algebra over a field or a commutative ring...
.
Browne saw the importance of computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
early on, writing a $60,000 grant to IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
to bring a computer to NCCU in 1960 -- one of the first computers in academic computing, and probably the first at a historically black school
Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Historically black colleges and universities are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before 1964 with the intention of serving the black community....
.
Throughout her career, Browne worked to help gifted mathematics students, educating them and offering them financial support to pursue higher education. Notable students included Joseph Battle, William Fletcher, Asamoah Nkwanta, and Nathan Simms. She established summer institutes to provide continuing education
Continuing education
Continuing education is an all-encompassing term within a broad spectrum of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United States and Canada...
in mathematics for high school teachers.
Marjorie Lee Browne died of a heart attack in Durham, North Carolina
Durham, North Carolina
Durham is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the county seat of Durham County and also extends into Wake County. It is the fifth-largest city in the state, and the 85th-largest in the United States by population, with 228,330 residents as of the 2010 United States census...
, on October 19, 1979.
Mathematics education works
- Sets, Logic, and Mathematical Thought (1957)
- Introduction to Linear Algebra (1959)
- Elementary Matrix Algebra (1969)
- Algebraic Structures (1974)
Awards and honors
While discrimination against African-Americans and women was significant during Browne's early career, she was recognized for her achievements in education and mathematics.- Elected to Sigma Xi, 1948
- University of Michigan nominee, American Mathematical Society
- Ford Foundation fellowship to study combinatorial topologyCombinatorial topologyIn mathematics, combinatorial topology was an older name for algebraic topology, dating from the time when topological invariants of spaces were regarded as derived from combinatorial decompositions such as simplicial complexes...
at Cambridge University - National Science Foundation Faculty Fellow studying computing and numerical analysis at UCLA
- Fellowship to study differential topologyDifferential topologyIn mathematics, differential topology is the field dealing with differentiable functions on differentiable manifolds. It is closely related to differential geometry and together they make up the geometric theory of differentiable manifolds.- Description :...
at Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
, 1965-66 - First recipient of W. W. Rankin Memorial Award for Excellence in Mathematics Education, given by the North Carolina Council of Teachers in Mathematics, which lauded her for "helping to pave the way for integrated organizations".
- The University of Michigan established the Dr. Marjorie Lee Browne Colloquium in 2001.
- Marjorie Lee Browne Scholarship which offers full scholarships to students majoring in math at NCCU
External links
- "Marjorie Lee Browne", Biographies of Women Mathematicians, Agnes Scott CollegeAgnes Scott CollegeAgnes Scott College is a private undergraduate college in the United States. Agnes Scott's campus lies in downtown Decatur, Georgia, nestled inside the perimeter of the bustling metro-Atlanta area....