Euphemia Haynes
Euphemia Haynes was an American mathematician and educator who became the first African American woman to earn a doctorate in mathematics, in 1943.
Martha Euphemia Lofton Haynes: Martha Euphemia Lofton Haynes was an American mathematician and educator who earned a mathematics doctorate in 1943. This is Haynes’s full name, as used in biographical records.
Columbia University: Columbia University is a private research university in New York City. Haynes earned a master’s degree in mathematics there before pursuing her doctorate.
District of Columbia Public Schools: District of Columbia Public Schools is the public school system serving Washington, D.C. Haynes taught and held administrative roles in the city’s school system.
Black women in STEM: Black women in STEM are researchers and professionals of African descent working in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Haynes’s achievement is an early landmark in this broader history.
Benjamin O. Davis Sr.: Benjamin O. Davis Sr. was the first African American general in the United States Army. Haynes’s husband was a career military officer and the father of their daughter.
University of Chicago: The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Haynes studied education there, adding graduate training to her mathematics work.
Segregation in the United States: Segregation in the United States was the enforced separation of people by race in public and private life. Haynes challenged inequities in education during an era of racially segregated institutions.
Women in mathematics: Women in mathematics are contributors to mathematical research, teaching, and practice across history. Her doctorate belongs to a longer history of women gaining access to advanced mathematics.
Howard University: Howard University is a historically Black university in Washington, D.C. Haynes earned her undergraduate degree there and later taught mathematics.
Mathematics education: Mathematics education is the study and practice of teaching and learning mathematics. Her career combined mathematical scholarship with classroom teaching and school administration.