Argelia Velez-Rodriguez facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Argelia Velez-Rodriguez
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| Born | 1936 (age 88–89) Havana, Cuba
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| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | Marianao Institute University of Havana |
| Thesis | Determination of Orbits Using Talcott's Method (1960) |
| Academic work | |
| Institutions | Bishop College Minority Institutions Science Improvement Program |
Argelia Velez-Rodriguez was born in 1936. She is a Cuban-American mathematician and a dedicated educator. She made history by becoming the first Black woman to earn a doctorate degree in mathematics in Cuba.
Early Life and Education
Argelia Velez-Rodriguez grew up in Havana, Cuba. Her father worked for the Cuban government. At that time, Cuba's leader, Fulgencio Batista, worked to improve the country's education system.
Her family was Catholic, so Argelia attended Catholic schools for her primary and secondary education. Even at a young age, her teachers noticed her strong interest in mathematics. She even won a math competition when she was just nine years old!
College and Advanced Studies
Argelia Velez-Rodriguez earned her first college degree, a bachelor's degree, from the Marianao Institute in 1955. She then continued her studies at the University of Havana. There, she worked towards her Ph.D., which is a very high-level degree called a doctorate.
Her teachers at these universities were all women who had also earned doctorates in mathematics. Argelia became the first Black woman to achieve a doctorate in Cuba when she completed her studies in 1960. She later shared that she did not experience racial discrimination in Cuba. She only faced it in places that were owned or controlled by the United States.
For her doctorate, Argelia studied complex math topics like differential equations. She also studied how these equations could be used to understand astronomical orbits, which are the paths planets and stars follow. Her main research project was called "Determination of Orbits Using Talcott's Method."
Career in the United States
In 1962, Argelia Velez-Rodriguez moved to the United States with her son and daughter. Her husband joined them three years later.
Her first teaching job in the United States was at Texas College in 1962. She taught both mathematics and physics there. By 1972, she became a professor at Bishop College in Texas. From 1975 to 1978, she led the mathematics department at Bishop College.
In 1979, she left Bishop College to work for the National Science Foundation. She joined a program called the Minority Science Improvement Program. The next year, in 1980, the U.S. Department of Education hired her to direct this important program.
See also
In Spanish: Argelia Velez-Rodriguez para niños
