Evelyn J. Fields facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Evelyn Fields
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Fields
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| Birth name | Evelyn Juanita Fields |
| Born | January 29, 1949 Norfolk, Virginia, U.S. |
| Allegiance |  United States |
| Service/ |
 NOAA |
| Years of service | 1972–2003 |
| Rank | Rear admiral |
| Unit | NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps |
| Commands held | Director of the Office of the NOAA Corps Operations Director of the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps (1999–2003) |
| Awards | Department of Commerce Gold Medal |
| Alma mater | Norfolk State University (BS) |
Evelyn J. Fields (born in 1949) is a retired Rear Admiral from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps. She led the NOAA Corps and NOAA's Office of Marine and Aviation Operations from 1999 until she retired in 2003. Fields was the first woman and the first African American to lead the NOAA Corps.
Earlier in her career, in 1989, Fields took command of the research ship NOAAS McArthur. This made her the first woman and first African American to command a NOAA ship. She was also the first woman to command a ship in the United States uniformed services for a long period.
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Early Life and School
Evelyn Juanita Fields was born in Norfolk, Virginia, on January 29, 1949. She was the oldest of five children. Her dad worked at the Naval Shipyard, and her mom was a teacher. Evelyn went to Liberty Park Elementary School. She said her fourth and fifth-grade teacher made her interested in math and science. She then went to Booker T. Washington High School. In 1971, Fields graduated from Norfolk State University with a degree in mathematics. She was one of only a few women studying math in her first year.
A Career in Science and the Sea
Joining NOAA
Fields started working for NOAA in 1972. She was a civilian cartographer (mapmaker) in Norfolk, Virginia. At that time, women were not allowed on NOAA's ships. However, she did help with research on land to collect data.
Less than a year later, NOAA Corps Director Rear Admiral Harley Nygren began asking women to join as officers for the first time. Fields became an ensign in the NOAA Corps in 1973. She was the first African-American woman to join the Corps. She then went to the Armed Forces Staff College to study hydrography, which is the science of mapping water areas.
Leading Ships and Teams
Fields worked as an operations officer on the NOAA Ships Mount Mitchell and Peirce. She was also an executive officer on the survey ship NOAA Ship Rainier.
In January 1989, Fields was chosen to be the commanding officer of the NOAA ship McArthur. This ship was used for ocean and fisheries research and was based in Seattle, Washington. Fields became the first female officer and the first African-American to command a NOAA ship. She was also the first woman to command a ship for a long time (18 months) in any of the U.S. uniformed services.
In July 1990, Fields joined a special program with the U.S. Department of Commerce. She spent 10 months working in a government office that made important decisions.
Her knowledge of hydrography helped prepare nautical charts for the U.S. Navy. These charts were used during the 1991 Gulf War.
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In 1995, Fields became the Director of the Commissioned Personnel Center (CPC). This center manages all parts of the NOAA Corps officers' system. At this time, she was a captain. She had to reduce the office staff by half and the NOAA Corps itself.
In 1997, Fields became the acting deputy director of NOAA's National Ocean Service. Here, she made the process of creating nautical charts much better. By using new technology, Fields doubled how fast charts were made. She also cut the time to update a chart from 47 weeks to just 4 weeks!
Becoming a Rear Admiral
On January 19, 1999, U.S. President Bill Clinton nominated her to be the director of the NOAA Commissioned Corps and NOAA Corps Operations. The Senate confirmed her on May 6, 1999. She was then promoted from captain to rear admiral. Fields was the first woman and the first African American to hold this important position.
In her roles as director of the NOAA Corps and the Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, she was in charge of NOAA's fleet of 15 research ships, 14 aircraft, and over 700 NOAA Corps officers and civilians.
During her 25 years of service, Rear Admiral Fields worked in many different roles, both on land and at sea. Most of her assignments were about making nautical charts. She worked in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, including the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, and Alaskan waters. Her experience at sea included surveying water depths, researching fish, and studying the ocean.
She was also the second U.S. Hydrographer to exchange places with the Canadian Hydrographic Service. She spent three months on Canadian ships, working in Newfoundland and the Canadian Arctic. After this program, she checked if the survey data from NOAA's Atlantic Marine Center was complete and ready to be used.
Later, as an assignment coordinator, she helped NOAA programs and officers with their assignments. Rear Admiral Fields retired on December 1, 2003.
Awards and Honors
- 1996 – Named one of the top 50 minority women in science and engineering by the National Technical Association.
- 1999 – Received the Ralph M. Metcalfe Health, Education and Science Award from the Congressional Black Caucus.
- 1999 – Named Woman of the Year by the Maryland Federation of Business and Professional Women's Clubs.
- 2000 – Awarded the Department of Commerce Gold Medal for Leadership. This was for her amazing work for NOAA's mission.
- 2000 – The Virginia State Legislature honored Rear Admiral Evelyn J. Fields with Senate Joint Resolution No. 15. They praised her "exceptionally distinguished career" with the NOAA Corps.
Personal Life
Fields is a member of the Zeta Phi Beta sorority. She enjoys reading, aerobics, and gardening in her free time.
See also
- NOAA Corps
