Fatimah Jackson facts for kids

Fatimah Linda Collier Jackson is an American scientist who studies both biology and anthropology. She is a professor of biology at Howard University. She also leads the Cobb Research Laboratory there.

Early Life and School

Growing Up in Colorado

Fatimah Jackson was born and grew up in Denver, Colorado. Her mother was from Cambridge, Massachusetts. Fatimah's father was a mechanic. He passed away when she was six years old. One of her great-grandmothers was from the Choctaw people. She was also an herbalist, someone who uses plants for medicine. Fatimah went to schools that were mostly attended by African-American students.

College and Beyond

After high school, Fatimah first went to the University of Colorado. Later, she moved to Cornell University. There, she earned three degrees: a bachelor's, a master's, and a Ph.D. She studied human biology. She and her husband, Robert Jackson, spent many years doing research in Africa.

In 1974, while in Tanzania, Fatimah got very sick with malaria. She almost died and was temporarily blind. This tough experience made her want to study malaria for the rest of her career.

Her Amazing Career

Teaching at Universities

In 1981, Dr. Jackson became an assistant professor at the University of California, Berkeley. She worked in their Anthropology Department. In 1986, she moved to the University of Florida as an associate professor.

She taught at the University of Maryland for 20 years. She was a professor of applied biological anthropology there. In 1995, she received an award for being a "Distinguished Scholar Teacher."

Leading Research Labs

From 2009 to 2013, Dr. Jackson was a professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC). She also directed biological anthropology studies there. She led UNC's Institute of African American Research from 2009 to 2011.

Since 2013, she has been a biology professor at Howard University. She also directs the W. Montague Cobb Research Laboratory. She has appeared on TV shows like PBS's African American Lives and Nova. She was also on the BBC's Motherland. These shows featured her research on people of African descent.

Her Important Research

Studying Human Genetics

Dr. Jackson is an expert in how humans and plants have changed together over time. She also studies human genetics, especially for people of African descent. She looks at how human populations are structured. For example, she studies how genetic changes happen because people move to new places. She also researches how plant chemicals affect human metabolism.

She has also studied how genes and the environment work together in long-term diseases. She created a special computer tool called "ethnogenetic layering." This tool helps find small human ethnic groups. It also helps understand how different groups affect health differences.

The Power of Cassava

A big part of her research focuses on cassava. Cassava is a starchy root, much like a potato. Dr. Jackson's studies show that people in Liberia, West Africa, who eat a lot of cassava are protected from certain illnesses. They have lower rates of sickle cell anemia. They are also less likely to get malaria compared to those who eat less cassava.

The Cobb Research Lab

Dr. Jackson leads the Cobb Research Laboratory at Howard University. Here, she studies the biological history of African Americans. The lab has the world's largest collection of African-American skeletal and dental remains. This allows for very important research.

She has published her work in many science journals. These include Human Biology and American Journal of Human Biology. In 2008, she wrote a paper about using ethnogenetic layering (EL). This method helps understand health differences among small ethnic groups. It uses computer maps to create profiles of different areas. These profiles help explain disease risks. They include information about history, genetics, culture, and specific disease risks like diet.

Awards and Honors

Recognizing Her Work

In 2009, Dr. Jackson won the Nick Norgan Award. This was for the best article published in Annals of Human Biology. In 2012, she was the first person to receive the Ernest E. Just Prize. This award is for medical and public health research.

In 2017, Howard University named her the STEM Woman Researcher of the Year. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math. That same year, she also received an Outstanding Service Award from Howard University's Biology Department.

A Lifetime of Achievement

In 2020, Dr. Jackson received the Charles R. Darwin Lifetime Achievement Award. This award came from the American Association of Physical Anthropologists. She is the first African-American woman to ever receive this high honor. She has also been a Fulbright Senior Fellow. This is a special award that allows scholars to travel and teach or do research in other countries.

Personal Life

Dr. Jackson is an observant Muslim. She became Muslim when she was in graduate school at Cornell University.

She married Robert Jackson when she was 19 years old. He is now a professor of nutrition. They met after she transferred to Cornell University. They have six children.