June Bacon-Bercey facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
June Bacon-Bercey
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June Bacon-Bercey, c. 1977
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June Esther Griffin
October 23, 1928 Wichita, Kansas, U.S.
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| Died | July 3, 2019 (aged 90) Burlingame, California, U.S.
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| Children | 2 |
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June Esther Bacon-Bercey (born October 23, 1928 – died July 3, 2019) was an American expert in weather and aviation. She worked for important organizations like the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the National Weather Service.
June Bacon-Bercey was a pioneer. She was the first African-American woman to get a degree in meteorology (the study of weather). She was also the first female TV meteorologist in the U.S. who was trained in this field.
Early Life and Education
June Bacon-Bercey was born in Wichita, Kansas, in 1928. Her father was a lawyer and her mother was a music teacher. When she was young, her father passed away. Her mother later moved to Florida, so June was raised by her aunt and uncle.
June enjoyed riding her bike, hiking, playing the piano, and being part of the Girl Scouts. A high school physics teacher noticed her interest in how water moves and floats. This teacher encouraged her to study meteorology.
She first went to a college near her home to study math. After two years, she left Friends University to pursue a degree in meteorology. In 1954, she earned her bachelor's degree from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). At that time, UCLA was one of the few schools offering a four-year degree in atmospheric science.
It wasn't easy for her to study meteorology. In a 1977 interview, she said her advisor suggested she study home economics instead. But June got a "D" in home economics and an "A" in thermodynamics (a science about heat and energy). She became the first African-American woman to earn a meteorology degree from UCLA.
Later, in 1979, she earned a master's degree from the Journalism School of the University of Southern California. At age 59, she became a substitute teacher for math and science. She taught elementary and high school students until she was in her 80s.
Career Highlights
After graduating, June Bacon-Bercey moved to Washington D.C. She worked as a weather analyst and forecaster for the National Meteorological Center. This center is now part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Weather Service.
She also worked as an engineer for the Sperry Corporation. Then, she joined federal organizations like the United States Atomic Energy Commission. In 1959, she became a senior adviser at the Atomic Energy Commission. She wanted to understand how hydrogen and atomic bombs affected Earth's atmosphere. In this role, she studied how nuclear fallout spread.
In the 1960s, Bacon-Bercey returned to NOAA in New York City. She worked there as a radar meteorologist.
In 1971, she became a news reporter for WGR-TV. She covered important events like the Attica Prison riot. In 1972, she became the station's on-air meteorologist. She quickly became the main meteorologist for the station.
Starting in 1979, June Bacon-Bercey spent almost ten years at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). She was the chief administrator for Television Weather Activities. She also worked on many other projects.
June Bacon-Bercey cared deeply about helping more African-American women join meteorology. In 1978, she wrote an analysis about African-American meteorologists in the U.S. She won $64,000 on a TV show called The $128,000 Question in 1977. She used this money to start a scholarship fund for young women. This fund helped women who wanted to study atmospheric sciences. The American Geophysical Union (AGU) managed this scholarship. From 1978 to 1990, 13 women received money from the June Bacon-Bercey Scholarship. This scholarship is starting again in 2021.
Bacon-Bercey was part of the AGU's Committee on Women and Minorities in Atmospheric Sciences. She also helped create the American Meteorological Society's Board on Women and Minorities. She served on the board of directors for the National Consortium for Black Professional Development.
In 2006, June Bacon-Bercey was featured in a book for young people. It was called June Bacon-Bercey: a meteorologist talks about the weather.
Honors and Recognition
June Bacon-Bercey was the first woman and the first African-American to receive the American Meteorological Society's Seal of Approval. This award is given for excellent television weathercasting. She earned it while working at WGR in Buffalo, New York in the 1970s.
In 2000, she was honored at a three-day conference at Howard University. She was recognized for her many contributions. These included helping to create a meteorology lab at Jackson State University in Mississippi. She was also honored for her scholarship fund and her work in California's public schools. NASA also named June Bacon-Bercey a Minority Pioneer for Achievement in Atmospheric Sciences.
Personal Life
June Bacon-Bercey was married three times. She had two daughters.
She passed away on July 3, 2019, at the age of 90. She died in Burlingame, California. Her death was announced six months later.
See also
In Spanish: June Bacon-Bercey para niños
