Margaret Tolbert facts for kids

Margaret Ellen Mayo Tolbert (born November 24, 1943) is a brilliant biochemist. She has worked as a professor and director at Tuskegee University. She was also an administrative chemist at British Petroleum.

From 1996 to 2002, she led the New Brunswick Laboratory. She was the first African American and the first woman to be in charge of a Department of Energy lab.

Early Life and School Days

Margaret Ellen Mayo was born in Suffolk, Virginia. Her parents were Jessie Clifford and Martha Taylor Artis Mayo. Margaret's mother passed away when she was very young. Her father died a few years later.

Margaret and her five brothers and sisters were raised by their grandmother. Later, her older sister, Audrey Mae, took care of them. The family faced money problems, but they stayed together. Their city was also very segregated. This meant different areas for people of color, like separate entrances in stores.

Margaret went to Ida V. Easter Graded School. Then she attended East Suffolk Junior High. She walked two miles to school every day. Even with this, she was always the best student in her class.

Her hard work continued in high school. She worked as a maid to help her family. At the same time, she took advanced classes. A kind African-American couple she worked for, Mr. and Mrs. S. A. Cook, supported her. They encouraged her to go to university. In 1963, Margaret graduated from East Suffolk High School. She was the top student and the valedictorian of her class.

University Studies and Research

Margaret went to Tuskegee Institute because she received financial help. The Cook family drove her to Alabama. They also introduced her to friends there. At that time, Tuskegee was active in the civil rights movement.

At Tuskegee, Margaret studied chemistry. She also took many math classes. She worked as a research assistant. She learned from professors C. J. Smith and L. F. Koons. Margaret also did summer research at other places. These included Central State College and Argonne National Laboratory (ANL).

At Tuskegee, she studied how well chemicals in water could conduct electricity. At ANL, she researched uranium. She learned about its electrical resistance and how it combined with other chemicals. Margaret earned her bachelor's degree in 1967. She also got married and had a son.

She then earned her master's degree in analytical chemistry. This was from Wayne State University in 1968. She returned to Tuskegee for a short time. There, she taught math and oversaw chemistry projects.

Later, she went to Brown University. She finished her doctorate degree in biochemistry in 1974. Her research focused on how cells communicate, called signal transduction, in rat liver cells. While at Brown, she married her second husband, Henry Hudson Tolbert.

Her research at Brown was very important. It showed that cells could react quickly to signals. These reactions didn't always involve making new RNA or proteins. This was a new idea at the time. Margaret also taught science and math while studying.

A Career in Science Leadership

After getting her doctorate, Margaret went back to Tuskegee. She was a professor and researcher in the chemistry department. She continued her liver cell research. She also taught at Florida A&M University for two years.

In 1979, Tolbert returned to Tuskegee again. She became the first female director of The Carver Research Foundation. She was also a provost, a high-ranking university official. She held these important jobs for eight years. She also kept studying how medicines affect the human liver.

Margaret also did research at other famous places. These included Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the University of Texas Medical School.

In 1987, Tolbert joined British Petroleum. She helped plan the merger of BP and Standard Oil of Ohio. She also worked as a consultant for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. There, she helped create international research programs.

Later, Tolbert became a division director at the Argonne National Laboratory. In 1996, she took on an even bigger role. She became the director of the New Brunswick Laboratory. This was a huge achievement. She was the first African American and the first woman to lead a Department of Energy lab.

As director, she worked on important projects. These included preventing the spread of nuclear materials. She also helped make sure nuclear measurements were accurate worldwide. She led the New Brunswick Laboratory until 2002. She also served on committees for the President about education and technology.

In 2002, Tolbert became a Senior Advisor at the National Science Foundation (NSF). She worked to help more people get involved in science and engineering. This included women, minorities, and people with disabilities. She retired from the NSF in 2011.

Awards and Recognition

Margaret Tolbert has received many awards. In 1998, she became a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). She is also part of other important science groups. These include the American Association of University Women (AAUW) and the American Chemical Society (ACS). She is also a member of the Organization of Black Scientists.

Her Life Story

In 2015, Margaret Tolbert wrote a book about her life. It is called Resilience in the Face of Adversity: A Suffolkian’s Life Story.