Patricia Brown (engineer) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Patricia Brown
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President of SWE from 1961-63
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| Born | October 1, 1928 Lafayette, Louisiana, U.S.
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| Nationality | American |
| Education | Southwestern Louisiana Institute |
| Occupation | Chemical engineer, Technical writer |
Patricia L. Brown (born October 1, 1928) was a pioneering American chemical engineer. She made history as the first woman to graduate with a chemical engineering degree from Southwestern Louisiana Institute. Patricia Brown also worked as a technical writer, helping to explain complex scientific information clearly.
Contents
Education and Early Career
Patricia Brown achieved a significant milestone in 1947. She became the first female chemical engineer to graduate from Southwestern Louisiana Institute. After this, she continued her studies. She earned her master's degree in chemistry from the University of Texas in 1949.
After her studies, Patricia Brown started her career by teaching chemistry at Smith College. She then worked as a research associate at Albany Medical College. Later, she joined Ethyl Corporation in Detroit. There, she began her journey as a specialist in technical information. This role involved making sure important technical details were easy to understand.
Contributions in Information Management
In 1955, Patricia Brown became a technical writer at Westinghouse. She worked in their Bettis Atomic Power Division. Two years later, in 1957, she became an Information Services Supervisor at Texas Instruments. She later left Texas Instruments to do research. Her research focused on how to store and retrieve information at Battelle Memorial Institute.
Patricia Brown continued her work in managing technical information. She worked at Baxter Laboratories in Illinois. She stayed in the field of information and research for the rest of her career. She retired from Stepan Company. Throughout her career, she developed many important skills. These included analyzing data, designing computer systems, writing reports, publishing information, and managing computer operations.
Besides her work with the Society of Women Engineers, Patricia Brown was also part of other important groups. These included the American Society for Information Science, the American Chemical Society, and the Society for Technical Communication.
"Today, most of the women who are graduating in engineering recognize that their engineering background may put them in a totally different area than actual hands-on engineering."
– Patricia Brown
Leading the Society of Women Engineers
Patricia Brown was a very active member of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) throughout her life. SWE is an organization that supports and encourages women in engineering. She helped start the Detroit section of SWE in 1952. She was also one of the first members of the South Ohio SWE section.
She played a crucial role in helping SWE during a difficult time in the late 1950s. This was when the organization had little money and fewer members. Patricia Brown served as the seventh president of SWE from 1961 to 1963. During her time as president, she worked with Lillian Moller Gilbreth. Together, they worked to help SWE achieve its goals and support women engineers.
As president, Patricia Brown once presented an honorary award to Marlene Schmidt. Marlene Schmidt was a German engineer who was also Miss Universe at the time. This happened due to a small misunderstanding. Patricia Brown also tried to get Grace Hopper to help SWE. However, Hopper did not believe in having a separate society just for women.
See also
- Society of Women Engineers
- American Society for Information Science
- American Chemical Society
- Society for Technical Communication
