Trachette Jackson facts for kids

Trachette Jackson is an American mathematician. She was born on July 24, 1972. She is a professor at the University of Michigan. Dr. Jackson uses math to study cancer. This field is called mathematical oncology. She uses different math tools to understand how tumors grow. She also studies how treatments work. Her research looks at how blood vessels grow in tumors. She also studies how different cells in a tumor interact. This helps scientists find better ways to fight cancer.

Becoming a Math Expert

Trachette Jackson's parents were in the military. This meant her family moved often when she was a child. As a teenager, she lived in Mesa, Arizona. There, she took a summer math class called calculus. Her amazing math skills were noticed by a professor. His name was Joaquín Bustoz, Jr. He taught math at Arizona State University.

She started college at Arizona State University. At first, she wanted to study engineering. But Professor Bustoz encouraged her to focus on mathematics. Her interest in pure math grew. She then became interested in mathematical biology. This happened after she heard a talk by James D. Murray. He talked about how math can explain patterns in nature. For example, he explained "how the leopard got its spots."

Trachette Jackson finished her first degree in 1994. She then earned her master's degree in 1996. She got her PhD in 1998. Both of these advanced degrees were from the University of Washington.

After her studies, she did more research. She worked at the University of Minnesota. She also worked for the Environmental Protection Agency. Later, she worked at Duke University. In 2000, she joined the faculty at the University of Michigan. She became a full professor there in 2008.

Awards and Special Honors

Dr. Jackson has received many awards for her important work. In 2003, she won a Sloan Research Fellowship. She was only the second African-American woman to get this math award. The first was Kathleen Adebola Okikiolu.

In 2005, she won a James S. McDonnell 21st Century Scientist Grant. She also won the Blackwell-Tapia Prize in 2010. This prize honors mathematicians who help minority groups in math. In 2017, she became a fellow of the Association for Women in Mathematics. She was part of the very first group to receive this honor.

Her work was also recognized by Mathematically Gifted & Black. They honored her during Black History Month in 2017. In 2021, she was named a SIAM Fellow. This honor was for her new ideas in using math to study cancer. It was also for helping more minority students get into science.

Also in 2021, she received a special professorship. It was called the University Diversity and Social Transformation Professorship. The University of Michigan gave her this award. It recognized her strong efforts. She helps girls, women, and minority students succeed in STEM. She does this through her teaching and leadership.