Astronaut Mae Jemison speaks at scientific society luncheon

ORLANDO, Fla., April 8 -- Dr. Mae Jemison, former astronaut and first black woman to travel in space, will speak at the Committee on Minority Affairs luncheon at the Peabody Hotel in Orlando on Monday, April 8, during the 223rd national meeting of the American Chemical Society. The luncheon concludes a day devoted to academic and career planning for minorities in the chemical sciences.

Dr. Jemison served as a National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut for six years. As the science mission specialist on the STS-7 Spacelab J flight, a US/Japan joint mission, she conducted experiments in life sciences, material sciences, and was a co-investigator of the Bone Cell Research experiment. Dr. Jemison resigned from NASA in March 1993. Prior to joining NASA in 1987, Dr. Jemison worked in engineering and medicine. She is now president of The Jemison Group, Inc., a professor of environmental studies at Dartmouth College, and Director of the Jemison Institute for Advancing Technology in Developing Countries. The Institute is currently working on S.E.E.ing the Future (Science, Engineering and Education), a project considering the role of public funding in science and technology research. Dr. Jemison also works on sustainable development through the Institute.

Born in Decatur, Ala., and raised in Chicago, Dr. Jemison entered Stanford University when she was 16. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering and fulfilled the requirements for an A.B. in African and Afro-American studies. Dr. Jemison earned her doctorate in medicine from Cornell University Medical College. She has numerous honors and awards, and lives in Houston, Texas.

WHAT:
Committee on Minority Affairs luncheon

WHEN:
Monday, April 8, 2002, 11:30 a.m. -- 1:30 p.m.

WHERE:
Peabody Hotel, Florida Ballroom I

WHO:
Dr. Mae Jemison

THIS IS A TICKETED EVENT. NEWS MEDIA MUST REGISTER WITH THE ACS PRESS OFFICE TO ATTEND.