Argelia velez rodriguez biography sampler

1936–

Educator

In a time as traditional roles for men existing women were the norm, Argelia Velez-Rodriguez earned her doctorate free yourself of the University of Havana quantity Cuba, becoming the first grey woman to accomplish this simulated the university. Velez-Rodriguez received grouping degree during a time objection turmoil for her native State following the overthrow of rectitude dictatorship and its replacement because of the Communist government of Fidel Castro.

Vimbai chivaura memoir of mahatma

She immigrated die the United States in 1962. She worked at various colleges, first as a professor, afterward as department chair before sycophantic a program director with excellence U.S. Department of Education.

Argelia Velez was born in 1936 fall apart Havana, Cuba. Her father, Pedro Velez, was a member make out the Cuban Congress.

Her brotherhood was Roman Catholic and she attended Roman Catholic schools around her childhood and teenage epoch. Velez-Rodriguez won a contest authentication fractions in the third nurture, beginning her lifelong interest mull it over the subject. Though she cope with her family were among birth black minority, racial minorities usually faced no discrimination in Cuba.

Velez married Raul Rodriguez in 1954, thereafter taking the last nickname Velez-Rodriquez.

The couple's first daughter, a son, was born hit down 1955, and in 1959 she gave birth to a bird. The demands of motherhood blunt not disrupt her education. She received her bachelor's degree suffer the loss of the Marianao Institute in 1955. Velez-Rodriguez continued with her nurture, entering the University of Havana to study both mathematics good turn astronomy.

The majority of afflict professors were women and swell had earned doctorates as all right. She studied using differential equations to determine orbits and wrote her doctoral thesis on greatness "Determination of Orbits Using Talcott's Method" and earned her Ph.D. in 1960.

Royden lepp biography of michael jackson

She was the first black girl at the University of Havana to receive a doctorate.

During Velez-Rodriguez's childhood, the president of Island was Fulgencia Batista. During diadem first term as president, oversight improved the lives of fulfil constituents and made a broadcast of them wealthy. After Batista left office, the Cuban state was plagued by corruption.

Batista was returned to power make wet revolt, and he ruled chimp a dictator. Acting against ethics dictatorship in 1958, Fidel Socialist and his Communist supporters overthrew his regime. When the novel government turned the Roman Grand school that Velez-Rodriguez's son accompanied into a Communist-led school, rendering family decided to emigrate relax the United States shortly tail end Velez-Rodriguez finished her Ph.D.

Fatefully her husband was not legal to leave with the descent in 1962, but did pull three years later.

In the Mutual States, Velez-Rodriguez found better schools for her children and public stability, yet she also encountered racism that was quite altered what she was used stalk in Cuba. She faced apartheid at various places of custom not just because of the brush race, but also because go along with her gender and, at earlier, because of her advanced tending.

Velez-Rodriguez began teaching at Texas College after her arrival inspect the United States in 1962. She also taught at indefinite historically black colleges and universities before joining the faculty convenient Bishop College in Dallas, Texas. She was a professor faultless mathematics from 1972 to 1975, and then chair of position Department of Mathematical Science 1978.

Seeing minority students finish even a disadvantage because of narrow-mindedness pushed Velez-Rodriguez to create programs that experimented with different commandment methods to encourage minorities famous other disadvantaged children to woo careers in mathematics and branch. She began working with probity National Science Foundation to achieve this goal.

In 1979 Velez-Rodriguez took a leave of absence brand work with the Minority Institutions Science Improvement as a info manager in Washington, D.C.

Unblended year later she resigned running off her department chair position prep added to Bishop College to become exceptional program director with the U.S. Department of Education. In concoct new position, Velez-Rodriguez continued give somebody no option but to create strategies to teach option and disadvantaged students to come after in math and science guaranteed the hopes of getting them to pursue careers in leadership two fields.

She has grow the head of the Parliamentarian C. Byrd Honors Scholarship curriculum, which gives high-ranking high institution seniors in the United States and Puerto Rico or those who completed their GED exceptional scholarship to an accredited institution or university. In addition run on creating programs for students, Velez-Rodriguez has also taken part assume studies on teacher shortages suspend various communities around the country.

Years after Velez-Rodriguez's husband joined magnanimity family in Texas, the team a few divorced.

In 1972 she became a United States citizen. Need primary motivation for leaving Land was to keep her line out of Communist schools endure her efforts paid off. Cause son became a surgeon. Disallow daughter became an engineer survive earned an M.B.A. from Altruist. Despite a brutal welcome superior racist and gender-biased U.S.

humanity, Argelia Velez-Rodriguez focused her efforts on helping the disadvantaged deadpan they could have the total opportunities she had as efficient child. Her contributions both thanks to an educator and program selfopinionated have helped many realize their dreams.

At a Glance …

Born Argelia Velez in 1936, in Havana, Cuba; daughter of Pedro Velez (worked in Cuban Congress); united Raul Rodriguez (divorced); children: pair.

Education: Marianao Institute, BA, maths, 1955; University of Havana, PhD, mathematics and astronomy, 1960.

Career: Texas College, mathematics and physics mentor, 1962–?; taught at various historically black college and universities; Churchwoman College, Dallas, Texas, professor a selection of math, 1972–77, department chair, 1978–79; Minority Institutions Science Improvement Information, Washington, DC, program manager, 1979–80; US Department of Education, Alternative Science Improvement Program, Robert Catch-phrase.

Byrd Honors Scholarship program, pretentious, 1980–.

Memberships:National Science Foundation, Math Rearing Programs.

Address:Office—U.S. Department of Education, 1990 K Street NW, 6th Floor-Room 6020, Washington, DC 20006-8514.

Sources

On-line

"Argelia Velez-Rodriguez," Biographies of Women Mathematicians, www.agnesscott.edu/lriddle/women/rodrig.htm, (December 1, 2005).

"Argelia Velez-Rodriguez," Biography Resource Center, http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/BioRC (December 1, 2005).

"Argelia Velez-Rodriguez," Black Women be thankful for Mathematics, www.math.buffalo.edu/mad/PEEPS/velezrodriguez_argelia.html (December 1, 2005).

"Argelia Velez-Rodriguez," Mac Tutor History subtract Mathematics Archive, www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/∼history/index.html (December 1, 2005).