"In his brief but brilliant career, McNair proved that neither poverty nor discrimination can defeat a determined individual."
-NASA
Ronald E. McNair was born to a struggling African American family in 1950. As a child, he refused to be second best at anything and not only succeeded at whatever he put his mind to, but mastered it. He flourished in the segregated public schools of Lake City, South Carolina, as an honor student, star athlete, talented musician and karate champion. While still studying at Carver High School he promised himself that he would have his Ph.D. within 10 years of graduation. In 1967, he finished as Valedictorian of his class and went on to study physics at North Carolina 's Agricultural and Technical State University, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1971.
McNair enrolled in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) where he excelled in a variety of areas, both inside and outside the classroom. While there, he became a 5th-degree black belt Karate instructor and a performing jazz saxophonist. He met and married Cheryl B. Moore of Brooklyn, New York, with whom he later had two children. At MIT he was one of the earliest developers of chemical HF/DF and high-pressure CO lasers.
While in graduate school he was named a Ford Foundation Fellow (1971-1974), a National Fellowship Fund Fellow (1974-1975), and a NATO Fellow (1975). He received the Omega Psi Phi Scholar of the Year Award (1975), the Los Angeles Public School System's Service Commendation (1979), distinguished Alumni Award (1975), National Society of Black Professional Engineers, Distinguished National Scientist Award (1979), Friend of Freedom Award (1981), Who's Who Among Black Americans (1980), an AAU Karate Gold Medal (1976), five Regional Black Belt Karate Championships as well as more than 30 trophies at various karate tournaments, and numerous proclamations and achievement awards. At the age of 26, he earned his Ph.D. in laser physics.
After completing his Ph.D. he began working as a physicist at Hughes
Research Laboratories in Malibu, California. According to NASA,
His research there brought him into close contact with NASA. He applied for astronaut training and in January, 1978, he became one of the first three African American astronauts.
He completed a 1-year training and evaluation period in 1979, which qualified him for an assignment as a mission specialist astronaut on Space Shuttle flight crews. From February 3-11, 1984, he flew on the Challenger Shuttle mission STS-41-B, becoming the second black American in space. He was killed during his second Challenger flight (the STS-51-L mission) in 1986. He was posthumously awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor.
That same year, members of Congress created and funded the McNair Scholars Program to encourage students with similar backgrounds to enroll in graduate studies. The program targets students of color, low-income students, and first-generation college students. Today, there are 156 McNair Scholars programs nationwide.
|
"In his brief but brilliant career, he proved that neither poverty nor discrimination can defeat a determined individual. The program that carries his name seeks to equip its students as he was equipped: with knowledge, faith, courage, and an unshakable will to succeed." -NASA |
Biographical information was gathered from the following sources:
