hidden figures revealed
dynamic narratives and history of black mathematicians from the ohio state university
"Nearly 200 mathematicians have earned degrees in mathematics from ohio state that identify as black--yet their stories and legacies remain 'hidden.'"
This project represents the first comprehensive historical study of Black mathematicians at a single US institution, The Ohio State University. Nearly 200 mathematicians that identify as Black have earned degrees from the Department of Mathematics at Ohio State. They have gone on to become prolific researchers, authors, high school teachers, economists, department chairs, lawyers, Ohio State personnel, and university presidents–yet their stories remain “hidden.”
We seek to bring their stories to light through dynamic storytelling using an interdisciplinary team of faculty, staff, and students in the arts and sciences. We will use these stories to create educational resources for K-12 teachers, to develop external programming through our community partnership with the National Afro American Museum and Cultural Center of the Ohio History Connection, and to disseminate our project findings through our partnership with the National Alliance for Doctoral Studies in the Mathematical Sciences.
Our project addresses racial justice in mathematics by challenging the narrative about who can be a mathematician, highlighting black scholars, and shifting focus from individual resilience to institutional and historical barriers for success.
We seek to bring their stories to light through dynamic storytelling using an interdisciplinary team of faculty, staff, and students in the arts and sciences. We will use these stories to create educational resources for K-12 teachers, to develop external programming through our community partnership with the National Afro American Museum and Cultural Center of the Ohio History Connection, and to disseminate our project findings through our partnership with the National Alliance for Doctoral Studies in the Mathematical Sciences.
Our project addresses racial justice in mathematics by challenging the narrative about who can be a mathematician, highlighting black scholars, and shifting focus from individual resilience to institutional and historical barriers for success.
