Mary Jackson contributed to the field of technology through her work as a NASA aerospace engineer. She was the first African American female to work for NASA, and she worked on the West Computing Wing where she and fellow mathematicians provided data crucial to the US Space Program's early success. Jackson was inspired to pursue this field of study by the sole idea of trailblazing for fellow female engineers and POC alike. Under-representation influenced her experience greatly. When engineer Kazimierz Czarnecki offered Jackson a job to work on his wind-speed tunnel, she was required to take training courses in order to gain the necessary promotion and change her title from mathematician to engineer. Due to the segregation in Virginia, Mary Jackson had to request special permission to take the classes with her white peers and fight for her right to education. After she was accepted to the class, Jackson was successful in spite of the discrimination she faced and later became the first Black female engineer at NASA in 1958.
In order to combat racial bias in computing and technology in today's world, companies and individuals alike must access their own biases and work toward equality within the realm of jobs and opportunities for all.
https://www.nasa.gov/content/mary-w-jackson-biography
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mary-Jackson-mathematician-and-engineer
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