We all know of Amelia Earhart, but do you know the name of the first Black woman in the world to earn a pilot's license (which she earned two years before Earheart)?

Get to know the life of Bessie Coleman and how she overcame institutionalized racism to create a legacy of achievement for women and people of color across STEM fields. From her humble beginnings as a sharecropper to her unprecedented entry into flight school, from becoming the first licensed Black female pilot to her efforts in and out of the sky to advance social and racial justice-through it all, Coleman exhibited the same tenacity to overcome the societal limitations impressed on her due to her gender and race.

Written for students of US and women's history, this examination of Coleman's accomplishments places each milestone in its historical context, illuminating not only the world she lived in (1920s USA, France, and Germany) but also her enduring significance to the contemporary challenges women and people of color continue to face in their efforts to pursue careers in STEM. A detailed chronology, curated sidebars throughout, chronological sequencing, and a comprehensive bibliography of vetted next-step resources, make this a singular and necessary first-stop reference resource on Coleman's life and work.

Dawn Comer Jefferson teaches screenwriting in the MFA Film and Television Writing program at Stephens College and in the John Wells Division of Writing for Screen and Television at the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts. She is an award-winning writer, producer, author, and teaching artist. She has written and produced television dramas for broadcast and cable networks, developed a family drama pilot at NBC Universal, and written Emmy winning arts programming for PBS and the Los Angeles Music Center. Dawn was first nominated for an Emmy for writing the animated film, Our Friend, Martin (CBS/Fox Video, 1999). She is the co-author of Three Ring Circus: How Real Couples Balance Marriage, Work, and Family (2004) and the African American historical children's fiction, The Promise (2013). Dawn's essays have been featured in the travel anthology Go Girl: The Black Woman's Guide to Travel and Adventure (1999), and its sequel Go Girl 2 (2024).

Nicole Jefferson is an academic writer, researcher, and communications specialist interested in issues of education, voting rights, and racial equality. Nicole is currently a postgraduate student at University College Dublin where she is receiving her MSc in Equality Studies. She graduated from Yale University with a B.A. in Political Science and African American studies, receiving distinction in both majors.