Marie Maynard Daly

A breaker of glass ceilings in the sciences,

Marie Maynard Daly was born in the Corona neighborhood of Queens and educated at Hunter College High School, where her ambition to become a chemist flourished. She graduated from Queens College magna cum laude in 1942, and completed her master’s degree in just one year before pursuing a doctorate at Columbia University. She became the first African American Woman to obtain a PhD in chemistry in the United States.

Daly went on to conduct important studies on cholesterol, sugars, and proteins, which offered insight into the effects of sugars and cholesterol on the circulatory system. Through her career, she was committed to developing programs to increase the enrollment of minority students in graduate science programs.

Learn more about this unsung trailblazer at the link below.