Ben Carson, M.D

Today Ben Carson, M.D., operates on more than 300 children every year at Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore, Maryland. He is sought out around the world for his expertise in separating conjoined twins and conducting brain surgery to control seizures, with an emphasis on the use of cerebral hemispherectomies, in which half of the brain is removed to stop intractable seizures. A recipient of numerous awards and honors, the author of three popular books, and the co-founder, with his wife Candy, of a non-profit organization to help hard-working youth fund a college education, he enjoys a life rich in accomplishments and deep satisfaction. His life today is far removed from its beginning in the inner cities of Detroit and Boston . It has been of his own making, thanks to a mother and a host of individuals who expected the very best from him.

Dr.Robert L. Howard, Jr.

Dr.Robert L. Howard, Jr. is a Space Human Factors Analyst and the manager of the Habitability Design Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. He is responsible for multiple components of NASA’s new initiative to return to the moon and go to Mars. He has served on multiple design teams for the NASA Crew Exploration Vehicle, Lunar Surface Access Module, Lunar Outpost, and Lunar Pressurized Rover. He has also served as a NASA human factors point of contact under a Space Act Agreement to Bigelow Aerospace for work related to their BA-330 orbital habitat. Dr. Howard has received numerous awards from NASA, NSBE, and other organizations for his career and volunteer work. Dr. Howard holds degrees from Morehouse College, Georgia Institute of Technology, North Carolina A&T State University , and the University of Tennessee Space Institute. Dr. Howard has received numerous awards from NASA, NSBE, and other organizations for his career and volunteer work.

Thurman D. Jones, Jr.

Thurman D. Jones, Jr.founded and leads a technology training and awareness organization whose mission is to address the “digital divide” by promoting technology training to residents of Prince George’s County inner beltway communities. Patriots Technology Training Center (PTTC) is a nonprofit community-based organization located in the city of Seat Pleasant of Prince George’s County, Maryland that provides technical training and outreach to residents of the Washington D.C. Metropolitan area. Although their focus is on the youth of the community, they offer programs that upgrade the technical skills of adults. In the past nine years, they have developed programs that have resulted in providing technical training, computer literacy and career motivation to over 3,500 community residents. The mission of the PTTC is to generate interest, education, jobs and careers for all ages and for those at present who may not have close or convenient means to access or experience today’s technology.

Dr. Isiah M. Warner

Dr. Isiah M. Warner received his B.S. in chemistry from Southern University, and his Ph.D. from the University of Washington. He has been a professor at Texas A&M University, Emory University , and Louisiana University . Dr. Warner has worked at the National Science Foundation as Program Officer for Analytical and Surface Chemistry, and has been issued five patents for his work three others are pending. The primary research emphasis of Dr. Warner’s research group is the development and application of improved methodology (chemical, mathematical, and instrumental) for studies of complex chemical systems. His research interests include (1) fluorescence spectroscopy, (2) guest/host interactions, (3) studies in organized media, (4) chromatography, (5) environmental analyses and (6) mathematical analyses and interpretation of chemical data using chemometrics (chemical data analyses techniques). Dr. Warner has earned numerous awards in the almost four decades he has been researching.

Dr. William Anthony Hawkins

Dr. William Anthony Hawkins earned his bachelor's degree in mathematics and a master's degree in physics from Howard University, and a master's and doctorate in mathematics from the University of Michigan. He has been involved in the teaching of minority students for over 36 years, including a short stint as a high school teacher. He was chairperson of the Mathematics Department of the University of the District of Columbia for five years. He now holds the rank of Associate Professor, and is interested in researching Arithmetic Analytical Geometry. Dr. Hawkins took a five-year leave from UDC to work for the Mathematical Association of America as Director of the Strength-ening Underrepresented Minority Mathematics Achievement (SUMMA) Program. He has returned to teaching at UDC, and continues to direct the SUMMA Program which has raised more than $3 million to increase the representation of minorities in mathematics, science, and engineering and to improve the mathematics education of minorities.

Dr. Roosvelt Y. Johnson

Dr. Roosvelt Y. Johnson received his baccalaureate degree in Zoology from Howard University and his doctorate in Microbiology from Indiana University. As a NIH Fellow, Dr. Johnson engaged in postdoctoral research at the University of Washington. Dr. Johnson has been a member of the faculty at Howard University and has served as an official collaborator at the Los Alamos National Laboratories. Dr. Johnson is currently Program Director for the Alliances for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) program at the National Science Foundation. The primary goal of the AGEP program is to increase the number of underrepresented minority students pursuing advanced study, obtaining doctoral degrees, and entering the professoriate in STEM disciplines. Dr. Johnson recently received Science Spectrum Magazine’s prestigious Emerald Honors Award for achievements in Affirmative Action, for his 30-year career of effectively championing efforts to broaden participation in STEM disciplines.