According the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) profile of its president, Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson is "the first African-American woman to receive a doctorate from M.I.T. — in any subject. She is one of the first two African-American women to receive a doctorate in physics in the U.S. She is the first African-American to become a Commissioner of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. She is both the first woman and the first African-American to serve as the chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, and now the first African-American woman to lead a national research university, RPI, as its president. She also is the first African-American woman elected to the National Academy of Engineering."

The year 2002 was a big honors harvest for Dr. Jackson because she was named one of the Top 50 Women in Science by Discover magazine, was recognized in a published book by ESSENCE titled 50 of The Most Inspiring African-Americans, and was also named one of "50 R&D Stars to Watch" by Industry Week Magazine. In June 2002 she was inducted into the Women in Technology International Foundation Hall of Fame (WITI), and prior to this, Dr. Jackson was inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame in 1998 for her significant and profound contributions as a distinguished scientist and advocate for education, science, and public policy.

The same RPI profile of its president states, "Dr. Jackson was the recipient in February 2001 of the ‘Immortal Award’ for the 15th Annual Black History Makers Award sponsored by Associated Black Charities. Also, in February 2001, Dr. Jackson became the first woman to win the Black Engineer of the Year Award by US Black Engineer & Information Technology magazine. In March 2000, Dr. Jackson was awarded the Golden Torch Award for Lifetime Achievement in Academia from the National Society of Black Engineers.

"The eLeadership Award was presented in May 2000 to Dr. Jackson from the Central New York Technical Development Organization and the CASE Center at Syracuse University, recognizing leaders in technological innovation, application, or education who envision a future in which the promise of technology reaches all segments of society. In June 2000, Dr. Jackson received the "100 Women of Excellence" award from the lbanyColonie (NY) Regional Chamber of Commerce & Women’s Business Council recognizing women who pioneered change in the community over the past century."

Her other honors include being named as one of seven 2004 fellows of the Association for Women in Science (AWIS); being a member of the National Academy of Engineering (2001); memberships in the Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1991), the American Physical Society (1986), and other professional organizations. Dr. Jackson holds 35 honorary doctoral degrees.

Dr. Jackson is a member of the Board of Directors of the New York Stock Exchange (since December, 2003), serves on the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution and as a director of IBM Corporation, FedEx Corporation, Marathon Oil Corporation, Medtronic Inc., and Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated. She is a Life Member of the M.I.T. Corporation (the M.I.T. Board of Trustees). She also is a Trustee of Georgetown University, and the Emma Willard School (Troy, N.Y.).

Like most successful people, however, the path of Dr. Jackson’ life had not always been easy and paved with recognitions. In fact, according to Joannie M. Schrof, a senior editor at U.S. News & World Report, during the first year of her undergraduate year at MIT, Shirley Ann Jackson "immediately suffered vicious treatment from those not interested in seeing someone of her race and gender be the first to achieve anything. Ostracized by students who would not even sit next to her in class, Jackson was forced to do all the work in isolation that everyone else did in supportive study groups. One faculty member told her to go ‘learn a trade.’" And while simply trying to walk down the street, Jackson was shouted at and spat upon. Once, in downtown Boston, someone even shot at her. This was because during this time racial issues ran high among the white supremacist.

Jackson, however, held herself to the highest standards of both intellect and decency, and soon the world took notice. Before long, the same students who had shunned Jackson were seeking her out for help and mentoring, and she obliged. When Jackson gained her Ph.D. in theoretical elementary particle physics in 1973, she was quickly scooped up for prestigious high-level research posts, and the rest, as the saying goes is history.

Was her success of being the Honorable Chairman of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission and later her installation as the 18th president of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1999, at the expense of her personal and family life? To the best of my knowledge, it was not, for Dr. Jackson is still happily married to Dr. Morris A. Washington, also a physicist and they have one son, Alan, who is a graduate of Dartmouth College.