She became an astronaut, but held onto her dream of dancing

“Space belongs to all of us. There is science in dance and art in science.”
— Mae Jemison

The first Black woman to go to space, Mae Jemison has sought out pursuits in the sciences — and in the arts, too. Before she was selected to fly aboard the American space shuttle Endeavour in 1992, she had already earned degrees in chemical engineering and then medicine.

Like many young girls, Jemison had dreams of being a ballet dancer. Her mother pointed her in another direction:

She considered becoming a professional dancer, but her mother advised her to do so after college, saying “You can always dance if you’re a doctor, but you can’t doctor if you’re a dancer.”

She did become a doctor (and an engineer, and an astronaut) but she also maintained her love for dance, studying a variety of styles while she pursued her degrees. I also love this reflection on integrating the arts into a science-minded life:

“Many people do not see a connection between science and dance, but I consider them both to be expressions of the boundless creativity that people have to share with one another.”

It’s significant that Jemison feels her background in dance contributed to her journey in becoming an astronaut — and not just being a doctor and scientist.

Mae Jemison is now in her 60s and is a prominent advocate for STEM and for inclusion in the sciences.

I came across this short animated film on a PBS YouTube channel: