Percy A. Pierre

Percy Anthony Pierre (born January 3, 1939) is an American electrical engineer. He is recognized as the first African-American Ph.D. in electrical engineering, the first African-American appointed assistant secretary of the U.S. Army for Research and Development, and the first African-American appointed acting Secretary of the Army. Pierre was a principal architect of the national minority engineering effort.[1] He currently is vice president emeritus and professor of electrical and computer engineering at Michigan State University.[2]

Percy A. Pierre
Born
Percy Anthony Pierre

(1939-01-03) January 3, 1939
Welcome, Louisiana
EducationThe Johns Hopkins University (Ph.D)
OccupationActing United States Secretary of the Army

Background

Pierre was born on January 3, 1939, to Rosa Villavaso and Percy John Pierre in Welcome, St. James Parish, Louisiana. In 1957, Pierre graduated from St. Augustine High School in New Orleans. He credits the priests at St. Augustine with instilling in him two overriding missions in life: to excel intellectually in engineering and to use his career to make a difference in the lives of other African-Americans.[3][4]

Education

Pierre earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering at The Johns Hopkins University in 1967. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan from 1967-68. Pierre attended the University of Notre Dame[5] on scholarship, earning his bachelor's and master's degrees in 1961 and 1963 respectively and has been honored at Notre Dame for his distinguished public service.

Career

Pierre's career spans more than four decades and includes tenure as:

  • Dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture and Computer Sciences (CEACS) at Howard University in Washington, D.C., 1971–77;
  • Program officer for the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation,1973–75;[6]
  • Assistant secretary of the U. S. Army for Research, Development and Acquisition, 1977–81; Pierre was the first African-American to hold that position or similar positions in the armed services.
  • Acting secretary of the U. S. Army, January 1981;
  • President of Prairie View A&M University,1983–89;
  • Vice president of research and graduate studies at Michigan State University, 1990–95;
  • Professor of electrical and computer engineering at Michigan State University, 1990–present.

U.S. Army

As assistant secretary of the U.S. Army, Pierre managed a $12 billion annual budget for research and development that included the completion of the development and initial production of the Abrams tank in 1979, and the Patriot missile system and Apache helicopter in 1980.

National minority engineering effort

In 1973, Pierre co-chaired the National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Symposium, which officially launched the national minority engineering effort.[7][8] He worked with NAE to implement the recommendations of the symposium. In a parallel effort, Pierre served as the program officer for minority engineering at the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation where he helped establish numerous minority engineering organizations to increase the financial support and mentoring opportunities available for minority engineering students. These include the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME); National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science (GEM); Math, Engineering and Science Achievement (MESA); and Southeastern Consortium of Minorities in Engineering (SECME).

National Academy of Engineering

In 2009, Pierre was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional honors accorded an engineer.[9]

Personal life

Pierre is married to Olga A. Markham. They have two grown daughters, Kristin and Allison Pierre.

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References
  1. "Changing the Face of Engineering: The African American Experience," edited by John Brooks Slaughter, Yu Tao, and Willie Pearson Jr., Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 2015
  2. The History Makers Biography of Percy Pierre
  3. Between Law and Hope: St. Augustine High School News Orleans, Louisiana, by Matthew J. O’Rourke; published by the Josephite Fathers and Brothers; 2003
  4. The Faces of Science: African Americans in the Sciences-Percy A. Pierre
  5. Black Domers: Seventy Years at Notre Dame, Edited by Don Wycliff and David Krashna; published by Corby Books, Division of Corby Publishing Notre Dame, Ind.; distributed by ACTA Publications, Chicago. 2014
  6. "Sloan Fund to Spur Minority Engineers", New York Times, October 10, 1973, p. 10
  7. Reference 1
  8. Proceedings: Symposium on Increasing Minority Participation in Engineering: Commission on Education, National Academy of Engineering, Washington D.C. 1973
  9. Election to the National Academy of Engineering (http://www.nae.edu/MembersSection/directory20412/31092.aspx)
Political offices
Preceded by
Clifford Alexander Jr.		 Acting United States Secretary of the Army
January 21-29, 1981		 Succeeded by
John Otho Marsh Jr.
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