Library Guides: Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Resources for Engineering: Biographies: Women engineers

Biographies & profiles of women in engineering

Primary sources

Special Collections and University Archives (located on the fourth floor of Parks Library) is home to ISU's Archives of Women in Science and Engineering. This collection includes personal and professional papers of women in all areas of the sciences and engineering, except that of the medical sciences, as well as records of women’s organizations in these fields. Collections in the WISE Archives document a number of areas of the professional lives of individual women scientists and engineers, including their education, mentoring relationships, research, teaching, and professional careers in work settings primarily in universities and governmental agencies. The collections include both the papers of Iowa State alumni and faculty and women not affiliated with the university.

Archives of Women in Science and Engineering
The Archives of Women in Science and Engineering seeks to preserve the historical heritage of American women in science and engineering.

Articles & podcasts

Lost Women of Science Podcast: The First Lady of Engineering
The third season of Lost Women of Science details the story of African American mechanical engineer Y.Y. Clark.
Meet The First 2 Black Women To Be Inducted Into The National Inventors Hall Of Fame
From NPR, brief profiles of the first two Black women inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Books in the library

The ISU Library also has many books on this subject in the general collection. A few are presented below, but many more can be found using the Library's Quick Search. One way to find more books on this topic is to do a subject search for "women engineers".

Overnight Code by Paige Bowers; David Montague
Call Number: VM140 M778 B69 2021
The inspiring story of a groundbreaking African American female engineer who created the first computer-designed ship for the US Navy Raye Montague was an ambitious little girl in segregated Little Rock. She grew to be a woman who spent a lifetime educating herself, both inside and outside of the classroom, so that she could become the person and professional she aspired to be. Where some saw roadblocks, Montague only saw hurdles that needed to be overcome. Her mindset helped her become the first person to draft a Naval ship design by computer, using a program she worked late nights to debug. She did this as a single mother during the height of the Cold War, all the while imbuing her son with the hard-won wisdom she had accumulated throughout the years. Equal parts coming-of-age tale, civil rights history, and reflection on the power of education, Overnight Code is a tale about persistence and perseverance when the odds against you seem insurmountable.
Journeys of Women in Science and Engineering by Susan A. Ambrose; Kristin L. Dunkle; Barbara B. Lazarus; Indira Nair; Deborah A. Harkus
Call Number: Q130 .J68 1997
Today the image of the scientist is still that of a white man in a white lab coat. This book questions this stereotype and the assumption that the practitioners of science and engineering have a uniform look and follow one particular path through life. The scientists and engineers featured in this book are all women. They come from different races, ethnicities, and socioeconomic backgrounds. They have different sexual orientations. Some have disabilities.
Lilavati's daughters: the women scientists of India by Rohini M. Godbole, Ram Ramaswamy
Call Number: Q130 L55 2008
Brief profiles of Indian women scientists and engineers, in their own words.
Changing Our World by Sybil E. Hatch
Call Number: TA157 H4155 2006
Through real-life stories, the full-color Changing Our World: True Stories of Women Engineers celebrates the contributions of women engineers to every aspect of modern life. Explore the lives and careers of hundreds of women engineers of all ages and backgrounds--extraordinary women who serve as role models to tell the untold story of engineering. These inspirational stories will give you a fresh perspective on engineering.
Successful Women Ceramic and Glass Scientists and Engineers by Shirley M. Malcom (Afterword by); Cristina Amon (Foreword by); Cristina Amon (Foreword by); Lynnette Madsen
Call Number: TP805 M33 2016
Presents a diverse perspective of successful, inspirational and progressive women in science and engineering. Women of today from 29 countries provide overviews of their successful careers, the challenges they faced, and offer advice. This book provides novelty, inspiration, motivation and a bright perspective for the next generation of scientists and engineers seeking exciting and fulfilling careers.
The Road to the Top Is Not on the Map by Carla Bailo; Terry Barclay
Call Number: HD9710 A2 R63 2020
The Road to the Top is Not on the Map features female leaders who candidly share the habits, motivations, triumphs, defeats, and lessons learned that helped them achieve top jobs in the automotive industry. Their insights have relevance for women at all stages in their careers, whether its young women interested in pursuing a career in the auto industry, those looking for their next strategic move, or those seeking insight and inspiration. "The women in this book share a passion for their careers and a passion for the industry. They have encountered obstacles and the occasional failure, as well as successes, but they have embraced all their earned wisdom and generously agreed to share it."
The Road Forward by Carla Bailo; Terry Barclay
Call Number: HD9710.A2 B35 2021
Carla Bailo, CEO of the Center for Automotive Research, and Terry Barclay, CEO of Inforum, bring together over 70 of the most influential women in the automotive industry to share their insight and advice. As with their first book, The Road to the Top, Bailo and Barclay interview women in positions of leadership throughout the industry from suppliers, to OEMs and academia. The Road Forward provides insight and advice to all professionals on the impact of the COVID pandemic by sharing their thoughts of the road ahead and what changes they have experienced professionally, personally, and socially. In addition, the leaders discuss resilience, professional network maintenance and growth, personal growth, diversity and inclusion, and sustainability.
Flight Paths to Success: by Rhonda Walthall (Editor); Brenda Christianson (Editor)
Call Number: TL553 F55 2021
Flight Paths to Success profiles the personal journeys of 33 women who have been, and continue to be, successful in aviation, space, and academia. Each woman was asked to select one question of several questions in five categories: personal career insight, work-life balance, mentorship/sponsorship, avoiding a career stall, and powering through challenging situations. Each woman shared her unique experiences about work-life integration, resilience, career changes, relocation, continuing education, and career advancement. While reading their stories, we saw that there were many flight paths to success and each woman navigated her own way by charting her own course and committing to it. Their stories were published as they wrote them-in their own words.
Women and Ideas in Engineering by Laura D. Hahn; Angela S. Wolters
Call Number: TA139 .H2734 2018
The increasing presence of women within engineering programs is one of today's most dramatic developments in higher education. Long before, however, a group of talented and determined women carved out new paths in the College of Engineering at the University of Illinois. Laura D. Hahn and Angela S. Wolters bring to light the compelling hidden stories of these pioneering figures. At the same time, the authors offer insights into the experiences of today's women from the College -- a glimpse of a brighter future, one where more women in STEM fields apply their tireless dedication to the innovations that shape a better tomorrow.
A Woman in Engineering by Monique Frize
Call Number: R856.25 F75x 2019
In her memoirs, esteemed biomedical engineer Monique Frize recalls the events that taught her to over-come obstacles, become more resilient, recognize the importance of mentors and role models, and remain focused on the future. She also speaks of her appreciation of the critical role played by family and friends in maintaining the strength and determination required to succeed--and, above all, to succeed in a man's world. She pursued a challenging and rewarding international career in a very specialized field at a time when this was still very uncommon for a woman, acceding at the very moment of the tragic École Polytechnique massacre to key positions in support of women in science. These memoirs are sure to inspire young women who have a dream, and more specifically those who wish to enter sciences and engineering.
The Life and Letters of Kate Gleason by Janis F. Gleason
Call Number: Online
Susan B. Anthony called her the ideal business woman of whom she had dreamed fifty years earlier. Playwright Eugene O’Neill saw her as the symbol of greed and emasculating ambition. Kate Gleason, groundbreaking nineteenth-century industrialist, mechanical engineer, and real estate developer, was her own best invention. The truth of her dynamic life, in all of its complexity, is revealed in Janis Gleason’s biography of this legendary American woman.
STEM Gems by Stephanie Espy
Call Number: Q141 E745 2016
Tired of seeing the same careers foisted upon women in TV, movies and magazines? Chemical engineer Stephanie Espy, a graduate of MIT, UC Berkeley and Emory University, tells the stories of 44 inspiring women in STEM to show girls and young women around the world a new set of women heroes to look up to.The statistics for women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) careers are just plain sad. In recent years, fewer than 20% of college graduates in engineering and computer science were women. While stereotypes pervade about women in these fields, the truth is that most girls have never even heard of these careers and are not aware of the wide range of options that exist.
Powering the Eagle... 90 Years and Counting by Pratt & Whitney
Call Number: TL539 P64 2017
Powering the Eagle..,90 Years and Counting chronicles the contributions of Pratt & Whitney's women professionals and their inspirational workplace journey as aviation pioneers, innovators, and role models, inviting the next generation of inspiring women contributors in aerospace. By the twenty-first century, Pratt & Whitney's women continued to exemplify the gold standard for what it means to be an inspirational professional. They are technical innovators, thought leaders, committed career professionals, and enthusiastic advocates for the future of aerospace.

Biography databases

These databases provide biographical information about important and influential people throughout history. Profiles in biography databases are typically well-researched and are considered authoritative, but women in science tend to be seriously under-referenced in these tools. When women scientists or engineers are represented, they are overwhelmingly white. (American National Biography lists 1,963 biographies for men under the heading of "science and technology" and only 112 women. Biography in Context lists significantly more women, both scientists and engineers.)

Women You Should Know: Women in Science
Biographies and resources about the lives and work of women in science from antiquity to today.

Biography in Context This link opens in a new window
Contains international biographies from 170+ reference books with content from authoritative sources.
Click here for tutorial
American National Biography This link opens in a new window
Offers portraits of more than 19,000 men & women from all eras and walks of life whose lives have shaped the nation. Only 3 of the 200+ engineer biographies are women. There may be more listed under other fields related to engineering.