Greenville Online – Tesalon Felicien
“At 74, Christine Darden has spent a lifetime pioneering science and technology. On Sunday, Darden, a former mathematician and aeronautical engineer at NASA who was featured in the book, “Hidden Figures,” stressed the importance of STEM education, delivering a message of perseverance and faith to an audience who attended the Mattoon Presbyterian Church, one of the oldest black churches in the Upstate. Darden, who worked at NASA for 40 years, was not portrayed in the movie “Hidden Figures,” but knew the lead characters: Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson — African American female mathematicians who aided NASA during the early years of the space program. The movie was nominated for Best Picture at this year’s Oscars and has made over $100 million in sales. Darden said the movie has been instrumental in advocating STEM education. She’s seen the movie 10 times.”(more)