Raye Montague
| Raye Jean Jordan Montague | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Raye Jordan January 25, 1935 Little Rock, Arkansas, United States |
| Occupation | Naval Engineer |
Raye Jean Jordan Montague (born Raye Jordan, January 21, 1935) is a United States Naval Engineer credited with creating the first computer generated rough draft of a U.S. Naval ship. She was the first female program manager of ships in the United States Navy.[1]
Early life and education
Raye Jordan was born on January 21, 1935 to Rayford Jordan and Flossie Graves Jordan in Little Rock, Arkansas.[2] She was inspired to pursue engineering after seeing a German submarine that had been captured by the Americans and put on tour across the country.[3]
She graduated from Merrill High School in 1952 and Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical & Normal College, which is now University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in 1956 with a bachelor of science degree in business because, at the time, the engineering program at the University of Arkansas did not admit African-Americans students.[4]
Career
Montague joined the United States Navy in 1956 in Washington, D.C. as a clerk typist. At work, she sat next to a 1950s UNIVAC I computer, watching the engineers operate it until one day when all of the engineers were sick, she jumped in to run the machine.[3] She took computer programming at night school while continuing to work and learn the job.[4] She was appointed as a computer systems analyst at the Naval Ship Engineering Center, and later served as the program director for the Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Integrated Design, Manufacturing, and Maintenance Program, the division head for the Computer-Aided Design and Computer-Aided Manufacturing (CAD/CAM) Program, and deputy program manager of the navy's Information Systems Improvement Program.[2]
In the 1970s, her department was allotted one month to create a computer-generated ship design. By modifying existing automated systems, Montague produced the initial draft for the Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate in around 19 hours.[2] With this accomplishment, she became the first person to design a ship using a computer system.[4] She later worked on ships such as the Seawolf-class submarine and the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower. Montague retired in 1990.[2]
Awards
- Meritorious Civilian Service Award (US Navy, 1972)[2]
- Society of Manufacturing Engineers Achievement Award (1978)[2]
- National Computer Graphics Association Award for the Advancement of Computer Graphics (1988)[2]
References
- ↑ "Janelle Monáe Honors ‘Hidden Figure’ And Naval Engineer Raye Montague". Huffington Post. 21 February 2017. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Adams, Betty Sorensen (21 February 2017). "Raye Jean Jordan Montague (1935–)". Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. Retrieved 23 February 2017.
- 1 2 "[#DESTINATIONGREATNESS] ENGINEER RAYE MONTAGUE: THE NAVY’S ‘HIDDEN FIGURE’". blackdoctor.org. 2 February 2017.
- 1 2 3 "Meet the woman who broke barriers as a hidden figure at the US Navy". ABC News. 21 February 2017.