Welcome to the Evolving Folks Project’s “Evolved Woman of the Week” profile. Each week, we will highlight an individual who embodies what it means to be an evolved person, famous and non-famous alike. The world needs to know their stories and deeds. This week’s honor goes to the astrophysicist, artist, and activist Professor Nia Imara.
Professor Imara is a native of East Oakland, California, and spent her childhood in the San Francisco Bay Area. 2003, Kenyon College awarded her a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and physics. Kenyon College is where she swam competitively. For postgraduate study, she attended UC Berkeley, where she later became the first African-American woman to earn a PhD in astrophysics in 2010. Her dissertation, supervised by Leo Blitz, explored the formation and evolution of giant molecular clouds.
Her work as an astronomy professor at UC Santa Cruz focuses on how stars form within the Milky Way and other galaxies. Professor Imara is an advocate for equity within STEM. In 2018, she founded the Equity and Inclusion Journal Club at Harvard University, which she initially co-organized with Dr. Anna Pancoast. To advance diversity in astronomy and STEM, she has also taught and championed relevant programs in South Africa and Ghana.
Onaketa, an organization providing free math and science tutoring to underserved students of color, was founded by Professor Imara in 2020. In her own words, here’s what Professor Imara says about her research:
“As a professor, I work with graduate students, teach, and cultivate my research program. My primary field of research is star formation. I study “stellar nurseries” — the birthplaces of stars — in the Milky Way and other galaxies in the Universe. I use telescopes and theoretical tools to figure out how stellar nurseries form and evolve and go on to give birth to stars. In addition, being an artist has positively contributed to my science.”
The Evolving Folks Project wishes Professor Nia Imara continued success in her art and academics. Her work pushes boundaries by seamlessly blending art and science. Today, we honor Dr. Nia Imara as our Evolved Women of the Week.
Evolving Folks Project 