Mary W. Jackson, who was featured in the 2016 movie “Hidden Figures,” began her career at NASA “in the segregated West Area Computing Unit of the agency’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Jackson, a mathematician and aerospace engineer, went on to lead programs influencing the hiring and promotion of women in NASA’s science, technology, engineering, and mathematics careers.

In 2019, she was posthumously awarded the Congressional Gold Medal,” NASA said in a news release.

“Mary W. Jackson was part of a group of very important women who helped NASA succeed in getting American astronauts into space. Mary never accepted the status quo, she helped break barriers and open opportunities for African Americans and women in the field of engineering and technology,” said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine.

Source: NASA

[https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-names-headquarters-after-hidden-figure-mary-w-jackson](https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-names-headquarters-after-hidden-figure-mary-w-jackson)