Michelle Zhong, Author at

Student Historian

Ming Xiu (Michelle) Zhong is an undergraduate student at the University of Washington, Seattle. She will graduate in 2018, having majored in History with a minor in Education. She plans to go to graduate school with the intention of pursuing a career in secondary education. She hopes to eventually go into education policy after many years of classroom teaching. Her aspirations for becoming a teacher come from her personal experiences as a student in the public education system, interactions with teachers who were passionate about their responsibility as educators, and a grandmother who was never able to go to school. Michelle believes that understanding the past helps people engage better with the present as well as prepare for the future. She believes that learning about the history of civilizations, politics, races, and individuals allows for students to gain a better understanding of their own history and the identities they claim in society.

Judith Ann Wilson Rogers (1939- )

Judith Ann Wilson Rogers, law clerk, attorney, judge, and corporation counsel, was born on July 27, 1939 in New York City, New York. Her mother is unnamed, but her father was John Louis Wilson, Jr., an architect who passed away in 1989. Judith W. Rogers married in 1968. … Read MoreJudith Ann Wilson Rogers (1939- )

Charles Edward Anderson (1919-1994)

Charles Edward Anderson, meteorologist, Air Force officer, and weather officer, was born August 13, 1919 in the inner suburbs of St. Louis, Missouri on a farm in University City. Both his mother and father were from Mississippi. Anderson resided in St. Louis until he graduated the valedictorian of the Sumner High … Read MoreCharles Edward Anderson (1919-1994)

Mary Elizabeth Williams (1977- )

Mary Elizabeth Williams, soprano opera singer, was born on January 7, 1977 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her mother Mary Lynn Williams is a retired high school English teacher and her father James Emuel Williams worked in human resources management for several companies such as Bell of Pennsylvania and General … Read MoreMary Elizabeth Williams (1977- )

Adrienne C. Nelson (1967- )

Justice Adrienne C. Nelson is the first African American justice on the Oregon State Supreme Court, having been appointed on January 2, 2018. Justice Nelson graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with degrees in English and Criminal Justice and earned her Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from the University … Read MoreAdrienne C. Nelson (1967- )

Lynn Nottage (1964- )

Lynn Nottage, an award-winning American playwright, was born on November 2, 1964 in Brooklyn, New York. Her mother was a schoolteacher and her father was a child psychologist. Nottage was inspired by school productions to write her first play, The Darker Side of Verona, which is about an … Read MoreLynn Nottage (1964- )

TLC (1991- )

TLC, a three-member American R&B girl group which incorporates elements of hip-hop and pop, was formed in 1991 in Atlanta, Georgia. Two of the members, Tionne Watkins and Lisa Lopes, were originally part of group called 2nd Nature with Crystal Jones. The group’s name was TLC-Skee with TLC being an … Read MoreTLC (1991- )

Carolyn Downs Family Medical Center (1968- )

The Carolyn Downs Family Medical Center is a government-funded medical clinic that provides primary care services located in the heart of the Central District of Seattle, Washington. It was founded by Leon “Valentine” Hobbs in 1968 and further developed through Seattle Black Panther Party community services program. The Party saw health … Read MoreCarolyn Downs Family Medical Center (1968- )

Revius Oliver Ortique, Jr. (1924-2008)

Revius Oliver Ortique, Jr., civil rights attorney, civil rights activist and leader, judge, and Supreme Court justice, was born in New Orleans, Louisiana to Revius Oliver Ortique and Lillie Edith Long on June 14, 1924. He had a younger brother named Calvin J. Ortique. Ortique and his wife Miriam Marie Victorianne Ortique … Read MoreRevius Oliver Ortique, Jr. (1924-2008)

Marie Selika Williams (ca. 1849-1937)

In 1878 soprano Marie Selika Williams, known as the “queen of staccato,” became the first black artist to perform at the White House. Marie Selika was born c. 1849 in Natchez, Mississippi. Shortly after her birth, Selika’s family moved to Cincinnati, Ohio where, as a … Read MoreMarie Selika Williams (ca. 1849-1937)