Hooker, Olivia Juliette, 1915-2018

Olivia Juliette Hooker was born Feb. 12, 1915 in Muskogee, OK to parents Samuel and Anita (Stigger) Hooker. After surviving the Tulsa race riots in 1921, she was later a founder of Tulsa Race Riot Commission. Her family moved to Columbus, OH after the riots. Hooker received a BA from the Ohio State University, (1937) where she was a member of Delta Sigma Theta sorority, a MA from Teachers College, Columbia University (1947), and a PhD in psychology from the University of Rochester (1961). She is notable for being the first African-American woman to join the US Coast Guard in Feb. 1945. She was later a member of the faculty at Fordham University (1963-1985). After her retirement from teaching, Hooker volunteered with the Coast Guard Auxiliary and was received honors and awards from the American Psychological Association, the Coast Guard, and President Barack Obama. She died on Nov. 21, 2018 in White Plains, NY.