A Falls Church High School student, Taylor Forrest, was recognized by Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam for nominating Black Virginians to be recognized on highway markers throughout the state.
The two Virginians nominated by Forrest are:
Katherine Johnson, an African-American mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics as a NASA employee were critical to the success of the first and subsequent U.S. crewed spaceflights. Johnson’s role was chronicled in the film, “Hidden Figures.” (Hampton)
“Angela,” one of 350 enslaved Angolans and the first African woman brought to Jamestown in 1619; her name is still on the records in 1625. As a slave, she served as skilled labor and contributed to the colony’s recovery from starvation and drought. (Jamestown)
