Percy A. Pierre

Percy Anthony Pierre (born January 3, 1939) is an American electrical engineer and academic administrator. He is a graduate and former trustee of Notre Dame University. He received his doctorate degree from Johns Hopkins University in 1967, and is recognized as the first African-American to receive a Ph.D. in electrical engineering.^[1] In the 1970s, Pierre was a principal architect of the first national engineering education program for minority students.^[2] In the 1980s, he served as assistant secretary for research, development, and regulation of the U.S. Army for Research and Development. As a university administrator, he was dean of engineering at Howard University, vice president for research and graduate studies at Michigan State University, and president at Prairie View A&M University.^[3] He is currently Adjunct Professor and Glenn L. Martin Endowed Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Maryland.

Percy A. Pierre
Born	Percy Anthony Pierre (1939-01-03) January 3, 1939 (age 86) Welcome, Louisiana
Education	University of Notre Dame (B.S., M.S.) Johns Hopkins University (Ph.D.)
Occupation(s)	University administrator Electrical engineering professor
Spouse	Olga Markham Pierre (m. 1965-2024, dec.)
Children	2

Early life and education

Pierre was born on January 3, 1939, to Rosa Villavaso and Percy John Pierre in Welcome, St. James Parish, Louisiana. In 1957, Pierre graduated from St. Augustine High School in New Orleans. He credits the priests at St. Augustine with instilling in him two overriding missions: to excel intellectually in engineering and use his career to make a difference in the lives of other African-Americans.^[4][5]

Pierre attended the University of Notre Dame on scholarship, earning his bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering in 1961 and 1963.^[6][7][8] In 1977, he received an honorary doctorate degree from Notre Dame in recognition of his public service,^[9] and in 2022, he received the Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award.^[10]

Pierre earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering at Johns Hopkins University in 1967, the first African American to receive a doctorate degree in electrical engineering.^[1][8][11] He was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Michigan from 1967 to 1968.^[11]

Career

Pierre began his career as a researcher at the Rand Corporation in 1968.^[8][11] He served as a White House Fellow in 1969,^[11] working for Daniel "Pat" Moynihan on domestic affairs during the Nixon administration.^[8] From 1969 to 1970, he worked as deputy to the Assistant to the President for Urban Affairs.^[8]

Howard University

In 1971, Pierre was named Dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture and Computer Sciences (CEACS) at Howard University.^[8] In his role as dean, he co-chaired the first National Academy of Engineering (NAE) Symposium in 1973, which attracted more than 230 academic, corporate, and government representatives.^[12] The symposium's participants discussed the engineering education system and how minority engineering students interacted within that system.^[12][13] Pierre was considered a leader in developing and implementing programs to recruit, retain, and graduate engineering students from diverse populations.^[8]

During his tenure at Howard, he was invited to work as a half-time program officer with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.^[12][14] The Sloan Foundation supported the 1973 NAE Symposium and committed $12 - $15 million over a five to seven year period for a special program for minorities in engineering.^[12] In his role, Pierre helped to establish numerous minority engineering organizations to increase the financial support and mentoring opportunities available for minority engineering students. These include the National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME); National Consortium for Graduate Degrees for Minorities in Engineering and Science (GEM); Math, Engineering and Science Achievement (MESA); and Southeastern Consortium of Minorities in Engineering (SECME).

U.S. Army

In 1977, Pierre was named assistant secretary for research, development, and regulation of the U.S. Army, the first African-American to hold that position or similar position in the armed services.^[8][15] Pierre managed a $12 billion annual budget for research and development that included the completion of the development and initial production of the Abrams tank in 1979 and the Patriot missile system and Apache helicopter in 1980.^[8]

In January 1981, he was named Acting Secretary of the U. S. Army, the first African-American appointed to that position.^[8][16]

Prarie View A&M University

In 1983, Pierre was elected President of Prairie View A&M University.^[17] During his tenure, he established the Roy G. Perry College of Engineering Technology and the Benjamin Banneker Honors College.^[17] In addition, he oversaw the renovation and reopening of the campus' John B. Coleman Library.^[18]

Michigan State University

In 1990, Pierre joined Michigan State University as vice president of research and graduate studies, and professor of electrical and computer engineering. During his 28-year tenure, he mentored more than 200 graduate students in engineering.^[8] In 2018, he announced his retirement from Michigan State.^[8]

University of Maryland

In 2019, Pierre was named an Adjunct Professor and Glenn L. Martin Endowed Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Maryland. ^[19]

Personal

On August 8, 1965, Pierre married Olga Agnes Markham.^[20][21] The couple had two daughters, Kristin and Allison. In 2024, Olga Markham Pierre (b. 1940) died from pancreatic cancer complications.^[20]

Honors and awards

Pierre has received numerous professional accolades and awards.^[19] The following is a representative sample:

• 1977: Honorary Doctoral Degree, The University of Notre Dame^[9]
• 1979: Senator Proximire Award for Excellence, US Congress, for presentations of the Department of the Army’s Research Development, and Acquisition Budgets for FY 79
• 1980: Senator Proximire Award for Excellence, US Congress, for presentations of the Department of the Army’s Research Development, and Acquisition Budgets for FY 80
• 1981: Distinguished Service Medal, US Army
• 1984: Honorary Doctoral Degree, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
• 1984: Reginald Jones Award, National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering
• 1990: Regents Visiting Professor, University of California at Berkeley
• 1993: Superior Public Service Award, US Navy
• 1997: Frazier Thompson Pioneer Award, Black Alumni of the University of Notre Dame
• 2003: Frederick Scott Award, Society of Black Alumni of the Johns Hopkins University
• 2003: The Golden Torch Award, National Society of Black Engineers
• 2004: Diversity Award, Michigan State University
• 2004: Founder’s Award, National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering
• 2008: Cavanaugh Award for Public Service, University of Notre Dame Alumni Association
• 2008: Lifetime Mentor Award, American Association for the Advancement of Science
• 2009: Member, National Academy of Engineering, one of the highest professional honors for an engineer.^[8][22]
• 2013: Named a "Game Changer" in the 100 year History of Engineering at Johns Hopkins University
• 2021: Harriet Shriver Rogers Lecture, Johns Hopkins University^[1]
• 2022: Distinguished Graduate Alumni Award, Notre Dame University^[10]

Boards and affiliations

• Trustee, The University of Notre Dame, 1974-2019; Hesburgh Trustee, 2022-current^[23][10]
• Trustee, The White House Fellows Foundation, Treasurer, Washington, DC, 1981-1983
• Member, Advisory Council, Lincoln Laboratory, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Lexington, MA, 1981-1995
• Member, NASA Advisory Council, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Washington, DC, 1982-85
• Trustee, National Action Council for Minorities in Engineering (NACME), New York, NY, 1983-1989
• Director, Center for Naval Analyses, Alexandria, VA, Chairman of Technical Advisory Committee, 1983-1993
• Member, The Army Science Board, Office of the Secretary of the Army, 1983-85
• Trustee, The Southwestern Athletic Conference, New Orleans, LA, 1983-1989, Chairman 1985-87
• Trustee, The Hitachi Foundation, 1985-1998
• Member, National Security Advisory Board, Los Alamos National Laboratory, 1989-1994
• Trustee, The Aerospace Corporation, 1991-1999
• Member, NASA Advisory Council, University Relations Task Force, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 1991
• Commission on the Future of the National Science Foundation, National Science Foundation, Washington, DC, 1991-92
• Director, Michigan Biotechnology Institute, 1991-95
• Director, CMS Energy Corp., a $6 billion public utility in Michigan, 1992-2010
• Director, Consortium for International Environmental Science Information Network, Saginaw, MI, 1992-96
• Director, Old Kent Financial Corporation, 1992-2002
• Advisory Council, The Electric Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, CA, 1993-2003
• Director, Industrial Technology Institute, Ann Arbor, MI
• Member, Defense Science Board, Office of the Secretary of Defense, Washington, DC, 1993-96
• Member, Board of Overseers, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, 1993-99
• Director, Whitman Education Group, Miami, Florida, 1995-2003
• Trustee, Hampshire College, Amherst, MA, 1996-2005
• Founding chairman, National Academy of Engineering's Racial Justice and Equity Committee^[12]

Publications

• Pierre, Percy A. (1972). 1973 Minorities in engineering. In: Minorities in Engineering, Proceedings of a Meeting of the Engineering Manpower Commission of Engineers Joint Council, November 30, 1972. New York: Engineers Joint Council.
• Pierre, Percy A. (1975). Keynote address: Minority program directors’ workshop. In: Proceedings of a Workshop for Program Directors in Engineering Education of Minorities. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
• Pierre, Percy A. (2015). A brief history of the collaborative minority engineering effort: A personal account. In: Changing the Face of Engineering: The African American Experience, 13–36. Slaughter JB, Tao Y, Pearson W Jr, eds. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
• Pierre, Percy A., and Catherine Weinberger (2024). The 50-Year History of the Minority Engineering Effort: How the Engineering Profession Sparked the Movement to Diversify Its Workforce. National Academy of Engineering.