Ernest Everett Just

Arguably the most brilliant African American scientist of his generation, Ernest Everett Just graduated magna cum laude from Dartmouth College in 1907 and earned his doctorate in zoology from the University of Chicago in 1916. After joining the faculty at Howard University, Just played a substantial role in upgrading the quality of training offered at its medical school. His greatest distinction, however, was attained as a marine researcher; his studies in cellular physiology and experimental embryology-conducted principally at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, Massachusetts-yielded a host of groundbreaking discoveries and theories. Because of entrenched racial prejudice, Just was never able to fully join the American scientific community, despite the obvious significance of his research. But European scientists welcomed him; supported by funding from various foundations, he spent much of his later career conducting research abroad.