Mary Sue Coleman grew up in a large country home near the highly segregated Statesboro, Georgia. During her childhood in the early 40s, the schools in Georgia were segregated--white kids went to one school and black kids went to another. Coleman recalls having black neighbors that she would play with from time to time, but would never question where their school was located or why they did not attend school with her. “That just goes to show how culture and belief systems get enforced,” says Coleman in an article for Michigan Today. Luckily, Coleman’s parents were aware of the dark consequences of segregation and decided to move to Iowa where they had never been segregation between schools (1). And thus began Coleman’s pursuit of diversity and inclusion within academia.

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        Coleman earned a PhD in biochemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She worked for the University of Kentucky for 19 years, studying the “immune system and malignancies.” Afterwards, she returned back to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to serve as Chancellor for Graduate Studies and Research, as well as Associate Provost and Dean of Research. From there, Coleman became the president of the University of Iowa from 1995 to 2002 (2). When entering the University of Michigan in 2002, to serve as the first ever female president (woo!), her resume was full of rich experience and unique insight into the structure of a liberal arts institution.

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        And when Coleman was entering her historic presidency, she knew right from the start there was much work to be done. The University was in a battle with the Supreme Court regarding affirmative action and the use of race in University admissions (3). In addition, funding from the state of Michigan was decreasing. However, Coleman tackled both challenges head on, immediately immersing herself in the court cases and using her already strong pro-affirmative action position to her advantage. Under her presidency, the court ruled that “universities can consider race in admissions to achieve a diverse student body,” a huge success for the University of Michigan and affirmative action as a whole (3). And a few years later, Coleman was recognized as one of TIME’s “Nine Presidents to Watch” due to her efforts in fundraising for the University, as well as work in creating a partnership between the University and the city of Detroit (4).

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        Adored by students and faculty alike, Coleman was objectively one of the best presidents the University has ever had. And the best part? She did it all while being a strong and courageous woman. Mary Sue is the current president for the Association of American Universities, which strives to address issues of funding for research and higher education (5).