Lessons in Black History: February 20, 2015

Elbert Frank Cox

In 1925, Elbert Frank Cox became the first African American to earn a PhD in mathematics. He taught for 40 years and inspired future Black mathematicians.

Born December 5, 1895, Elbert Frank Cox earned his undergraduate degree from the University of Indiana. In 1925, he became the first African American to earn a PhD in mathematics. He taught for 40 years at West Virginia State College and Howard University. After he retired, Howard established a scholarship fund in Cox's name to encourage future Black mathematicians.

Mathematician. Born December 5, 1895 in Evansville, Indiana. After graduating from the University of Indiana in 1917, Cox served in World War I and then pursued a career in teaching. In 1925, he earned his PhD in mathematics from Cornell University, becoming the first African American to earn the degree in the United States and, in fact, the world.

After earning his degree, Cox taught at West Virginia State College and then at Howard University, where he remained until his retirement in 1965. Ten years later, the Howard University Mathematics Department established the Elbert F. Cox Scholarship Fund to encourage young Black undergraduates to pursue mathematics studies at the graduate level. Cox died on November 28, 1969, and though he did not live to see his scholarship or the PhD program launched, it is certain that it was he who made it possible.