Helen Eva Grenga was the first female professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology

Georgia Institute of Technology

The Georgia Institute of Technology is a public research university in Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States...

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Early life and education

Grenga graduated from Shorter College in 1960 with a B.A. in Chemistry, and from the University of Virginia

University of Virginia

The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...

 in 1967 with a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry.

Georgia Tech

Grenga first came to Georgia Tech in 1967, working as a postdoctoral fellow in chemistry. In 1968, she held the title of professor of metallurgy

Metallurgy

Metallurgy is a domain of materials science that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their intermetallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are called alloys. It is also the technology of metals: the way in which science is applied to their practical use...

. From 1981 to 1982, she was the president of the Georgia Tech chapter of the Society of Women Engineers

Society of Women Engineers

The Society of Women Engineers , founded in 1950, is a not-for-profit educational and service organization. SWE is the driving force that establishes engineering as a highly desirable career aspiration for women. SWE empowers women to succeed and advance in those aspirations and be recognized for...

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Other roles Grenga held included Director of the Office of Graduate Studies and Research, and Dean of the Office of Academic Affairs. In 2001, Grenga published Movies on the Fantail, ISBN 0970911009, about her brother's time on the USS Barr during World War II.