Amy Fornah Sankoh
Biochemist
Introduction
Amie was born in Sierra Leone, a country ravaged by civil war, and faced the additional challenge of losing her hearing at a very young age, around three years old. This early adversity shaped her life in profound ways. Her early years in Sierra Leone were marked by her struggle to succeed in elementary school due to her inability to hear. Her hearing impairment significantly hindered her educational progress, and she faced the prospect of failing academically. In a pivotal decision made by her father, Amie was sent to the United States in the hopes of finding a cure for her deafness. There, she was taken under the care of a family friend who adopted her. While the medical cure for her hearing loss proved elusive, Amie's life took a different trajectory as she became a part of the American deaf community.
Learning a new language and keeping up with coursework without auditory communication were formidable tasks. However, her exceptional aptitude for mathematics became a guiding light in her academic life. Mathematics, being highly visual, allowed Amie to excel and find solace in its clarity. Her ability to visualize mathematical problems, break them down into steps, and find solutions set her apart as a gifted mathematician.
Amie's education truly took off in high school, where she learned ASL and had access to an interpreter. High school became a turning point as she developed a deep love for complex mathematics and later ventured into chemistry. She found excitement in understanding chemical reactions and making predictions, drawing them out as part of her learning process.
After high school, Amie worked as a lab technician for Dow Chemical. However, her thirst for knowledge and the support of an inspiring undergraduate mentor led her to pursue higher education. She began with an associate degree in laboratory sciences from the Rochester Institute of Technology’s National Technical Institute for the Deaf and subsequently earned a bachelor's degree in biochemistry.
Difficulty and how to overcome
Driven by her passion for science and research, Amie embarked on a Ph.D. program at the University of Tennessee (UT) Knoxville. Her Ph.D. research focused on studying the effects of hormones on plant-pathogen interactions. During her graduate studies, she obtained significant independent research support and became an author of four scientific publications.
Amie Fornah Sankoh's journey serves as an inspiring example of resilience, determination, and the limitless potential within each individual. Her groundbreaking achievement as the first deaf, Black woman to earn a doctorate in a STEM discipline in the United States reflects her unwavering commitment to education and her dedication to the field of science. Amie's story underscores the importance of inclusivity and diversity in academia and showcases the power of passion and perseverance in overcoming challenges and achieving greatness.
