Phyllis Bolds
Personal Information
Born: 1932
Died: 2018
Country of Birth: USA
Nationality: USA
Ethnicity: Black
Education
Central State College BS Physics 1954; University of Dayton MS Computer Science 1973; Simmons Women's College (now Simmons University) MA Management 1977
Professional Life
Field of Study: Physics
Institution/Corporation: US Air Force
Degrees & Memberships: None found
Awards & Achievements
Awards: 1979 Air Force Systems Command Certificate of Merit; 2017 Dunbar High School Wall of Fame; 1947-48 American Association of Teachers of Spanish & Portugese Medal Award; 1 of the 2019 Dayton Skyscraper Honorees; 2022 Dayton Region Walk of Fame
Achievements: studied how to mitigate the adversarial effects of military aircraft, aeroacoustic environments & spectra of helicopter vibration frequencies & debunked the false Helicopter Vibration Test Curve "M" preventing future helicopter malfunctions; collected aircraft vibration data on many aircraft including B-2, F-15, & C-133A
was the 9th of 10 children
was valedictorian of her high school class awarded the inaugural delta sigma Theta Debutante Scholarship
the Air Force paid for her to obtain 2 master degrees
began working for the US air force as a physicist in 1955
worked at Wright_Patterson Air Force Base radar branch & Flight Dynamics lab for over 30 years
had a stroke in her early 40s but overcame it, earning 2 master degrees & continuing to work
mentored her 5 children, then grandchildren, gave spiritual guidance to students of all ages, & tutored people in the prison system
dabbled in linguistics & won a medal in high school
was frequently the only woman in the room & in 1970 attended an Air Force Academy symposium where she was the only female delegate among 350