Mrs. Barbara Black

Obituary For Mrs. Barbara Black

It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of Mrs. Barbara Black

Barbara Carolyn Black passed away peacefully on Wednesday July 24, 2024 at the age of 89. She was born on September 6, 1934, in Quincy, Florida, born to Ella Mae Pittman Cole and Timothy Joseph Cole. She attended Stevens High School in Quincy Florida. After her family moved to Jacksonville Florida, she attended Stanton High School where she graduated in 1951.

After winning a statewide competitive scholarship given by the State of Florida, she was given a full 4-year scholarship to Florida A&M University (FAMU). While attending FAMU, she achieved a number of honors, including being named Miss Sophomore, the Sweetheart of the Omega Psi Phi Pledge Club, Miss Senior, and the Queen of Orange and Green.

She was also a member of the Rattler yearbook staff, the Women’s Senate, the Playmakers’ Guild, the Mathematics Club, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Beta Kappa Chi Scientific Honor Society, and Kappa Delta Pi Educational Honor Society. In her senior year, she was chosen for Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities (in 1955). As an honor student, she graduated “With Distinction” in 1955 with a BS degree in Mathematics.

Four months after graduation, she was hired to teach in the Math Dept. at FAMU as an Instructional Assistant. She taught four college algebra and trigonometry classes. While teaching at FAMU, Barbara was also one of the founding members of Trinity United Presbyterian Church located at 620 Gore Ave, Tallahassee, FL. She was an elder and an impact leader in the church for more than 40 years.

After two years teaching in FAMU’s Math Dept., she took a temporary leave from FAMU to pursue an M.S. degree at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. In 1961, she also attended Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ and received her M.S. degree in Statistics in 1963. After receiving her M.S. degree, she accepted a position with IBM at the Thomas J. Watson Research Center in Yorktown Heights, New York. Home of the "Watson" artificial intelligence computer who defeated several top Jeopardy! Champions.

During her 15-year impressive career at IBM, she served in the positions of Research Staff Member, Application and Systems Programmer, Systems Analyst, and Consultant in the Mathematics Department and Computer Systems Department. She was also the coordinator and instructor in IBM’s voluntary education program. One of her biggest achievements at IBM was writing the computer program to control traffic flow through the South tube of the Lincoln Tunnel from Manhattan in NYC into New Jersey. She also appeared in an IBM TV commercial with Yale professors, demonstrating a computer graphics program on forest growth simulation. In 1967, she was honored as an Outstanding Young Woman of America, and also honored as an Outstanding Young Woman of New York with an article in the New York Times. At the 1970 Spring Commencement, FAMU presented her with the prestigious Meritorious Achievement Award for her outstanding contributions to business and industry.

In 1978, Barbara decided to leave IBM and return to FAMU’s Department of Mathematics because of her commitment to FAMU and her love of teaching. In 1980, she joined the newly formed Department of Computer Information Systems (CIS) where she served as an assistant professor. While at FAMU, she accepted faculty fellowships at the following corporations: Florida Power (She received the first Cluster Summer Faculty Fellowship in 1985), Battelle Pacific Northwestern Laboratory (1987), IBM in Raleigh, NC (1988 and1989), and Amoco in Chicago, IL (1991). She played a significant role in the professional and career development of students, taught courses in Database and Advanced Database Systems, co-authored a textbook for a CIS course, and chaired and served on numerous departmental and university-wide committees. She earned tenure in 1985. She also held life memberships in the FAMU National Alumni Association, the NAACP, and the Urban League. One of her greatest honors after returning to FAMU was being inducted into the Science Gallery of Distinction at FAMU in 1987 (Her photo is displayed on the wall of the gallery in the Science Building).

Barbara is preceded in death by her mother Ella Mills, her father Timothy Cole, and her husband John Black. Barbara also leaves an enduring legacy of family to cherish her memory with love and gratitude. She is survived by her four children, daughter Joy Freamon, daughter Jan Hairston, son Jonathan Black, and son Jason Black, her grandchildren, Justin Freamon, Joey Freamon, Jamil Hairston, Jazmin Black, Jada Black, Joshua Black, and her great-grandaughter Autumn Simpson.

A Celebration of Life service will be held 11:00 a.m. Thursday, August 1st, 2024 at Trinity United Presbyterian Church of Tallahassee, Florida. Internment to follow immediately afterwards at the Sunnyvale Cemetery in Quincy, Florida.

On behalf of the staff and management of Strong & Jones Funeral Home, Inc., we would like to extend our deepest sympathy to the family of Mrs. Barbara Black