Brescia College will host one of its most illustrious alumni, Dr. Marlene MacLeish, at a tea party on May 1.

Dr. Marlene MacLeish will meet with local students as well as members of Congress of Black Women at the college’s Rose Room (Ursuline Hall).

Originally from Jamaica, Dr. MacLeish Professor of Medical Education at Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta , Georgia . She is also team leader of NASA’s National Space Biomedical Research Institute Education and Public Outreach Program.

In 2004, Dr. MacLeish received Brescia’s Carmelle Murphy Alumnae Award of Distinction. In December 2008, she was been inducted into the International Academy of Astronautics, Paris, Francein recognition of her contributions to space exploration education.

Dr. MacLeish received her masters and doctoral degrees from Harvard University. She is a national spokesperson for science education in the US and has served on national and international boards and advisory committees of professional organizations dedicated to the improvement of science education and the lives of underserved populations.

She has represented NASA-NSBRI in Austria, Greece, Scotland, Spain, Canada, Italy, France and China. She has published extensively in peer reviewed journals and is executive producer of a six-part radio series, Biomedical Science for Space Travelers, a documentary film, Exploring Two Frontiers: the Brain in Space, and a National Public Radio series on sleep.

Dr. MacLeish is a daughter of “IK” and Sadie Smith (deceased) of the parish of St. James and former Head Girl of the Montego Bay High School for Girls. She is married to Dr. Peter MacLeish, Professor, at Morehouse and member of the National Academies of Sciences Institute of Medicine.

Staff Writer, with files from Derrick A. Scott)