Mamie Phipps Clark

Mamie Phipps Clark was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas in 1917. Her father, Harold H. Phipps was a physician and her mother Florence Clark was a homemaker. Her mother also had involvement in the medical practice in which her husband worked. Mamie Clark had one sibling, Harold who became a dentist after his college years. Clark’s parents were considered a very successful black couple during this time and made sure that their children knew that they could have the same life. Clark graduated from Langston High School at seventeen years young. She was offered full scholarships to two of the most well known black universities. Among these universities was Fisk University and Howard University. Clark chose to attend Howard University and had her mind set to major in the math field and minor in physics (Butler, 2009).

Clark met her future husband, Kenneth Clark while attending Howard University (Martin, 1994). Mamie and Kenneth Clark eloped in 1937 and kept their marriage a secret until after graduation to ensure that the new relationship would not interfere with their academic opportunities. It was upon meeting Kenneth that Mamie decided to major in psychology rather than math. Kenneth Clark majored in psychology also and convinced Mamie that it was the best field for the times they were in. Math and physics were fields in which jobs were hard to come by. Also, Clark had been interested in child development since a young age and psychology would give her a chance to become involved with this type of work.

Clark graduated magna cum laude in 1939 from Howard University. She then went on to Columbia University to obtain her PhD. While still in the process of completing her college degree, Mamie and Kenneth Clark had two children. Kate Clark was born in 1940 and Hilton Clark was born in 1943. Her son was born the same year in which she had finally obtained her PhD. She was the first African American woman to earn her doctorate. Kenneth, her husband was the first African American to obtain a doctorate.

Her masters thesis while in college was “The Development of Consciousness in Negro Pre- School Children.” This thesis was influenced by Clarks earlier experience in working in an all black nursery school (Butler, 2009). In short, her theory suggested that children became aware of their race at a very early age. Age three to be exact which was a rather shocking statement for the public. This conclusion that Clark came up with became the foundation of her famous doll experiment as well as her coloring experiment which would be tested at a later time.

Being the first black woman to obtain a doctorate was an amazing accomplishment. However, jobs were no easier to come by for a black woman in New York. From 1943- 1946 Clark worked various jobs. One of those jobs was in a law office. Here she was able to watch the work and collaboration that was involved in creating civil rights cases. She was also exposed

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