Which school did Rhetaugh Graves Dumas go to from 1951 to 1975?
Rhetaugh Graves Dumas Rhetaugh Etheldra Graves Dumas ( 1928–2007 ) was an American nurse , professor , and health administrator . Dumas was the first Black woman to serve as a dean at the University of Michigan . She served as the dean of the University of Michigan Nursing School . She also served as deputy director of the National Institute of Mental Health , becoming the first nurse , female , or African-American to hold that position . She is said to have been the first nurse to use the scientific method to conduct experiments that evaluated nursing practices . Dumas died on July 22 , 2007 of ovarian cancer . Early life and education . Rhetaugh Etheldra Graves was born in Natchez , Mississippi . Dumas mother had wanted to become a nurse , but no local nursing schools admitted African-American students at the time and her family could not afford to send her to college further away . When Dumas spoke at the Columbia University 2003 commencement for health sciences graduates , she said From infancy , I was told that when I grew up , I was going to be a nurse , not just an ordinary nurse , mind you , but one who would be admired by people all around the country -- not only for her personal achievements , but more importantly , for her contributions toward improving the welfare of others . She obtained her nursing degree at Dillard University in New Orleans in 1951 . Following graduation , she took her first jobs as a substitute teacher in Natchez and as the Nurse Director of Dillard Universitys Student Health Center . Dumas died of cancer in a Houston hospice on July 22 , 2007 . Work . Dumas earned a masters degree in nursing in 1961 from Yale School of Nursing and joined the schools faculty , ultimately becoming an associate professor and the chair of psychiatric nursing . While at Yale , she served as a member of the Board of Public School Education in New Haven and helped mental health professionals get involved with parents and students during the school riots of the 1960s . She worked simultaneously as Director of Nursing at the Connecticut Mental Health Center and as Chair of the Yale Department of Psychiatric Nursing . Beginning in the 1970s , Dumas held leadership positions with the National Institute of Mental Health . She was the chief of the organizations Psychiatric Nursing Education Branch . Between 1979 and 1981 , she was the first nurse , female , or African-American to serve as the deputy director of the NIMH . In 1979 she was appointed by Patricia Roberts Harris , secretary of Health and Human Services , to the position of deputy director . During her time at the NIMH , according to her obituary in Nursing Outlook , she played a major role in redirecting professional training to meet the needs of the unserved and underserved , a policy focus that continues to this day . While at NIMH , Dumas earned a doctoral degree from Union Institute . Dumas worked for the University of Michigan for over 20 years , and she served three terms there as the nursing school dean . Dumas was the first Black female dean at Michigan , but left the position when she was appointed Vice Provost for Health and the Lucille Cole Professor of Nursing . Dumas served terms as president of the American Academy of Nursing and the National League for Nursing . She was a member of the Institute of Medicine and a fellow of the A.K . Rice Institute . She received a presidential appointment to the National Bioethics Advisory Committee and she was awarded the Presidents 21st Century Award from the National Womens Hall of Fame . She was a Charter Fellow of the American Academy of Nursing and was named a Living Legend by the academy in 2002 . Dumas received honorary doctorates from the University of Cincinnati , University of San Diego , Yale University and Dillard University . She gave the keynote address at the 1998 conference of the American Association for the History of Nursing in Mississippi . Her published work includes The Effect of Nursing Care on Postoperative Vomiting and Dilemmas of Black Females in Leadership . Legacy . The University of Michigan Academic Womens Caucus issues the Rhetaugh G . Dumas Progress in Diversifying Award for notable progress by academic units in achieving concurrent ethnic/racial and gender diversity in the faculty . Michigan and Yale have both established endowed chairs in their nursing schools in her name .