Lee Anne Willson
Lee Anne Willson (born 1947) is an American astronomer. Early life and education Lee Anne Willson (nee Mordy) was born on March 14, 1947, in Honolulu, Hawaii. Willson was interested in science from an early age. The daughter of a scientist, she spent her youth reading science fiction books. Her junior year of high school, she wanted to be an astronaut but she realized that this dream was impractical because she had poor vision, a crooked knee, and was female. Because she still wanted to learn about space, she decided that she wanted to be an astronomer instead. Willson received her bachelor's degree in physics from Harvard University in 1968 where she learned that perseverance was almost as important as knowledge. Willson wanted to take an advanced physics course, which the professor strongly advised against because she was female. Her response to the professor was, "I'll see you in class on Monday". From 1968-1969, she studied in Stockholm as a Fulbright scholar as well as an American-Scandinavian Foundation scholar. Willson attended the University of Michigan for graduate school where she received a master's degree in astronomy in 1970 and a PhD in astronomy in 1973. While in graduate school, she