Born: Unknown (circa 1930s), United States (assumed)
Died: Unknown (after 1988)
Country most active: United States
Also known as: NA
The following is republished from the National Security Agency. This piece falls under under public domain, as copyright does not apply to “any work of the U.S. Government” where “a work prepared by an officer or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties” (See, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 105).
Ms. Lillie Berry began her career at Arlington Hall in 1956 as a clerk typist in the signals analysis unit. She quickly learned the terminology and pressed analysts to explain to her the concepts. After attending a signals analysis course and mastering a basic understanding of the subject, she was requested, in the early 1960s, to teach portions of the introductory material. She, thus, became the first African American woman in the Agency to give instruction in that discipline. In 1968, she marked another first when she became the first African American woman assigned as an Agency recruiter. Finally, Ms. Berry is remembered for having established the Career Information Center, the predecessor of today’s Career Resource Center. Ms. Berry retired in 1988.