Faye Wattleton was born in 1943 in St. Louis Missouri. Her family would often travel for work, which meant she had to stay with other family members and friends. During that time frame, she developed her future interest in Family planning and Reproductive rights.

She graduated from Ohio State University at age 20 (began at age 16) and obtained her Bachelor of Nursing, in which she worked at a Children's hospital that cared for children who were abused and otherwise neglected by their families.

She graduated from Columbia University with her Master's in Maternal and Infant Care and joined the Dayton Ohio Health Department and the board of Planned Parenthood, eventually becoming the president, and being the first African American Woman to lead the organization.

Her research and assistance in reproductive rights came during the time of Roe v Wade and should be mentioned at her work may have provided valuable information in the decision to enact the law in 1973. More recently, she led the Center for the Advancement of Women until 2010.

Thank you, Faye Wattleton, for being a public health hero!

This biography is based on publicly available information and was edited by Hugh Dunn and Adam Graczyk.