“The head of the division I was to be in did not like minorities. Because I was an Indian. I just didn’t ever
realize why he had it against me. But that’s the way the world is sometimes.”

Floy Agnes Lee was born on July 23, 1922 in Albuquerque, NM. Lee’s parents taught at Albuquerque Indian School but attended St. Mary’s Catholic School and developed an interest in biology. Lee obtained her B.S. in biology at the University of New Mexico in 1945. Here, she performed undergraduate research on 2 projects: one related to plant growth and the other on indigenous diets. Her PI would eventually recommend her for a position at the hematology lab at Los Alamos working for the Manhattan Project. Lee collected and examined the blood of project scientists to identify and monitor radiation poisoning. After WWII, Lee obtained her Ph.D. In biology at the University of Chicago then worked at Argonne National Lab studying the effects of radiation on human chromosomes for 22 years. She then worked at the Jet Propulsion Lab in CA before finally returning to Los Alamos. Lee also strongly advocated for scientific accessibility and helped create the American Indian Science and Engineering Society.