March 20, 2026
SIU’s Paul Simon Institute hosts trailblazing Black female pilot
CARBONDALE, Ill. — Theresa Claiborne, the first Black woman to serve as a pilot in the United States Air Force, will discuss her groundbreaking military career during a discussion at 6 p.m. Thursday, March 26, in SIU Student Center Ballroom B.
The conversation with John Shaw, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, is free and open to the public. A reception is set for 5 p.m. in the Student Center’s John W. Corker Lounge. Pre-registration is not required but encouraged.
"Theresa Claiborne is an inspiring, trailblazing pilot and leader who set lofty goals for herself and then exceeded them with hard work and great skill,” Shaw said. “She is especially eager to see SIU’s aviation program up close and to meet with students and instructors. Captain Claiborne is also eager to visit in Carbondale with her good friends, Bill and Molly Norwood, whose generous lecture series is supporting her visit.”
Media availability
Reporters, photographers and news crews are welcome to cover the March 26 conversation with Theresa Claiborne. For more information or to arrange for interviews, contact Will Becque, institute communications and marketing coordinator, at 618-453-4009 or william.becque@siu.edu.
Wide-ranging conversation
Claiborne will discuss her path to becoming a pilot and the lessons she learned about leadership, perseverance, and breaking barriers in public service. The conversation will also explore the importance of expanding opportunities in aviation and the armed forces.
Claiborne was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Air Force in 1981 and in September 1982 became the Air Force’s first Black woman to serve as a command pilot and instructor for the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker, an aerial refueling tanker. She left active duty in 1988 and served as an instructor pilot and flight commander for the Air Force Reserves, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel. She retired from the military in 1993 with more than 3,000 military flight hours.
She joined United Airlines in 1990 as a first officer, becoming the second Black woman pilot at the airline. In a commercial aviation career that ended in 2024 after 34 years, Claiborne, who became a captain on the Boeing 757/767 in 2018 and transitioned to the Boeing 787 in 2021, logged more than 23,000 flight hours.
Claiborne has a degree in communications and a minor in journalism from California State University, Sacramento. She attended the University of California Berkeley for Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC).
She is president emeritus of Sisters of the Skies, a nonprofit organization that is dedicated to creating pathways for Black women in aviation, a board member of the Grand Dames of Aviation, and a past board member of the National WASP WW II Aviation Museum in Sweetwater, Texas. The museum focuses on Women Airforce Service Pilots, or WASP.
Attendees are encouraged to submit questions for Ashford on the registration form or email questions to paulsimoninstitute@siu.edu.
More information, including a list of the institute’s upcoming events and past speakers and events, is available.