Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye is the mother of mechanical engineer, science communicator, and television presenter William Sanford ‘Bill’ Nye. Jacqueline’s son Bill Nye is the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of The Planetary Society. He is the author of two bestselling books on science: Undeniable: Evolution and the Science of Creation (2014) and Unstoppable: Harnessing Science to Change the World (2015).
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye: Bio Summary
| Name | Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye |
| Famous as | mother of Bill Nye |
| Date of birth | 14 March 1921 |
| Place of birth | North Carolina, United States |
| Died | 30 March 2000 (aged 79) |
| Parents | Sanford Swindell Jenkins and Lucie Jenkins |
| Children | Edward Darby Nye Jr., Susan Nye, and Bill Nye |
| Spouse | Edwin D. Nye |
| Grandchild | Charity Nye |
Who Was Bill Nye’s Mother, Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye?
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye was born on 14 March 1921, in North Carolina, United States. Sanford Swindell Jenkins and Lucie (Briot) Jenkins were her parents. She has a sibling called Sanford Swindell Jenkins Jr. Her mother Lucie was French and was born in Rennepont, Haute-Marne, France. Her father Sanford is from Town Creek, Brunswick, North Carolina.
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye’s parents got married in the year 1919, after WWI. Her paternal grandparents were William Armond Jenkins and Blanche Estelle (Evans) Jenkins. Jacqueline moved to Baltimore at a young age at the time her father accepted a position as a chemistry professor at the Johns Hopkins University. She attended and graduated from Western High School.
Jacqueline enrolled in Goucher College to study math and psychology. She became a codebreaker during World War II. She was part of a group of top-secret female codebreakers during WWII. She worked alongside several women as they were recruited from Goucher College by the Navy to help crack codes used by the Japanese and Germans during World War II.
Jacqueline was among the small group of young women known as the “Goucher girls”. They had to swear to secrecy and they were even threatened with death if they spoke of their work. She loved creating limericks and solving puzzles, especially crossword puzzles. After earning her degree in psychology from Goucher, she schooled again to earn master’s and doctoral degrees in education from George Washington University.
Jacqueline served as a substitute teacher in Washington, D.C., and public schools. She was an adjunct professor at George Washington and a manager or analyst in seven federal agencies from 1968 to 1982. She also worked at the National Archives before moving on to start a human resource development consulting firm. She was an officer in the U.S. Office of Naval Communications.
ALSO, READ: Edwin D. Nye: Who Was Bill Nye’s Father?
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye was president of the Washington chapter of the American Society for Training and Development; a member of Phi Delta Kappa, Mensa and the Navy Cryptologic Veterans Association; and president of the Capitol Cotillion and the Candlelight Waltz ballroom dance clubs.
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye Was Married in 1945
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye was married to Edwin Darby “Ned” Nye (1917–1997), who served in World War II and worked as a contractor building an airstrip on Wake Island. She and Edwin married on 29 December 1945, in Baltimore, Maryland. They became the parents of Edward Darby Nye Jr., Susan Nye, and William Sanford Nye also known as Bill Nye. She was an inspiration to her children.
Jacqueline’s children didn’t know much about her work and achievements. She once traveled with her son Bill Nye to the National Cryptologic Museum near the National Security Agency in Odenton and Bill was surprised to see a picture of his mom’s unit on the wall. “I was over in the corner, making all this noise, like, ‘Jeez, Mom, that’s you. That’s my Mom,’” Bill Nye said.
“And this tour guide came over, and pretty soon it was quite a scene. All these people were standing around Mom, reading about all these exploits on the displays they have there. It was amazing, and I think very gratifying for her.” Bill Nye has also mentioned that his mother “wasn’t Rosie the Riveter, she was Rosie the Top-Secret Code Breaker. People would ask her what she did during World War II and she’d say, ‘I can’t talk about it, ha ha ha!’”
“She was pretty smart,” Jacqueline’s son, E. Darby Nye Jr. said. “She certainly had her moments.” Jacqueline was close to her children. She taught them several things including how to cook. Her son Bill Nye said of his mother: “Her influence on me was infinite, immeasurable. She taught me how to cook — and how to make the famous family salad dressing that her grandmother taught her to make, which was pure chemistry.”
ALSO, READ: Charity Nye: Inside The Life Of Bill Nye’s Daughter
“She taught me how to sew, even. To this day, I still own a sewing machine. And to this day, I can still hear her chanting in my ear: ‘Sit up straight! Shoulders back! Now train, train, train! Do it till you get it right!” Jacqueline and her husband Edwin D. Nye reportedly got divorced in 1978.
Where Is Bill Nye’s Mother Now?
Jacqueline Jenkins-Nye is not alive. She died on 30 March 2000, at age 79, in Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia, USA. She was killed by cancer. She was survived by her sons Edward Darby Nye Jr. and Bill Nye, daughter, Susan Nye, a brother, Sanford Jenkins Jr., a sister, Genevieve J. Syphard, several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
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