Freda Porter, PhD, is a member of the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina. She was one of the first Native American women to earn a PhD in the mathematical sciences. Her postdoctoral research focused on mathematical models of groundwater contamination in collaboration with the EPA. Porter founded, and is president and CEO of Porter Scientific, Inc., an environmental consulting firm specializing in air and water quality, hazardous waste assessment, and environmental restoration. A long-time advocate for Native Americans in STEM, she founded the Pembroke State chapter of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) during her time as an assistant professor at Penbroke State University.