Jesse B. Barber, Jr. was the first African American to be certified by the American Board of Neurosurgery and became the third black American to practice neurosurgery in the United States. Throughout his career, Barber has made significant contributions to his profession, his school, and his city, holding various positions of importance, including director of the Howard University Medical Stroke Project. He also served as the chief of Neurosurgery at Howard and became the university's first professor of social medicine .

Jesse Belmary Barber, Jr. was born on June 22, 1924 in Chattanooga, Tennessee to the former Mae Fortune and Jesse, Sr., who was a Presbyterian minister and an educator. Although he admired his father deeply and aspired to be a preacher like him, Barber's excellent academic performance led him to begin taking pre-engineering courses. However, after being ranked first in a pre-medical examination, Barber moved toward medicine. After first attending...