Before she turned seven, Joye Carter had already performed her first science experiment after hearing that it was hot enough to fry an egg on the sidewalk. The experiment failed, but Carter had taken her first step toward a future in the sciences. The next step came at age 14 when someone’s error at a career-sampling program permitted her to witness an autopsy. Instead of being traumatized, Carter was fascinated, and from that moment, she knew what she wanted to do with her life.

“It’s hard work dealing with death,” Carter explained, “but I know that I can make a difference to family members during the emotional turmoil involved with the loss of a loved one.”

A board certified forensic pathologist in anatomical and clinical pathology, Carter has devoted her life to “lifting the shroud that surrounds this sensitive topic.” The author of I Speak for the Dead, Carter has assisted numerous families in understanding the medical and legal process of defining the cause of death.

Prior to serving as Texas’ first female chief medical examiner from 1996-2002, Carter also had the distinction of being the first female appointed to serve as the nation’s chief medical examiner. In addition, she has served as a major in the United States Air Force and as the deputy chief medical examiner at Walter Reed Army Hospital. She has also held several faculty appointments at universities around the country, and in 2002, Houston Community College named her a Contemporary Black History Maker.

Now retired, Carter continues to consult, lecture, teach and write, and is currently working on her third book, Not One of the Boys. Her greatest joy, however, involves helping young people. Just three years ago, she established a teen driving program (Saving Our Kids) to deter teen fatalities in Houston, Texas, and she was also instrumental in the passage of a law that made “date rape” drugs such as GHB illegal.

“Life excites me!” Carter exclaimed, and “I especially love being able to help people.” — Phyllis Eberts ’00