Cassie Mitchell (born June 8, 1981) is an American engineer and

Paralympic The Paralympic Games or Paralympics, also known as the ''Games of the Paralympiad'', is a periodic series of international multisport events involving athletes with a range of physical disabilities, including impaired muscle power and impaire ...

cyclist and track and field athlete.

Early life

Mitchell was born in

Muskogee, Oklahoma Muskogee () is the thirteenth-largest city in Oklahoma and the county seat of Muskogee County. Home to Bacone College, it lies approximately southeast of Tulsa. The population of the city was 36,878 as of the 2020 census, a 6.0 percent decrease ...

, and graduated from high school in

Warner Warner can refer to: People * Warner (writer) * Warner (given name) * Warner (surname) Fictional characters * Yakko, Wakko, and Dot Warner, stars of the animated television series ''Animaniacs'' * Aaron Warner, a character in ''Shatter Me s ...

in 1999 as

valedictorian Valedictorian is an academic title for the highest-performing student of a graduating class of an academic institution. The valedictorian is commonly determined by a numerical formula, generally an academic institution's grade point average (GPA ...

of her class; shortly thereafter, she developed

neuromyelitis optica Neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD), including neuromyelitis optica (NMO), are autoimmune diseases characterized by acute inflammation of the optic nerve (optic neuritis, ON) and the spinal cord (myelitis). Episodes of ON and myelitis ...

, which left her paralyzed from the chest down with limited movement of her arms and hands and with permanent

double vision Diplopia is the simultaneous perception of two images of a single object that may be displaced horizontally or vertically in relation to each other. Also called double vision, it is a loss of visual focus under regular conditions, and is often v ...

. In 2004, she graduated from

Oklahoma State University Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a state in the South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the north, Missouri on the northeast, Arkansas on the east, New ...

with a BS degree in

chemical engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

. She later earned a PhD in

biomedical engineering Biomedical engineering (BME) or medical engineering is the application of engineering principles and design concepts to medicine and biology for healthcare purposes (e.g., diagnostic or therapeutic). BME is also traditionally logical sciences ...

from both

Emory Emory may refer to: Places * Emory, Texas, U.S. * Emory (crater), on the moon * Emory Peak, in Texas, U.S. * Emory River, in Tennessee, U.S. Education * Emory and Henry College, or simply Emory, in Emory, Virginia, U.S. * Emory University ...

and

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

universities.

Academic career

Currently, she is a research professor at

Wallace H. Coulter Wallace H. Coulter (February 17, 1913 – August 7, 1998) was an American electrical engineer, inventor, and businessman. The best known of his 85 patents is the Coulter principle, which provides a method for counting and sizing microscopic parti ...

Department of Biomedical Engineering at both universities.

Paralympic career

Mitchell won a silver medal at the 2011 IPC World Championships and the same year won five gold medals at the UCI World Para-cycling Championships and National Para-cycling Championships. In 2010, she won the national Para-cycling Championships for H1 criterium. She holds American and world records in multiple

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

events and medaled in discus throw and club throw at the 2016 Rio Paralympics. She placed fourth in the 100 m, 200 m and discus throw at the 2012 Paralympics.

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Cassie American female cyclists American female discus throwers Track and field athletes with disabilities Paralympic track and field athletes of the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Sportspeople from Muskogee, Oklahoma Track and field athletes from Oklahoma 1981 births Living people 21st-century American women scientists Scientists from Oklahoma Oklahoma State University alumni Emory University alumni Georgia Tech alumni Emory University faculty Georgia Tech faculty American biomedical engineers Medalists at the 2016 Summer Paralympics Medalists at the 2020 Summer Paralympics Paralympic medalists in athletics (track and field) Paralympic silver medalists for the United States Paralympic bronze medalists for the United States Medalists at the 2015 Parapan American Games American women academics Cyclists from Oklahoma Wheelchair discus throwers Club throwers Paralympic discus throwers Paralympic club throwers