Dorothy Height (born March 24, 1912, , Va., U.S.—died April 20, 2010, Washington, D.C.) was an American and women’s rights activist, a widely respected and influential leader of organizations focused primarily on improving the circumstances of and opportunities for African American women.Reared in Rankin, Pa., Height graduated in 1933 from with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in . She was involved in social service for some six decades, four of them as president of the (NCNW), an umbrella organization that comprises civic, church, educational, labour, community, and professional groups. Her involvement with the (YWCA) facilities for black women, dating to the 1930s, led to her advocacy of improved conditions for black domestic workers, to her election to national office within the YWCA, and to her involvement with that organization’s integration policy. In 1957 she became the fourth president of the NCNW, which she steered through the civil rights struggles of the 1960s by organizing voter registration in the South, voter education in the North, and scholarship programs for student civil rights workers. In the 1970s she helped the NCNW win grants to provide vocational training and assist women in opening businesses., Dorothy Irene Height (March 24, 1912 – April 20, 2010) was an African-American civil rights and women's rights activist. [1] She focused on the issues of African-American women, including unemployment , illiteracy , and voter awareness. [ 2 ], Dorothy Irene Height was born on March 24 th, 1912 in Richmond, Virginia. Her family later moved to Rankin, Pennsylvania where she excelled as a student. Her family later moved to Rankin, Pennsylvania where she excelled as a student..