Elaine J.
Coates, an American social worker and educator, died on February 14, 2026. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 15, 1937, she was the first African American woman to graduate from the University of Maryland, College Park.
Coates later worked as a social worker and educator, teaching at the high school she had attended and earning a master’s degree in social work. She also became a Licensed Certified Social Worker–Clinical and provided social services to pediatric and adult trauma patients at Johns Hopkins Hospital before retiring in 2006.
Elaine Johnson Coates (September 15, 1937 – February 14, 2026) was an American social worker and educator. She was the first African American woman to graduate from the University of Maryland, College Park.