HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) – LaToya Dorsey is a hometown girl. She’s passionate about her family and helping children achieve their dreams… not to mention, she’s also an engineer.

Her husband, Carl Dorsey, submitted a beautiful nomination letter for Remarkable Women, and it absolutely captivated our judges’ hearts. Here’s a glimpse into why LaToya was chosen as the 2023 Tennessee Valley Remarkable Woman of the Year.

The nomination letter highlighted her endless love for her family and husband but also highlighted the amazing work she is doing for the children of the Tennessee Valley.

LaToya, a woman who admittedly “hated math” growing up, ended up getting her degree in math, and becoming an engineer.

“I was not very good in math and at the time I really just hated it. But my parents found a lady that was offering tutoring services. So I worked with her for years and my passion for math just grew,” LaToya told News 19’s Chief Meteorologist Danielle Dozier.

LaToya’s childhood tutor inspired a higher purpose, and she started tutoring kids on her own.

Tutoring turned to advocacy for STEM education — LaToya, as the President of the National Society of Black Engineers, saw an opportunity.

She helped organize the association’s Annual Robotics Camp which is offered to a selected elementary school in the Huntsville/Madison County area.

“When we first started the Robotic Camp, we had 50 students and we had to charge them. We presented the information to Huntsville City Schools… And at that time they decided to go ahead and start funding the camp. Four or five years later, we had 400 young kids.”  

For LaToya, it’s about raising children and young adults up. She’s worked with middle school, high school and even college students, doing mock interviews with them and preparing for their careers.

LaToya has impacted thousands of children in the community and probably changed some of their lives. She says hearing children’s success stories encourages her to keep going.

“It is a joy when the kids do come back. I think over the years, a lot of the running and things that I did, I was a single mom at the time.” Her kids also served as motivation.

LaToya had two daughters and she wanted them to see that they can go out and do these things too. “Being an African-American female in STEM, there wasn’t a lot of that, I wasn’t able to see other people like myself there,” LaToya said. “I wanted to make sure that my girls were able to see that and to be to know that they can go out there and do those types of things.”

When asked about what advice she has for young women, her words were, “Keep striving, try to get it all done, and not let anyone deter you.” (We think that is great advice!)

As part of her Remarkable Woman 2023 recognition, News 19 makes a $1,000 donation in her name to the not-for-profit of her choice.

LaToya chose the North Alabama National Society of Black Engineers Professionals. You can watch that story in the video player above.

If you missed any of News 19’s stories on our Remarkable Women honorees, read them here.