[2] Born in Chicago, Ackerman was the valedictorian of her graduating class at Lake View High School.
[1] Prior to attending college, she was a weather observer and flight briefer for the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES) in World War II.
[3] Ackerman attended the University of Chicago throughout her education, where she received her a bachelor's degree in meteorology and Phi Beta Kappa in 1948, her master's degree in meteorology in 1955, and her PhD in geophysical science in 1965.
[2][4] After earning her bachelor's degree, Ackerman took up a position as a meteorologist and hydrologist at the U.S.
She left Texas A&M in 1970 and returned to Argonne for two years, then moved to the Illinois State Water Survey at the University of Illinois, where she stayed until 1989, eventually becoming the head of the meteorology section.