Mary McLeod Bethune

born July 10, 1875, died May 18, 1955

As a child, Mary Mcleod Bethune walked ten miles a day to attend
school. This experience certainly shaped her life as a pioneering 
educator for African-Americans. After being rejected for missionary
service, Bethune entered the teaching profession. In 1904, she opened
the Daytona Educational and Industrial Training School for Negro
Girls. In 1923, with a faculty and staff of 25 and a student body of
300, the school merged with Cookman Institute and became co-educational.
The school was renamed the Bethune-Cookman Institute in 1929, and
awarded its first four-year degrees in 1943. President Franklin Roosevelt 
placed her in charge of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration 
in 1936 making her the first Black woman to be a presidential adviser. In 
1935, Bethune founded the National Council of Negro Women, which united 
many major national Black women's associations.