At a time when slavery defined African Americans and education was reserved for white folks, Mary McLeod Bethune was a pioneer in the education of Black people. McLeod Bethune was born in 1875 to Sam and Patsy McLeod, who were both enslaved. She was the fifteenth of seventeen siblings and was the first one to get an education. Bethune realized that the only difference between white and black people was the ability to read and write.
In her younger years, she would accompany her mother to deliver what was referred to as white people’s wash. She would go to the white kids’ nursery to explore the toys, and it was here that she discovered books. Curious to find out what was in one of the books, she opened it, but a white child snatched it away, citing that Bethune didn’t know how to read. The assertion birthed her quest to get an education. Luckily, a missionary opened a school for African-American children, marking the beginning of Bethune’s journey to obtaining knowledge. She was the first child in her family to attend the school, which was five miles away. It was during Mary’s school days when she met Emma Jane Wilson, who became her mentor. Having attended Scotia Seminary herself, Wilson helped Bethune secure a scholarship at the all-girls school. Mary went on to join Dwight L. Moody’s Institute for Home and Foreign Missions, hoping to work as a missionary in Africa. However, since no church could sponsor a black missionary, Mary decided to become an educator. She worked as a teacher at Sumter County, her former elementary school, before
joining Haines Normal and Industrial Institute. While working here, she met Lucy Craft Laney, the school’s founder, who was keen on imbibing Christian moral education in students. Bethune was so impressed that she adapted most of Laney’s educational philosophies in her school.
The world opened up when I learnt to read.”
Mary McLeod Bethune
After divorcing her husband, Bethune founded her school and called it the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Negro Girls. With only five girls to teach, Bethune was determined to educate as many black girls as possible. The school population grew to over 250 students until 1923 when she decided to merge the school with Cookman Institute for Men. The merged institute was called Bethune-Cookman College and was one of the few places black students could earn a college degree. Mary remained the school president until 1942 when she began serving black people in a national capacity. She rendered her expertise to several presidents, including President Herbert Hoover, President Calvin Coolidge, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who gave her most notable roles in government service.
President Roosevelt appointed her as the special advisor on minority affairs in 1935 and later as the director of the National Youth Administration for Negro Affairs to help young black people find jobs. Bethune also founded a civil rights organization called the National Council of Negro Women, which was a significant milestone in black history. Mary desired to represent groups working on issues affecting black women through the organization. She also served as a vice president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored Persons and an advisor before the creation of the Women’s Army Corps. Bethune’s contributions remain etched in black history online, as she has received many awards even after passing on. In 2022, she was recognized as the first African American to be awarded the state statue at the National Statuary Hall Collection in the U.S. Capitol.