Bethune–Cookman University, formerly Bethune–Cookman College, is a private, co-ed, historically black university located in Daytona Beach, Florida, United States. The primary administration building, White Hall, and the Mary McLeod Bethune Home have been added to the US National Register of Historic Places.HistoryMary McLeod Bethune founded the Daytona Educational and Industrial Training School in 1904. The school underwent several stages of growth and development through the years and in 1923, it merged with the Cookman Institute of Jacksonville, Florida and became a co-ed high school. A year later in 1924, it became affiliated with the Methodist Church. By 1931, the school had become a junior college.The school became a four-year college in 1941 when the Florida Department of Education approved a 4-year baccalaureate program in Liberal Arts and Teacher Education. The name was changed to Bethune–Cookman College.On February 14, 2007, the Board of Trustees approved the name Bethune–Cookman University after the institution established its first graduate program.PresidentsBethune retired in 1942, at which time James A. Colston became president. In 1946 Bethune resumed the presidency for a year.Richard V. Moore, Sr. became president in 1947. Under his tenure the college was accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 1970. It joined the United Negro College Fund and other academic and professional organizations. The curriculum expanded, student enrollment increased, and new buildings were constructed for residential housing and classrooms.
