Draft:HBCU's and the black women who founded them

HBCU's
Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU’s) are post-secondary institutions established before the passing of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. With 107 HBCU’s in the US, there are several notable founders. Many founders are men, however, four HBCU’s were founded by Black women, three of them being; Voorhees University, Lewis College of Business, and Bethune Cookman University.

Early Life
Violet Temple Lewis was born in Lima, Ohio in 1897 to William and Eva Harrison. Lewis was the 2nd child of 6. Lewis went to Lima High School in Lima, Ohio, and graduated in 1915. Once she graduated her father told her to either get a job or go to college so Lewis attended Wilberforce University. Wilberforce University was the first private HBCU in the United States. At Wilberforce, Violet Lewis participated in the secretarial program and graduated from Wilberforce in 1917.

Working Life
After graduating from Wilberforce, Lewis wanted to stay in Indiana to be near her family, so she looked for jobs in the area. Her first job was as a secretary to the president of Selma University. While Lewis worked at Selma, She learned the inner workings of a college, and how one was run. While being a secretary at Selma, Lewis requested to start teaching secretarial skills in the business department of the school. Selma College allowed her to start teaching in the business department of the school, which was her first work teaching. In 1920, Lewis was hired by the Madam C.J. WalkerCompany, which at the time was the largest Black-owned company in Indiana. Lewis worked at Walker Company from 1920 to 1927 as a bookkeeper. When Madam C.J Walker died in 1919, one year before Lewis started working at the company, the company had forty thousand employees, who were majority African American Women.

The Creation of Lewis College of Business
After graduating college and working for 7 years, Lewis was frustrated with the lack of black female secretaries in the workforce. After complaining about the issue, Lewis’ mother, Eva Harrison told her that instead of just speaking about the problem she should take action and fix the problem herself.

In 1928 in the midst of the Great Depression, with a 50 dollar loan from the bank Lewis bought a couple of used typewriters and officially opened Lewis College of Business. The original goal of the school was to teach black women seeking secretarial skills.

=Early Years of Lewis College of Business=

Lewis College of Business started in Violet Lewis’ home, with tuition being 2 dollars and 50 cents a week. In the early years of the college, the goal was to teach black women secretarial skills, because of a lack of black secretaries. While teaching at her college, Lewis had a separate full-time job and was a single mother to her two daughters Phyllis and Marjorie.

In 1932 Lewis started her own radio program called the “Negro Melody Hour” to boost enrollment at Lewis College of Business, which became popular enough for her to broadcast in other cities including Detroit. The “Negro Melody Hour” made Lewis the first African American radio announcer in Indiana. In 1939 Lewis put down a 1,000 dollar deposit on a 10,000 dollar mansion in Detroit, to become the first official building of Lewis College of Business. The mansion is located on John R St & E Ferry St, which is now a Detroit landmark. At the official opening of the college, the then Michigan Governor James Blanchard was there to cut the ribbon.

On February 20, 1943 co-founded a professional sorority with her sister Elizabeth Garner, called Gamma Phi Delta. The goal of the sorority was to create a community for female students to learn to conduct themselves in all aspects of life including, how to dress, manners, how to sit properly, and how to conduct themselves in a poised manner. Lewis felt this was important for African American women to learn if they were going into secretarial jobs because it was harder for African Americans to get hired at the time and she wanted them to have the best chance possible for success once graduated.

Lewis College of Business after the death of Violet Lewis
Violet T. Lewis died on March 22, 1968, in Detroit, Michigan.

When Lewis died, her two daughters went on the run the college. Her daughter Dr. Phyllis Ponders became the dean of Lewis College of Business, and her other daughter Dr. Marjorie Harris became the president of Lewis College of Business.

Her daughters moved the college in 1976 the college moved its campus to Meyers Road with a new 11-acre campus. Her granddaughter, Dr. Violet Ponders became the third college president after her Aunt Marjorie retired.

Lewis College of Business Achievements
In 1978, Lewis College of Business received accreditation from the North Central College of Business and Schools as a college offering a liberal arts program. In 1987, the U.S. education secretary officially made Lewis College of Business one of the country's historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). With the official title as an HBCU, Lewis College of Business officially became Michigains only HBCU.

Violet T. Lewis’ Legacy
Even after Lewis passed away, she was still long after credited for her work. Lewis received a posthumous honorary doctorate from her alma mater, Wilberforce University. In 1992, Lewis was also inducted into the Michigan Women’s Hall of Fame. Lewis is given credit to this day for the 40,000 students who were educated at Lewis College of Business. The first African Americans hired by the “Big Three '', General Motors, Chryslers and Ford Motor Car Company were majority graduates of Lewis College of Business.

The Closing of Lewis College of Business
In 2007 Lewis College of Business lost its HBCU accreditation. In 2013 with Detroit's decline, the Lewis College of Business campus closed. In 2015 the College officially closed.

The Redesign and Reopening of Pensole Lewis College of Business and Design
In 2022 Lewis College was reopened, with some changes to the original. Successful shoe designer Dr.D'wayne Edwards reopened the college as the new president. Edward is also the founder of Pensole Footwear Design Academy in Portland, Oregon. Edwards reopened the college in the hope of filling the creative void in Detroit and bringing back the black talent. Edwards reopened the college merging the two schools, but kept Lewis’ belief in excellence. The school now leans more into the design aspect of the college offering different departments such as:

-Footwear Design Department

-Color and Material Design Department

-Apparel Design Department

-Product Marketing Department

To make sure that Lewis and her legacy are always remembered, the school's new colors are different shades of violet.

Early Life
Elizabeth Evelyn Wright was born on April 3, 1872, just outside of Talbotton, Georgia, during a time of racial segregation. Wright was born to two formerly enslaved people as the seventh of twenty-one children. Her father Wesley Wright was an African American carpenter, and her mother Virginia Rolfe was a full blooded Cherokee. However, Wright was raised by her uncle and her maternal grandmother, who moved her to Talbatton at the age of ten for better educational opportunities.

Educational Life
After moving to Talbatton, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright continued her academic career and was recommended by a teacher to apply to the Tuskegee Agricultural and Industrial Institute, a school in Tuskegee, Alabama founded by Booker T. Washington. In 1888 at the early age of 16, Wright left Georgia and enrolled in Tuskegee University, then known as Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute, where her education was paid for by George W. Kelley, a judge from Massachusetts. During her time at Tuskegee University, Wright was greatly inspired by Booker T. Washington and Margaret Murray Washington.

During her senior year at Tuskegee, Wright left temporarily due to a decline in her health but used it as an opportunity to teach in Hampton County, South Carolina for three months. In 1894 after returning to Tuskegee University, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright earned her degree and utilized teachings from Booker T. Washington and his industrial and agricultural model. Wright applied the model to the education of African Americans back in Hampton County, South Carolina.

=The Creation of Voorhees University==

After graduating, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright returned to Hampton County to establish a school of her own. When establishing Voorhees, Elizabeth Evelyn Wright modeled it after Tuskegee University, her alma mater. Wright made many attempts to open a school that was unsuccessful due to interference from White people who committed arson on her school building. Despite the three consecutive arson attacks, several attempts were made by Wright in Hampton County. She spent every day walking five to twenty miles reaching out to people to gain support for her school. With little success in Hampton County, Wright transferred her work to Denmark, South Carolina, where she was met with great support from the community.

With the support of Booker T. Washington, Wright purchased a twenty-acre plot belonging to S.G Mayfield, a US Senator in 1897. The land was sold to Wright for $2,000 which she was able to make a down payment on through the help of donations from community members and thirty-three different churches.

While in the process of raising money to pay for the land, Wright had opened her school in a room above an abandoned school.

Wright received many offers from organizations and philanthropic groups to help pay off the school’s debt but she refused, wanting the school to be independent.

At the time of the school's opening on April 14, 1897, Wright named it the Denmark Industrial School for Colored Youth. By 1900 the school had grown vastly and was in great need of expansion. When looking for land to do so, Wright found a 280-acre plot of land in the ownership of Dr.S.DM. Guess. The price for the land had originally been set at $3,000 by Guess who then raised it up to $4,500.

Although she had initially refused large donations, Wright asked Ralph Voorhees, a philanthropist from New Jersey for financial support. Voorhees provided Wright with a $5,000 donation to buy the land and build the school. In 1902, after receiving help from Voorhees, the Denmark Industrial School for Colored Youth was renamed to be Voorhees College, after donor Ralph Voorhees and his wife Elizabeth Voorhees who both contributed greatly to the expansion of the school. The new Denmark Industrial School, opened as the only high school for Black students in the area, with Wright as principal.

Voorhees University
In 1924, Voorhees gained support from the American Church Institute for Negroes, an institution affiliated with the Episcopal Church. The partnership between the Episcopal Church and Voorhees came about through the belief that the church can only strengthen people with help from Christian schools, going hand in hand with the belief that colleges can only educate young people effectively with spiritual influence from the church.

In 1929, Voorhees began to offer post-secondary education, changing its name to Voorhees Normal and Industrial School as a result.

In 1947, the name was changed again to Voorhees School and Junior College, but was changed again to Voorhees College in 1962 after being accredited as a four-year college, making Wright the first Black women to found an HBCU. Finally, Voorhees College became Voorhees University in 2022.

Today, Voorhees University is a private four-year liberal, co-educational arts university that is affiliated with the UNCF and has still extended its relationship with the Episcopal church. Voorhees was the first HBCU in the state of South Carolina to be accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The school is an HBCU, providing education to around a smaller number of students, with an enrollment of just over 500 students for the 2022-23 school year. Residing just 50 miles from Columbia, South Carolina, Voorhees is a school with a mission to provide students with comprehensive general education in addition to professional education. Voorhees University offers a wide range of degrees in areas such as computer science, business administration, biology, and several others.

The Legacy of Elizabeth Evelyn Wright
Elizabeth Evelyn Wright passed away on December 14, 1906. The work of Elizabeth Evelyn Wright allowed for the development of a school still withholding her values of education and spirituality, instilling it into its many students today. Wright’s work created an institution in which students are able to blend their religious faith with their intelligence while working their way up to careers in professional fields. Voorhees University runs under their motto “Begin, Believe, Become”, with the goal of helping students achieve their “next level of excellence”. '''

Early life
Mary McLeod Bethune was born on July 10th, 1875, in Mayesville South Carolina. She was the child of formerly enslaved parents. She was one of the youngest of seventeen children. In 1894 she graduated from a boarding school in South Carolina named Scotia Seminary, when she graduated from there she went to Dwight Moody’s Institute for Home and Foreign Missions which was located in Chicago Illinois. There she found no one to sponsor her so she decided to follow the path of becoming an educator.

Working Life
Mary started her work in education in South Carolina where she got married to Albertus Bethune. They ended up having a son in 1899. She and her family moved to Palatka, Florida where she found work at a Presbyterian Church and would sell insurance to provide for her family. When Mary and her husband Albertus divorced in 1904, she was determined to care for her son which led her to open up her boarding school.

The Creation Of Bethune Cookman University
Bethune Cookman University was not always a college, it started as a small school for girls and consisted of 6 children, one being her son, Albert. This school was called Daytona Literary and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls, and was founded on October 3rd, 1904, and run by Mary McLeod Bethune. She started the school in a two-story building owned by John Williams, and although the rent was $11 a month, Mary only had $1.50 to mark as a down payment.

Despite Bethune's small amount of money, she still managed to get the items and supplies she needed to run the school. Packing crates and boxes were used as furniture, upside-down baskets were their chairs, and the students would sleep on a cast-off double bed with mattresses made from donated corn sacks that Mary would sew together and stuff with Spanish Moss. Her pencils were made from charred wood, and ink from elderberries. To gain funds to provide lunch for the kids, Bethune would sell her sweet potato pies to black railroad workers and put the proceeds into groceries, often neighbors would donate food as well.

Despite all this hard work, it still was not enough, the rent was not covered in time so the school was forced to move to the city dump. But Mary didn't stop there. She continued to sell her pies until she had 5 dollars to put down for the payment. She impressed many people with her drive, sacrifices, and commitment to the school, in return, they provided money to fund the school. Some of these donors were John D. Rockefeller, James N. Gamble, Thomas White, and Harrison Rhodes. In less than 2 years the school grew from 5 students to 250. Without Mary's entrepreneurial mindset, faith in god, and resilience, the school would not have remained.

Early Years of Bethune Cookman University
In 1923, Daytona Literary and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls merged with Cookman Institute of Jacksonville Florida. The merger between the schools began in 1923 and ended in 1925. The new institution was named Daytona-Cookman Collegiate Institute

In 1931, Daytona-Cookman Collegiate Institute became a junior college, approved through the Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools of the Southern States. On April 27th, 1931 the name was officially changed to Bethune-Cookman College to represent Mary McLeod Bethune’s Leadership.

Bethune Cookman University After the Death of Mary McLeod Bethune
Bethune Cookman University is still around and thriving today. The student population was 2,628 in the fall of 2022, the campus is 82 acres making it a smaller college. The university is also a private college with an 85% acceptance rate. The student population is very diverse in race with 81% African American, 6% Hispanic, 2% International, 1% White, and 3% multi-race student population. The gender representation within the school is also very diverse with 63% female and 37% Male population.

The school offers many choices in majors such as Art and Humanities, Business and Entrepreneurship, Science Engineering and Mathematics, and Nursing and Health Sciences. Through each of these majors except Art and Humanities, you’re able to have multiple choices for your programs such as Undergrad, Minor, and Graduate. For Art and Humanities, you get the option of which school you would like to attend based on your interests such as the School of Education, School of Liberal Arts, School of Religion, etc.

Bethune Cookman University Achievements
Since 1943, Bethune Cookman University has been able to graduate over 19,000 students who continue to work in multiple different fields such as Arts, Engineering, Science, Government Religion, etc. They have also been recognized nationally for their athletic programs provided, which consists of baseball (men's), Basketball (women & men), Cross Country/Track and Field (women & men), Football (men's), Bowling (women's), Golf (women's), Softball (women's), Tennis (women's), Volleyball (women's), and Cheerleading (Co-Ed). They have also received national recognition for their instrumental and choral groups. Bethune Cookman University is known for its small community, remarkable teachers, strong academics, and HBCU sensibility.

The Legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary McLeod Bethune went on to hold many valuable leadership positions in numerous organizations and found some of her own, all while running Bethune Cookman University. In 1935 she founded the National Council of Negro Women, which became important in the civil rights movement and was a very important organization. In 1936 President Franklin Roosevelt arranged Mary to the National Youth Administration, and was the only female member of Roosevelt's “Black Cabinet”. Through her friendship with Roosevelt's wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, she helped integrate the Civilian Pilot Training Program into HBCUs which led to some of the first black pilots.

In 1939, she was the National Youth Administration Director of Negro Affairs, She was one of the founders of the United Negro College Fund, helped integrate the Red Cross, and in 1941 she led the US delegation to Liberia for the inauguration of President William V.S. Tubman. She contributed to President Truman’s Committee of Twelve for National Defense in 1951, received an honorary doctorate from Rollins College, and recently in 2021, will become the first-ever African American to represent a state in the National Statuary Hall.

All of these aspects of her continue to be honored and celebrated at Bethune Cookman University. They pact to “carry forward her legacy” by dedicating itself to service, and committing to building a future while using creativity, initiative, and persistence to better the University and the world.

Bethune Cookman University was not always a college, it started as a small school for girls and consisted of 6 children, one being her son, Albert. This school was called Daytona Literary and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls and was founded on October 3rd, 1904, and run by Mary McLeod Bethune. She started the school in a two-story building owned by John Williams, and although the rent was $11 a month, Mary only had $1.50 to mark as a down payment.

Despite Bethune's small amount of money, she still managed to get the items and supplies she needed to run the school. Packing crates and boxes were used as furniture, upside-down baskets were their chairs, and the students would sleep on a cast-off double bed with mattresses made from donated corn sacks that Mary would sew together and stuff with Spanish Moss. Her pencils were made from charred wood, and ink from elderberries. To gain funds to provide lunch for the kids, Bethune would sell her sweet potato pies to black railroad workers and put the proceeds into groceries, often neighbors would donate food as well.

Despite all this hard work, it still was not enough, the rent was not covered in time so the school was forced to move to the city dump. But Mary didn't stop there. She continued to sell her pies until she had 5 dollars to put down for the payment. She impressed many people with her drive, sacrifices, and commitment to the school, in return, they provided money to fund the school. Some of these donors were John D. Rockefeller, James N. Gamble, Thomas White, and Harrison Rhodes. In less than 2 years the school grew from 5 students to 250. Without Mary's entrepreneurial mindset, faith in god, and resilience, the school would not have remained.

Early Years of Bethune Cookman University
In 1923, Daytona Literary and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls merged with Cookman Institute of Jacksonville Florida. The merger between the schools began in 1923 and ended in 1925. The new institution was named Daytona-Cookman Collegiate Institute

In 1931, Daytona-Cookman Collegiate Institute became a junior college, approved through the Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools of the Southern States. On April 27th, 1931 the name was officially changed to Bethune-Cookman College to represent Mary McLeod Bethune’s Leadership.

Bethune Cookman University After the Death of Mary McLeod Bethune
Bethune Cookman University is still around and thriving today. The student population was 2,628 in the fall of 2022, the campus is 82 acres making it a smaller college. The university is also a private college with an 85% acceptance rate. The student population is very diverse in race with 81% African American, 6% Hispanic, 2% International, 1% White, and 3% multi-race student population. The gender representation within the school is also very diverse with 63% female and 37% Male population.

The school offers many choices in majors such as Art and Humanities, Business and Entrepreneurship, Science Engineering and Mathematics, and Nursing and Health Sciences. Through each of these majors except Art and Humanities, you’re able to have multiple choices for your programs such as Undergrad, Minor, and Graduate. For Art and Humanities, you get the option of which school you would like to attend based on your interests such as the School of Education, School of Liberal Arts, School of Religion, etc.

Bethune Cookman University Achievements
Since 1943, Bethune Cookman University has been able to graduate over 19,000 students who continue to work in multiple different fields such as Arts, Engineering, Science, Government Religion, etc. They have also been recognized nationally for their athletic programs provided, which consists of baseball (men's), Basketball (women & men), Cross Country/Track and Field (women & men), Football (men's), Bowling (women's), Golf (women's), Softball (women's), Tennis (women's), Volleyball (women's), and Cheerleading (Co-Ed). They have also received national recognition for their instrumental and choral groups. Bethune Cookman University is known for its small community, remarkable teachers, strong academics, and HBCU sensibility.

The Legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune
Mary McLeod Bethune went on to hold many valuable leadership positions in numerous organizations and found some of her own, all while running Bethune Cookman University. In 1935 she founded the National Council of Negro Women, which became important in the civil rights movement and was a very important organization. In 1936 President Franklin Roosevelt arranged Mary to the National Youth Administration, and was the only female member of Roosevelt's “Black Cabinet”. Through her friendship with Roosevelt's wife, Eleanor Roosevelt, she helped integrate the Civilian Pilot Training Program into HBCUs which led to some of the first black pilots.

In 1939, she was the National Youth Administration Director of Negro Affairs, She was one of the founders of the United Negro College Fund, helped integrate the Red Cross, and in 1941 she led the US delegation to Liberia for the inauguration of President William V.S. Tubman. She contributed to President Truman’s Committee of Twelve for National Defense in 1951, received an honorary doctorate from Rollins College, and recently in 2021, will become the first-ever African American to represent a state in the National Statuary Hall.

All of these aspects of her continue to be honored and celebrated at Bethune Cookman University. They pact to “carry forward her legacy” by dedicating itself to service, and committing to building a future while using creativity, initiative, and persistence to better the University and the world.