Mary Bethune

Mary McLeod Bethune (1875-1955) was one of the great educators of the twentieth century. She was fifteenth of seventeen children and her parents and older siblings were born into slavery.

Coming from such humble beginnings, that she would become a primary educator of women and an advisor and friend of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt is an incredible achievement. That she did this as an African American in the south, in a time of rampant Jim Crow, is truly amazing.

Dr. Bethune was as accessible to her students as she was to presidents (she was advisor to 4) She’s one of those women I wish I could have had over for dinner.

Mary McLeod Bethune - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia en.wikipedia.org
Mary Jane McLeod Bethune (July 10, 1875 – May 18, 1955) was an American educator and civil rights leader best known for starting a school for African American students in Daytona Beach, Florida, that eventually became Bethune-Cookman University and for being an advisor to President Franklin D. Roose...