Florida Senate - 2017                            (NP)    SR 1284
       
       
        
       By Senator Hukill
       
       
       
       
       
       14-01779-17                                           20171284__
    1                          Senate Resolution                        
    2         A resolution honoring Bethune-Cookman University and
    3         recognizing March 22, 2017, as “Wildcat Day” in
    4         Florida.
    5  
    6         WHEREAS, on October 3, 1904, Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune, with
    7  “five girls, $1.50, and faith in God,” founded the Daytona
    8  Educational and Industrial Training School for Negro Girls in
    9  Daytona Beach, which would become Bethune-Cookman College in
   10  1931, and
   11         WHEREAS, through the power of God and the tenacity of Mary
   12  McLeod Bethune, the Daytona Educational and Industrial Training
   13  School for Negro Girls grew from an all-girls elementary school
   14  to Bethune-Cookman College, launching its first master’s degree
   15  program in 2006 and achieving university status in early 2007,
   16  and
   17         WHEREAS, with a current total enrollment of 3,934, Bethune
   18  Cookman University offers 43 degrees through 12 academic schools
   19  and colleges, including 7 graduate degree programs, and 11
   20  online degrees; maintains intercollegiate athletic programs and
   21  instrumental and choral groups that have achieved national
   22  recognition; and is one of three private historically black
   23  colleges and universities in the state, and
   24         WHEREAS, on March 20, 2013, after serving 11 months as
   25  interim president, Edison O. Jackson, Ed.D., accepted the
   26  appointment to become the sixth president of Bethune-Cookman
   27  University, bringing with him a wealth of experience and
   28  knowledge in administering the affairs of educational
   29  institutions, and
   30         WHEREAS, under President Jackson’s leadership, Bethune
   31  Cookman University has increased philanthropic giving to the
   32  university and maintained accreditations with the Southern
   33  Association of Colleges and Schools, the Florida State Board of
   34  Education, and the United Methodist Church Board of Higher
   35  Education, and
   36         WHEREAS, in recent years, Bethune-Cookman University has
   37  remodeled the dining hall, renovated Gertrude Heyn Memorial
   38  Chapel, and added four floors to the Harrison Rhodes Memorial
   39  Social Science Building and has constructed two new residence
   40  halls that allow the university to house 3,000 students, the
   41  most in the school’s history, and
   42         WHEREAS, Bethune-Cookman University strives to develop
   43  global leaders who are committed to service, lifelong learning,
   44  and diversity by providing a faith-based environment for
   45  academic excellence and transformative experiences, and
   46         WHEREAS, Bethune-Cookman University’s motto, “Enter to
   47  learn. Depart to serve,” represents a call to action for 21st
   48  century learners to empower themselves and others, connect with
   49  their communities, and influence the world around them, NOW,
   50  THEREFORE,
   51  
   52  Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida:
   53  
   54         That March 22, 2017, is recognized as “Wildcat Day” in
   55  Florida in recognition of Bethune-Cookman University’s
   56  contribution as an outstanding institution of higher education.
   57         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution be
   58  presented to the president of Bethune-Cookman University, Edison
   59  O. Jackson, Ed.D., as a tangible token of the sentiments
   60  expressed herein.