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Today is July 13th. We're at Lincoln Park for the Mary McLeod Bethune statue rededication for the 50th anniversary. I'm Corinne Davenport. Do we have your permission to record this interview? You do. Alrighty. And do you want to introduce yourself? Yes, I am Dr. Connie Rivers-Mitchell, president of the Daytona Beach, Florida section of National Council of Negro Women and an alumna of Bethune-Cookman University.

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Amazing. So can you tell us just what brought you here today? Well, I had to come. I was here the entire week because earlier this week, the National Museum of African American History and Culture unveiled privately their new exhibit about Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune and her work with activism, and not just about her, but also about other black women in the United States who have worked towards equality for women. Amazing. And what about her life and career draws you to her as a historical figure? What stands out to you? What stands out to me? As a little girl, my mother was in school at Morris Brown College in Atlanta, Georgia, when she first met Mary McLeod Bethune. And as little girls, she always talked about her, the boom in her voice, like you could hear a needle drop as soon as she opened her mouth to speak and how powerful her presence was, and her words were to encourage them as college students, to get out, to vote, and to also get others out to vote. Yeah. So I grew up with that, and I grew up in a family where mostly everyone went to an HBCU. And so the decision for me was Bethune-Cookman University back in the '90s. So 30 years ago, I first went to Bethune-Cookman. Yes.

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So how was your relationship? It sounds like you you obviously knew about her since you were real small. How was your relationship with her as a historical figure? How has your perspective on her changed with all that time being so close to her as a figure? Right. I learned more in depth details about the Mary McLeod Bethune as I grew older, as I became a student at Bethune-Cookman University. At the time, it was Bethune-Cookman College, so I got a chance to see the transition as a alumna. Also as a employee and just a lover of her legacy and a product of her legacy. And so I have two degrees from Bethune-Cookman, of my four degrees. And I'm just so proud to be a Wildcat. I'm proud to be a part of her legacy. And then I was also blessed to be able to be the first one to nominate her when they opened up public nominations in the state of Florida for who would represent the state of Florida with a statue created in the US Capitol, the National Statuary Hall. And so to see that transpire, just from my being obedient to say, let me nominate Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune to the point of where we are today, where so many celebrations are happening and reenactments are going on. It's just amazing to be on this journey to see all of this come to fruition, because she was such an amazing person, not just for black people, but for all Americans, because you got to think about she helped to write the charter for the United Nations, which we still use until this day. And just this week on her birthday is when the NATO summit started. So all of that was just cataclysmic together. When we think about the impact, the seeds that she planted for all of us. Yeah. And what drew you to the school in the first place? What drew me to Bethune-Cookman in the first place was seeing the Marching Wildcats in Georgia when they played, the football team played against a nearby HBCU where I'm from, Georgia, and saw the band marching in. Some other divine instances happened that I was able to actually attend Bethune-Cookman, but I gave up a full scholarship to another huge university to go to Bethune-Cookman, and I was a marching Wildcat. One of the first women to play the trombone in that band. Yes.

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One of my best friends plays trombone. That's unrelated. Yep yep yep. What all did you study there? What all did you learn there? That experience? Well, during my matriculation, I studied chemistry. So I have my Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Bethune-Cookman. I also learned more about leadership. I was always doing youth leadership anyway, but there was a different level of leadership that we learned while at Bethune-Cookman. One of their items that they always promote, especially in the science department, was to educate the whole child. So we were exposed to so much, and even unto this day, I get a chance to go back and talk to some of the science majors. I've even gone back and I've taught math and I've taught biology at the university. I was the director of testing there at one time, so anytime I can give back in any way, I always try my best to do that. And I always think of Dr. Bethune, so I make sure I do whatever in service to Bethune-Cookman with excellence.

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Amazing. And in your work, how do you try and kind of carry her philosophy, her work with you? How do you carry that out every day? Yeah. The last tenant of her last will and testament was about leaving the responsibility to children. I am an educator, and I've been an educator for over 20 plus years. And one of the things I make sure is not just looking at a child, but, you know, you make sure that you are educating the entire child, just like they did for us, and making sure that they are whole, making sure that they have what they need not just academically but also socially. And what do they need at home? Dr. Bethune was all about that. She made sure her students had what they needed. When she had a student who was sick, who could not be seen or would not be seen at the whites only hospital. What did she do? She went and built her own hospital on the campus. And so who else would do that for their students? And so we go high and above and beyond for our Wildcats. And I just love that about her legacy and that we continue to see that in how we motivate and encourage our students today. Amazing. And is there anything that she would address or talk about back, you know, with her actual work that you think is still a problem worth addressing? How do you see her legacy of work continuing? Yeah, I think that she saw a lot of chaos. She saw a lot of things unraveling that would make a lot of folks feel like there was no hope. And I think we're in the same sort of situation in America right now, where we have so many people who are disgruntled about what they see. But if you just go back and look at what brought her to where she is today or what brought her legacy to what it is today, you will know that no matter what you see around you, no matter how chaotic it looks and sounds, there is still hope and God is still in the plan. Just have faith.

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Amazing. Is there anything else you want to mention about yourself? Mary McLeod Bethune? Your work? Mhm. I have just been so in awe. One of the things that many people don't talk about is her faith in God. And so when we were in school, we learned about she started the school with five little girls, her son $1.50 and faith in God. But then along the years, people have stopped dropping and started dropping that part. And I don't think people understand the level of faith a person like her had to have to get all the things done that she got done. She had the ear of five presidential administrations, and no one else could say they had that. To make the kind of impact to help integrate the armed forces, the entire armed forces, to help the Tuskegee Airmen come about. To have women going into the armed forces. All of that was because of the seeds that Mary McLeod Bethune planted. And so when you look at all of the things that she had done, even with the United Nations, everything that she did has some reflection on us as Americans today and the freedoms that we enjoy today. And so you cannot think about American history without thinking about Mary McLeod Bethune history and her legacy. Amazing. Thank you very much. You're welcome. Thank you.