ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Florida Memorial University, which educated students in St. Augustine from 1918 to 1968, will be recognized Friday morning with a proclamation to acknowledge a partnership with the Florida Museum of Black History Project.
Florida’s first Black history museum will be built in St. Johns County after years of figuring out where it would go. In October, the county approved a Ground Lease Agreement to help move the project forward on the former FMU campus.
Recommended Videos
Friday’s proclamation recognizes how students at FMU, one of the state’s oldest academic institutions, played an important role during the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s, helping to shape national laws like the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Graduates from the class of 1967, the year before the school moved to Miami, said they are proud to be a part of that history.
“It’s so important to know about your past, and that helps you with a positive path going forward. It’s about possibilities to me,” alum Janice Baker Whitty said.
In September, the state awarded $1 million to get the museum project underway. Commissioners and organizers said the money is going to be used to start the planning, design process and engineering of the museum.
The county could be breaking ground on the project later this year.
Here is the full proclamation from the county:
WHEREAS, Florida Memorial University (FMU,) one of the oldest academic centers in the state, began its third incarnation in St. Augustine on September 24, 1918; and
WHEREAS, the involvement of FMU students in local events during the 1950s and 1960s contributed to the advancement of civil rights and influenced national legislation, including the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which ultimately lead FMU to relocate its campus to Dade County; and
WHEREAS, FMU maintained ownership of the prior campus property allowing for an eventual partnership with the County which provides an opportunity to develop a state-of-the-art facility for the Florida Museum of Black History, which embodies and conveys the historical relevance of the property, the local area and the State of Florida; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT PROCLAIMED, by the Board of County Commissioners of St. Johns County, Florida that Florida Memorial University is recognized as an official partner for the Florida Museum of Black History Project:
Welcome Home Florida Memorial University!
Board of County Commissioners of St. Johns County