Edward Waters University is a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which th ...

. It was founded in 1866 by members of the

African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...

(AME Church) as a school to educate

freedmen A freedman or freedwoman is a formerly enslaved person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, enslaved people were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their captor-owners), emancipation (granted freedom ...

and their children. It was the first independent institution of higher education and the first historically black college in the State of Florida. It continues to be affiliated with the AME Church and is a member of the

Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida The Independent Colleges & Universities of Florida (ICUF) is an association of 30 private, educational institutions in the state of Florida. Like the 12 public universities in Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region ...

History

The AME Church was the first independent black denomination in the United States and was founded in 1816 in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

. After the Civil War, it sent numerous missionaries to the South to plant AME churches. The first

African Methodist Episcopal The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...

pastor in the state, William G. Steward, originally named the college Brown Theological Institute. L

Charles H. Pearce Charles H. Pearce (1817–1887) was a religious and political leader in Florida. An African Methodist Episcopal (AME) minister, he was dispatched to Florida in 1865, after the American Civil War. He had previously been a missionary in Canada a ...

was also involved in establishing an educational institution for the AME church in Jacksonville. Struggling with some financial difficulties, the school closed for much of the 1870s. It reopened in 1883 as "East Florida Conference High School”, then changed to “East Florida Scientific and Divinity High School.” Over the next ten years, the curriculum was expanded. In 1892, the school was renamed for Edward Waters, the third bishop of the AME Church.Davis, Ennis
"Edward Waters College"
''Metro Jacksonville,'' May 17, 2010 John R Scott (1)

A drawing of 1893 shows that the College President at that time was John R. Scott, Sr., first pastor of the St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church of Jacksonville, and a former member of the

Florida Legislature The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Co ...

. The original Edward Waters University campus was destroyed by the Great Fire of 1901. By 1904 the college obtained new land and work was started on the new facility. Edward Waters was accredited as a

junior college A junior college (sometimes referred to colloquially as a juco, JuCo or JC) is a post-secondary educational institution offering vocational training designed to prepare students for either skilled trades and technical occupations and workers in ...

in 1955 under President William B. Stewart and five years later had a restored four-year

curriculum In education, a curriculum (; plural, : curricula or curriculums) is broadly defined as the totality of student experiences that occur in the educational process. The term often refers specifically to a planned sequence of instruction, or to ...

. Beginning in 1979 the school was accredited as a four-year institution by the Commission on Colleges of the

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...

(SACS) and started awarding

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

Academics

Edward Waters University offers

s in eight academic programs including the following: Bachelor of Arts in communications, Music, Psychology, or Criminal Justice; Bachelor of Science in biology, Elementary Education or Mathematics; and Bachelor of Business Administration.

Accreditation

Beginning in 1979, Edward Waters University (EWU) was accredited as a four-year institution by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS-COC) and was recently fully reaffirmed in 2015. In 2004, Edward Waters University had submitted documents to SACS to support their request for reaccreditation. A ''

Florida Times-Union ''The Florida Times-Union'' is a daily newspaper in Jacksonville, Florida, United States. Widely known as the oldest newspaper in the state, it began publication as the ''Florida Union'' in 1864. Its current incarnation started in 1883, when th ...

'' investigation in October discovered that the EWU documents plagiarized sections of text and statistics from a similar Alabama A&M University document. The Commission on Colleges voted to drop EWU from membership in SACS, thus revoking the school's accreditation, but the school appealed. A hearing was held in Atlanta during February 2005, and the appeal by Edward Waters University was denied. The school filed a lawsuit seeking an injunction during litigation, which a federal judge granted. The judge ruled that the college could show they were denied due process, and appointed two mediators. In June, the college and SACS agreed to a settlement that allowed the school to remain accredited while re-filing their accreditation documentation. The university's

accreditation Accreditation is the independent, third-party evaluation of a conformity assessment body (such as certification body, inspection body or laboratory) against recognised standards, conveying formal demonstration of its impartiality and competence to ...

was reaffirmed in 2006.

Campus

Historic facilities

Centennial Hall

Centennial Hall, which contains the Obi-Scott-Umunna Collection of African Art, is the oldest building on campus. Built in 1916, it was added to the United States

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

on May 4, 1976. It was designed by Richard Lewis Brown, Jacksonville's first known black architect. The Centennial Hall building contains the Edward Waters University Library which, was relocated from the H. Y. Tookes Building in 1979. The library also contains art and artifacts from central and West Africa.

Administration

*Dr. Jimmy Jenkins, served as president from 1997 to 2005 and was credited with increasing enrollment and raising standards at the school. *Dr. Oswald P. Bronson, former president of Bethune-Cookman College, served as interim president while a presidential search committee took two years to select a new leader. *Dr. Claudette Williams became the first female president of Edward Waters in 2007. She resigned in February 2010 to assume a position as a vice president with the accreditation organization,

. * Nat Glover became EWC's 29th president on February 12, 2011. He retired in May 2018. * Dr. A. Zachary Faison, Jr. is the 30th President of Edward Waters College and took office in July 2018.

Athletics

The Edward Waters athletic teams are called the Tigers and the Lady Tigers. The university is a member of the

NCAA Division II NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...

ranks, primarily competing in the

Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. Formed in 1913, it consists mostly of historically black c ...

(SIAC) as a provisional member since the 2021–22 academic year; which they were a member on a previous stint from 1930–31 to 1934–35. Prior joining the NCAA, The Tigers previously competed in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) of the

National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) established in 1940, is a college athletics association for colleges and universities in North America. Most colleges and universities in the NAIA offer athletic scholarships to its stu ...

(NAIA) from 2010–11 to 2020–21 (with an associate transitional membership period for competing in conference championships during the 2021–22 school year); and in the

Sun Conference The Sun Conference (TSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Seven of the ten full member institutions are located in Florida, with three in Georgia. The Sun Conference ...

(formerly known as the Florida Sun Conference (FSC) until after the 2007–08 school year) from 2006–07 to 2009–10. For football only, Edward Waters participated in The Sun Conference for the 2014 and 2015 fall seasons, and would later join the

Mid-South Conference The Mid-South Conference (MSC) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Member institutions are located in Kentucky, Ohio, and Tennessee. The league is headquartered in Lo ...

's Sun Division from the 2017 to 2020 fall seasons. Edward Waters competes in 16 intercollegiate varsity sports: baseball, basketball, cross country, football, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball; while women's sports include basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, softball, track & field (indoor and outdoor) and volleyball; and co-ed sports include competitive cheerleading.

Move to NCAA Division II

In 2019, the university received a membership invitation to join the SIAC, a historic HBCU athletic conference playing at the NCAA Division II level. Although still holding active membership in the NAIA, EWU has a scheduling agreement with the SIAC to play SIAC opponents in non-conference competition. Following the invitation, the college plans to apply for NCAA Division II membership and begin the multi-year transition process to become a full postseason-eligible member of the NCAA and the SIAC. The university broke ground on a permanent on-campus

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

facility in February 2020. The team previously played at local high schools. The new facility is planned to meet NCAA specifications as part of the athletic development process associated with the move to Division II.

Marching band

Edward Waters' marching band is officially known as the "Triple Threat Marching Band." The band was established in 2001 and has twice received an invitation to the Honda Battle of the Bands in 2009 and 2013. The marching band has also been invited to perform at halftime for the NFL's

Jacksonville Jaguars The Jacksonville Jaguars are a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. The Jaguars compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) South division. The team pla ...

Notable people

* Dock J. Jordan - Former President of Edward Waters College and Kittrell College, lawyer, civil rights leader * Leonard F. Morse - Alumnus of the Theology Department, Former President of Edward Waters College, Founder of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Incorporated. *Reggie Brown - Jacksonville City Council Representative * Jim "Cannonball" Butler - former NFL running back * Samuel Charles - Professional American football wide receiver * Nat Glover - former president of Edward Waters and former

Sheriff of Jacksonville The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office (JSO) is a joint city-county law enforcement agency, which has primary responsibility for law enforcement, investigation, and corrections within the consolidated City of Jacksonville and Duval County, Florida, U ...

* Betty Holzendorf - former Florida State Representative from Jacksonville *Frederick Douglas Harper - author and scholar *

Buck O'Neil John Jordan "Buck" O'Neil Jr. (November 13, 1911 – October 6, 2006) was a first baseman and manager in the Negro American League, mostly with the Kansas City Monarchs. After his playing days, he worked as a scout and became the first Afric ...

- former

Negro league baseball The Negro leagues were United States professional baseball leagues comprising teams of African Americans and, to a lesser extent, Latin Americans. The term may be used broadly to include professional black teams outside the leagues and it may be ...

player * Rahman Johnson - TV personality, actor and former Duval County Commissioner *

A. Philip Randolph Asa Philip Randolph (April 15, 1889 – May 16, 1979) was an American labor unionist and civil rights activist. In 1925, he organized and led the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters, the first successful African-American led labor union. I ...

- Civil rights activist and founder of the

Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters Founded in 1925, The Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP) was the first labor organization led by African Americans to receive a charter in the American Federation of Labor (AFL). The BSCP gathered a membership of 18,000 passenger railway ...