Florence Matilda Read (1886 – 1973) was an American college president and academic administrator. She was president of

Spelman College Spelman College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia ...

from 1927 to 1953, and the acting president of

Atlanta University Clark Atlanta University (CAU or Clark Atlanta) is a private, Methodist, historically black research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded on September19, 1865, as Atlanta University, it was the first HBCU in the Southe ...

(now Clark Atlanta University) from 1936 to 1937. Read also wrote a book about Spelman College history.

Early life and education

Florence Matilda Read was born on November 12, 1886, in the village of Delevan in Cattaraugus County, New York. Read received her B.A. degree from

Mount Holyoke College Mount Holyoke College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in South Hadley, Massachusetts, United States. It is the oldest member of the h ...

in 1909, and served as alumnae secretary.

Career

In 1911, Read moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

where she was secretary to the president of

Reed College Reed College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland, Portland, Oregon, E ...

, a post she held until 1920. During World War I, Read worked at the

Council of National Defense The Council of National Defense was a United States organization formed during World War I to coordinate resources and industry in support of the war effort, including the coordination of transportation, industrial and farm production, financial s ...

in Washington, D.C., and later with the

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It has nearly 90,000 staff, some 920,000 volunteers and 12,000 branches w ...

in France. From 1920 to 1927, Read served as executive secretary of the

International Health Division The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller ("Seni ...

of the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller (" ...

Spelman College

In 1927, Read was named President of

historically black college Historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) are institutions of higher education in the United States that were established before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the intention of serving African Americans. Most are in the Southern U ...

for women in Atlanta. During her time as president, enrollment almost doubled and the college's reputation in the liberal arts was enhanced. On April 11, 1929, which was also Spelman's 48th celebration of Founder's Day, Read was a co-signer of the Agreement of Affiliation between

Morehouse College Morehouse College is a Private college, private, Historically black colleges and universities, historically black, Men's colleges in the United States, men's Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia, ...

and

. That agreement was signed in President Read's office, and the signees breakfasted together afterward. While she was president at Spelman, she also became superintendent of Atlanta University and helped make arrangements to incorporate women students at Atlanta University into the Spelman student body and college community.

Later years

Read was elected Spelman's President Emeritus when she retired in 1953. In 1955, she researched what would later become her history of Spelman College while living in

South Hadley, Massachusetts South Hadley (, ) is a New England town, town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 18,150 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield metropolitan area, Massachusetts. South Hadle ...

. Read died on April 29, 1973, in

Pomona, California Pomona ( ) is a city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. Pomona is located in the Pomona Valley, between the Inland Empire and the San Gabriel Valley. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city's population was ...

Honors and awards

* Read was awarded an honorary degree by

Oberlin College Oberlin College is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college and conservatory of music in Oberlin, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1833, it is the oldest Mixed-sex education, coeducational lib ...

in 1939. * In 1961 Reed College awarded her an honorary degree. * In 1962, Mount Holyoke College bestowed on her the Alumnae Medal of Honor.

Written work

*''The Story of Spelman College''. Atlanta, Georgia (1961)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Read, Florence M. 1886 births 1973 deaths 20th-century American academics Heads of universities and colleges in the United States Mount Holyoke College alumni People from Cattaraugus County, New York Presidents of Clark Atlanta University Presidents of Spelman College