Timeline of Other Activities
- 1935: Founded the National Council of Negro Women, which would represent the national and international concerns of African-American Women
- 1936: Was appointed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt as the Director of African American Affairs in the National Youth Administration and as a special adviser on Minority Affairs. She would served for eight years and supervised the development of employment opportunities and recreation facilities for African-American youth throughout the entire United States
- 1936 - 1945: Served as the Informal Race Leader at Large within Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration and became Leader of the Black Cabinet, which was organized by the Federal Council on Negro Affairs
- 1936 - 1951: Served as President of Association for the Study Negro Life and History
- 1939 - 1945: Served as special assistant to the Secretary of War during World War II
- 1940: Founded the Central Life Insurance Company of Tampa, Florida and the Afro-American Life Insurance Company of Jacksonville, where she served as director; and the Bethune-Volusia Beach Corporation, a recreation area and housing development
A Few Notable Recognitions
Mary McLeod Bethune was recognized as:
- First African-American woman involved in assisting four different Presidents
- Influence on FDR's New Deal Government
- First African-American leader and first woman to have a monument erected in Public Park, Washington D.C. (also known as the Bethune Memorial Statue)
- First and Only African-American Woman to be honored with a memorial site at the National Capital in 1994