Former B-CU President Bronson dead at 91

Dr. Oswald P. Bronson, Sr., a 1950 alumnus
of Bethune-Cookman College (now University), and former president of Bethune-Cookman, died Feb. 17 at his home in Port Orange,
Florida.
Bronson served with distinction as the institution's fourth president for 29 years - from
1975 until 2004, when he was named "President
Emeritus."
There will be a memorial at 6:30 p.m. March
1 on campus in Heyn Memorial Chapel. Funeral services will be 2 p.m. March 2 in the Mary
McLeod Bethune Performing Arts Center.
William Stitt, a grandson of the late president,
graduated from B-CU recently. Stitt shared his
memories of his grandfather with the VOICE in
a video interview now available online at www.
bcuvoice.com.
Bronson, who attended classes when the
late Bethune was here, has been described as a
"noted fundraiser, visionary educator, theologian and community leader." He marched with
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., pastored several
United Methodist Churches in Florida, Georgia
and Chicago from 1950-1966, and
was highly respected among college
and university presidents throughout
the country.
Enrollment at the university grew under Bronson, as did the fields of study and
the college's endowment. One of his crowning achievements was the construction of the
Performing Arts Center on campus.
Bronson is survived by his wife, Helen
Williams Bronson, former curator of the Mary McLeod
Bethune Foundation on
campus; three children
and a host of relatives
and friends who will
mourn his passing.