Bennett College Building Renamed In Honor Of Former President Cole

The former president of a Greensboro women's college received an honor for her service Sunday.  A new building on the campus of Bennett College now bears Johnnetta Cole's name.

Cole arrived on Bennett's campus in 2002. At the time, the school was on such shaky financial ground that its academic accreditation was at risk.

During her five year tenure, Cole spearheaded a $50 million capital campaign that eased the fiscal crisis. She also created new academic programs and established an art museum.

The News & Record of Greensboro reports that on Sunday, the school thanked Cole by renaming the honors-student residence hall for her during a Founder's Day celebration.

Since moving on from Bennett, Cole had served for eight years as director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington, DC before leaving the position earlier this year. She's still involved with the college, where she's working on a campaign to raise more than $1 million in scholarship money.