Matheson to host presentation on late trend-setter Cora Roberson

Yvette Carter will speak on Cora Roberson, the first woman to run for elected office in Gainesville, on Wednesday at the Matheson History Museum.
Yvette Carter will speak on Cora Roberson, the first woman to run for elected office in Gainesville, on Wednesday at the Matheson History Museum.
Matheson History Museum

Yvette Carter will present “Cora Roberson: Gainesville’s Own Hidden Figure” at the Matheson History Museum on Wednesday, Oct. 30.

The event will start at 7 p.m. and is free with registration and will be held at the Matheson, located at 513 E. University Ave. in Gainesville.

Click here for in-person registration and click here for Zoom registration.

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Roberson, a graduate of Lincoln High School who earned her bachelor’s degree at Florida Memorial College and her master’s in education from the Tuskegee Institute, was the first woman to run for office, and be elected, in the city of Gainesville. She was the first Black woman to teach white students at Kirby Smith Elementary School and also taught at A. Quinn Jones School and other local elementary schools in Alachua County.

Yvette Carter (left) with Cora Roberson at a scholarship breakfast.
Matheson History Museum Yvette Carter (left) with Cora Roberson at a scholarship breakfast.

She was the founding member of the first Black Greek-lettered organization in Alachua County – Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. – and was the first Alachua County Head Start director for 34 years. Roberson was also a founding member of the Gainesville Women for Equal Rights, which was instrumental in desegregating Alachua General Hospital, the Gainesville Library and more.

Carter, who is the Gainesville Regional Utilities’ (GRU) government affairs and community relations director, was a fellow Zeta sister of the late Roberson, who died in 2020. Carter will share about Roberson’s life and legacy. The event is hosted in partnership with the League of Women Voters of Alachua County.

Carter has worked for GRU for nearly 13 years and was named one of the Business in Greater Gainesville Magazine’s 2016 Fierce Award winners. She was selected by the Girls Scouts Gateway Council as the 2017 Women Who Make a Difference award recipient and received the Community Service Award by the Alachua County branch of the NACCP. She was also honored by Santa Fe College as one of its 2023 Women of Distinction and is a 32-year member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. – Delta Sigma Zeta chapter, which she is currently the chapter president.

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