Celebrating 144 years of service, Edward Waters College was initially named Brown Theological Institute by Rev. William G. Steward, the first AME pastor in the state. The school experienced some financial difficulties and was forced to close for nearly a decade. In 1883, the school reopened under the name of East Florida Conference High School and later, East Florida Scientific and Divinity High School”. Within a decade, the educational program was extended and the school’s name was changed to Edward Waters College in honor of the third bishop of the AME church. Through the years, the College has withstood the test. After being destroyed by fire in 1901, the College acquired the current site in 1904 and began to rebuild. The school was first accredited as a junior college in 1955 under President William B. Stewart, and by 1960 the College had restored its four-year curriculum. In 1979, the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) accredited the College as a four-year institution and the College remains accredited by SACS.