Stetson University in honor of John B. In , the institution was incorporated as DeLand University, [ 4 ] but in , its name was changed to John B. Stetson University. Stetson, a hat manufacturer who made generous donations to the university and served alongside Henry A.
DeLand as a founding trustee. The first director of the academy was John H. Griffith, a minister. When the college was founded, John Franklin Forbes took over as the first President. Lena B. Mathes was an early faculty member. The main campus sits just north of the downtown area.
The acre 0. DeLand Hall opened in DeLand Hall was known as the first academic building on campus. Today, it is known as the oldest building in Florida in continuous use for higher education. Constructed in , Stetson's Lynn Business Center earned LEED certification and became not only Stetson's first green building on campus, but also the first green building in the state of Florida.
Lee Chapel is located in the historic Elizabeth Hall. It is a year-old performance hall that seats The acoustical properties are well-suited for classical music performances. Stetson's late son, Ben, who died at age 6.
It is currently named after H. Douglas Lee, who served as Stetson's eighth president from until It accommodates up to people. William Sharp, an art professor, designed all the stained glass windows in the chapel. The organ is a Beckerath Organ. It is made up of 2, pipes and came here in 56 crates from Hamburg, Germany. With 19 academic departments and several interdisciplinary programs, [ 17 ] the College of Arts and Sciences is the largest college on campus in terms of total undergraduate majors and total number of faculty.
