A group of citizens chartered the University of Miami in 1925 with the intent to offer "unique opportunities to develop inter-American studies, to further creative work in the arts and letters, and to conduct teaching and research programs in tropical studies". They believed that a local university would benefit their community. They were overly optimistic about future financial support for UM because the South Florida land boom was at its peak. During the Jim Crow era, there were three large state-funded universities in Florida for white males, white females, and black coeds (UF, FSU, and FAMU, respectively); in this accord, UM was founded as a white, coeducational institution.