The academic and administrative buildings surround the Peabody Esplanade and are southeast of Vanderbilt's main campus.

Peabody College is organized around five academic departments, and conducts research in education, psychology, and human development.

Peabody College traces its history to 1785 when Davidson Academy was chartered by the state of North Carolina, of which Tennessee was then a part.

Its preparatory school became independent as Montgomery Bell Academy, retaining the board of trustees from the University of Nashville.

The literary arts collegiate program received the donation from the Peabody Education Fund and began emphasizing teacher preparation.

[4] In 1911, the George Peabody College for Teachers was moved from downtown Nashville to its present location directly across the street from the campus of Vanderbilt University.

The location on what was then Nashville's western fringe was selected amidst high hopes for collaborations between the two institutions.

[4] Notable faculty during the twentieth century included Joseph Peterson, Susan Gray, and Nicholas Hobbs.

Hobbs helped to establish and then directed the John F. Kennedy Center for Education and Human Development at Peabody College.

The 50-acre (20 ha) campus with its 22 main buildings was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1965 for its early association with George Peabody's funding efforts.

[9][failed verification] In an organizational sense, too, Peabody College constitutes a vital part of today's Vanderbilt.