| Flagler College | |
|---|---|
 Ponce de Leon Hall at Flagler College |
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| Established | 1968 |
| Type | Private, nonsectarian |
| Endowment | $35,137,000[1] |
| Chancellor | Dr. William L. Proctor |
| President | Dr. William T. Abare, Jr. |
| Students | 2,600 |
| Location | St. Augustine, Florida, USA |
| Campus | 19 acres (77,000 m2) |
| Colors | Crimson and Gold |
| Nickname | Saints |
| Website | www.flagler.edu |
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Flagler College, often abbreviated as Flagler, is a private four-year liberal arts college in St. Augustine, Florida, USA and celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008.[1]
The college has been named in recent years by US News & World Report as one of the southeast region's best comprehensive liberal arts colleges[2], and is included on its list of "America's Best Colleges".[3] Its 2006-2007 tuition was $11,810 (excluding room and board)[4] and its acceptance rate is an average of 25 to 30 percent of its annual applications.[5]
The Princeton Review ranks Flagler in the top tier of southeastern colleges[6], and its campus as one of the most beautiful in the United States.[7] It is currently included in the Princeton Review's Best 366 Colleges Rankings.[8]
Flagler College is home to WFCF/88.5Mc. (Channel 203), which is a community-run station. As of the 2006-2007 school year, the college also broadcasts on local public access television as FCTV. It also publishes a campus newspaper, The Gargoyle,[9] and an annual literary journal, The Flagler Review.[10]
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History
The school is located on 19 acres (77,000 m2), the centerpiece of which is the Ponce de Leon Hall, built in 1888 as a luxury hotel. The architects were John Carrere and Thomas Hastings, working for Henry Morrison Flagler, the industrialist, oil magnate and railroad pioneer. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Since its founding in 1968, the college has spent more than $43 million restoring the historic campus and adding new buildings. The newest buildings are the three-part former headquarters of the Florida East Coast Railway (FEC) buildings on Malaga St. which have been converted into one female and one male dorm building; Cedar Hall male dorm rooms on the corner of Cedar Street and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue; and the Ringhaver Student Center. The campus is located in the heart of St. Augustine, just four miles (6 km) from the Atlantic Ocean. Flagler's 19-acre (77,000 m2) athletic field is two miles (3 km) from campus. While the college has recycled some historic buildings into new uses, it has also stirred up much controversy by seeking to demolish historic buildings surrounding the campus.
Henry Flagler's grandson, Lawrence Lewis, Jr., was the driving force behind the development of Flagler College. It was his vision to create a small, private liberal arts college on the grounds of the old hotel. Lewis served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Flagler College for more than 20 years, guiding the College through a re-organization in 1971. He directed millions of dollars through foundations, family and personal funds into new construction, restoration projects, endowment and various other programs to ensure the continued success of Flagler College. [11]
Flagler College is, statistically, the whitest college in Florida (source?), and it has refused to allow a Freedom Trail marker to be placed on campus celebrating the important events of the civil rights movement that took place there in 1963 and 1964 when it was the Ponce de Leon Hotel.(source?)
Academics
The College offers 21 majors, 26 minors and two pre-professional programs in selected studies emphasizing liberal arts, education and business.
The business program has a proven record of success. The college's two business organizations, Students In Free Enterprise and Society for the Advancement of Management, have consistently competed at the highest level and have beaten major universities such as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Boston College, University of Florida, and University of Arizona. The Flagler SAM team has set a record for most national case team championships at 8 National Titles. The 2008 Flagler SAM case team won championship number eight on April 5 2008 in Arlington, VA. Flagler College also received the best SAM chapter in the nation award and the Best Advisor award to Louis Preysz, in his last year at the college. [2]. SIFE has also placed second internationally in 2004 in Barcelona, Spain as the United States representative (among 800 other US colleges)[12].
The school is also well known for its Deaf Education program. The college is the home of a branch of the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center, headquartered at Gallaudet University[13], and is strategically located in the same community as the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind. The location allows students many opportunities to learn and grow from experienced deaf education professionals.
Flagler offers membership in six honor societies, including Alpha Chi, Alpha Psi Omega, Kappa Delta Pi, Omicron Delta Kappa, Psi Chi, and Sigma Tau Delta. In addition, there are over 25 active student clubs and academic organizations on campus.
Athletics
Flagler competes in 12 varsity sports (basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, and tennis for men and women, baseball for men only, and volleyball for women only) in Division II that compete in the NCAA. Its teams are called the Saints. In the 2009-2010 season, Flagler and the University of Montevallo will both start play in the Peach Belt Conference.[14]
Campus
The Flagler College campus comprises fifteen buildings, some of which are located throughout the historic district of Saint Augustine. Ponce de Leon Hall is the focal point of the campus, where the female dormitories, as well as the dining hall, are located. The individual rooms consist of the former hotel rooms along with the former hotel employees' rooms. The male dormitories are located at Lewis House, which opened in 1987, and Cedar House, which was constructed in 2004. Most classes are taught in Kenan Hall, which is adjacent to Ponce de Leon Hall. Classes not taught here can be located in the Ringhaver Student Center, Proctor Library, the Communications Building at 31 Cordova Street, the Art Building directly behind Kenan Hall or the Flagler College Auditorium at 14 Granada Street. The campus is located in historical downtown St. Augustine. The College recently acquired the former Florida East Coast Railway buildings on Malaga Street, which opened as men's and women's dormitories for 2008 fall semester.
Newspaper controversy
Since September 2006, there have been several allegations of censorship or alteration of articles within the college newspaper, The Gargoyle, by the college administration. In 2006, one issue of the newspaper was removed from circulation due to an alleged error in its headlines about rising tuition.[15][16][17] In April 2007, the college administration again exercised editorial control over the paper due to alleged fact errors.[18] Students rallied and organized a protest against any type of censorship of the newspaper, calling for a free and independent student press.[19] As of September 2007, working on The Gargoyle is no longer required of communication majors and an advisory board and operating guidelines have been set up to handle any future situations which may arise, and also to help outline the function of The Gargoyle.[20]
See also
- Ponce de Leon Hotel
- Henry Flagler
- Flagler College - Tallahassee Campus
- Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida
References
- ^ Florida Times-Union: November 17, 2008-Flagler changes, yet remains the same as it approaches 40th anniversary by Adam Aasen
- ^ "Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelor's (South): Top Schools" U.S. News & World Report: America's Best Colleges 2007.
- ^ "Flagler College: At a glance" U.S. News & World Report: America's Best Colleges 2007.
- ^ "Admissions & Aid: At a glance"
- ^ "Flagler College" EdRef college search directory.
- ^ "The Best Southeastern Colleges" Regional Guide to Colleges on the Princeton Review.
- ^ "Quality of Life: Most Beautiful Campus" Princeton Review.
- ^ "The New 2008 Best 366 Colleges" Rankings The Princeton Review.
- ^ "The Gargoyle" Flagler College Gargoyle.
- ^ "The Flagler Review - The literary voice of Flagler College" The Flagler Review.
- ^ "Lawrence Lewis, Jr." City of St. Augustine: News-Great Floridians 2000.
- ^ "Curtin University of Technology Wins 2004 SIFE World Cup" Students in Free Enterprise.
- ^ "Regional Centers associated with the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center" Gallaudet University Regional Centers.
- ^ "Montevallo and Flagler to Join Peach Belt Conference" Peach Belt Conference
- ^ "Newspapers Pulled from Shelves at Flagler" WJXT Jacksonville.
- ^ "College confiscates newspapers" The St. Augustine Record.
- ^ "College paper pulled from stands for faulty headline" Student Press Law Center.
- ^ "Administration, newspaper staff at odds at Flagler College" Florida Times-Union.
- ^ "Cry of censorship rallied Flagler College students to protest decision" The St. Augustine Record.
- ^ "Gargoyle establishes advisory board" The St. Augustine Record.
External links
Coordinates: 29°53′33″N 81°18′55″W / 29.89237°N 81.31522°W
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