Summary

Flagler College, is a private four-year liberal arts college in St. Augustine, Florida, USA and celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2008.[2]

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,[3] and is included on its list of "America's Best Colleges".[4] Its 2010-2011 tuition is $13,860 (excluding room and board)[5] and its acceptance rate is an average of 35 to 45 percent of its annual applications.[6]

The Princeton Review ranks Flagler in the top tier of southeastern colleges,[7] and its campus as one of the most beautiful in the United States.[8] It is currently included in the Princeton Review's Best 366 Colleges Rankings.[9]

Flagler College is home to WFCF/88.5 MHz FM (Channel 203), a community-run station. As of the 2006-2007 school year, the college also broadcasts on local Public-access television cable TV television as FCTV. It also publishes a campus newspaper, The Gargoyle,[10] and an annual literary journal, The Flagler Review.[11]

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, one male dorm building, and one coed dorm building where each gender is separated by floors; 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.[citation needed]

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.[12]

Academics

Flagler College offers 20 majors, 32 minors and two pre-professional programs in selected studies emphasizing liberal arts, education and business.

Flagler offers membership in six honor societies, including Alpha Chi, Alpha Psi Omega, Kappa Delta Pi, Omicron Delta Kappa, Psi Chi, Alpha Kappa Delta, and Sigma Tau Delta. In addition, there are over 25 active student clubs and academic organizations on campus.

Athletics

Flagler competes in 13 varsity sports (basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, and tennis for men and women, baseball for men only, and volleyball and softball for women only) in Division II that compete in the NCAA. Its teams are called the Saints. In the 2009-2010 season Flagler athletics began to play in the Peach Belt Conference.[13]

The Flagler College Lady Saints Volleyball team has made an impact on the Peach Belt since entering the conference. In 2009, the Lady Saints made it to the National Championship, and finished in the top 4 of Division 2 volleyball teams in the nation. In 2010, the Lady Saints made it to the Regional Finals, finishing top 16 in the Nation[14]. [15]

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 Hall, 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. The building that was previously named "The Flagler Hotel" still currently functions as a working hotel.

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.[16][17][18] In April 2007, the college administration again exercised editorial control over the paper due to alleged fact errors.[19] Students rallied and organized a protest against any type of censorship of the newspaper, calling for a free and independent student press.[20] As of September 2007, working on The Gargoyle is no longer required of communication major 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.[21]