Santa Fe College is a

public college A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national universit ...

based in

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, and the largest city in North Central Florida, with a population of 141,085 in 2020. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, which had a population of 339,247 in ...

, with satellite campuses in Alachua and

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

counties. It is part of the

Florida College System The Florida College System, previously the Florida Community College System, is a system of 28 public community colleges and state colleges in the U.S. state of Florida. In 2013-14, enrollment consisted of more than 813,000 students. Together w ...

. It was established in 1965 as Santa Fe Junior College by the

Florida Legislature The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Co ...

and began offering classes in September 1966. As of Fall 2020, the school had an enrollment of 12,607 students, and offers associate and baccalaureate degree programs.

History

Santa Fe Community College was established by the

in 1965 in response to a request from the Alachua and

County Boards of Public Instruction, which had canvassed the area and learned that the community would be well served if all citizens have the opportunity for an education. Although the original name of the school was Santa Fe Junior College, the name was changed to Santa Fe Community College in 1972. The name sometimes caused confusion with the similarly-named college in Santa Fe, New Mexico. In 2008, Santa Fe Community College officially changed its name to Santa Fe College to emphasize the

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to si ...

programs that it began offering.

Locations

Campuses

* Northwest Campus, located in the Northwest side of Gainesville next to I-75, opened in 1972. The campus serves as the main campus for the college.

Centers

* Andrews Center, located in Starke, opened in the renovated Bradford County Courthouse in 1985. It expanded in 1991 with the restored Cultural Building and in 2001 with the Lillian Stump Center. * Blount Center, located in downtown Gainesville, opened in 1990. Originally in the renovated 6th Street railroad depot, it expanded in 1993 and again in 2006 with a new classroom building. * Charles R. and Nancy V. Perry Center for Emerging Technologies, located in Alachua, opened in 2009. The Perry Center serves as the home for the new Clinical Laboratory Technology bachelor's degree, as well as the biotechnology degrees. * Davis Center, located in

Archer Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

, opened in 2003. * Kirkpatrick Center, located near the Gainesville Regional Airport, opened in 1972. This center, also referred to at the Institute of Public Safety, educates law enforcement and corrections officer recruits and offers programs to train sworn officers. The Kirkpatrick Center also educates students in the Emergency Medical Services and Aviation Sciences programs. * Watson Center, located in

Keystone Heights Keystone Heights is a city located in southwestern Clay County, Florida, United States. The population of the city was 1,446 at the 2020 census. The city's name is derived from the state of Pennsylvania's nickname, the "Keystone State". History ...

, opened in 2005, with a second building being added in 2006.

Academics

The college has more than 50 accredited technology and applied sciences programs, most which are two-year degrees.

Arts and Sciences Program

Offering an Associate in Arts Degree, the Arts and Sciences Program consists primarily of liberal arts and sciences courses. This program culminates in a two-year liberal arts degree that can be transferred to a university which offers a bachelor's degree. The descriptions, course numbers and content of classes at Santa Fe College are the same as those in the first two years at Florida's public universities. Santa Fe College's liberal arts courses are also transferable to most public and private four-year schools in the US.

Technology and Applied Sciences Program

Offering the Associate in Science degree or certificate, the Associate in Science program consists of technology and applied sciences courses designed to prepare students for careers in skilled professions. Some of these programs enable them to transfer to a four-year college or university. Programs offered include Dental Assisting, Air Conditioning Repair, Automotive Technology, Child Development, Construction, Public Safety, Zoo Animal Technology, Information Technology, Cardiovascular Technology, Aviation Safety and Nursing.

Bachelor's degrees

Santa Fe College offers nine

s: Accounting, Clinical Laboratory Science, Early Childhood Education, Health Services Administration, Industrial Biotechnology, Information Systems Technology, Multimedia and Video Production Technology, Nursing, and Organizational Management.

Library

Santa Fe College is supported by the Lawrence W. Tyree Library, which is located in Building Y on the main Northwest Campus. Opened in January 2002, the $10 million building includes a coffee shop, multiple group study rooms of varying sizes, DVD and video viewing stations, computerized classrooms, a conference room and two reference desks. Additional technology and services available to Santa Fe College students and faculty through the Tyree Library include printers and copiers, BookScan stations, multiple charging stations, quiet study space throughout the third floor, and 87 computers distributed throughout the library's ample study areas, as well as a thorough online

library catalog A library catalog (or library catalogue in British English) is a register of all bibliographic items found in a library or group of libraries, such as a network of libraries at several locations. A catalog for a group of libraries is also ...

through which patrons can also request books and other media from library collections throughout the state. The library is named in honor of former Santa Fe Community College president, Lawrence W. Tyree.

Athletics

Fight Song

In 2009, Santa Fe College adopted a

fight song A fight song is a rousing short song associated with a sports team. The term is most common in the United States and Canada. In Australia, Mexico, and New Zealand these songs are called the team anthem, team song, or games song. First associated ...

. "Saints Forever" was performed for the first time on Tuesday, April 21, 2009 between

softball Softball is a game similar to baseball played with a larger ball on a smaller field. Softball is played competitively at club levels, the college level, and the professional level. The game was first created in 1887 in Chicago by George Hanc ...

games in Gainesville. The song was a collaboration between

Chris Sharp Larry Christopher Sharp (born July 17, 1973) is an American musician, guitarist, singer, and record producer who participated in the Grammy Award-winning soundtrack of ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?''. He is considered to be an accomplished guit ...

, the college's director of bands, and Ryan B. Leverone, a Santa Fe College student.

Awards and recognition

In 2009, Santa Fe College was listed 6th in the nation in awarding A.A. degrees by '' Community College Week''. In 2012 and 2014, the college was named as one of the ten best community colleges in the United States by the

Aspen Institute The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1949 as the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies. The institute's stated aim is the realization of "a free, just, and equitable society" through seminars, policy programs ...

. In 2015, the

gave the school the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence as top-rated community college in the United States. In 2015, Santa Fe College's Lawrence W. Tyree Library received the 2015 Excellence in Academic Libraries Award from the

Association of College & Research Libraries The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), a division of the American Library Association, is a professional association of academic librarians and other interested individuals. It is dedicated to enhancing the ability of academi ...

Notable alumni

* Debbie Boyd –– Former member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopt ...

* Robin Campbell ––

U.S. Olympian United States of America (USA) has sent athletes to every celebration of the modern era Olympic Games, except for the 1980 Summer Olympics, during which it led a boycott to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. American athletes have won ...

from 1980 to 1984 *

Craig Fugate William Craig Fugate (born May 14, 1959) is the former administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. As director for the Florida Emergency Management Division, he oversaw the " Big 4 of '04" and as the administrator for the Federal E ...

–– Director of

FEMA The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS), initially created under President Jimmy Carter by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 3 of 1978 and implemented by two Ex ...

under President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

Adam Kluger Adam Kluger is a music manager, and the founder and CEO of the Kluger Agency, an agency that arranges product placements in music videos and on musical recordings. Early career Kluger grew up in Tampa, Florida. Between 2004 and 2006 Kluger att ...

–– Businessman, Advertising executive and founder of The Kluger Agency *

Connie Mack IV Cornelius Harvey McGillicuddy (born August 12, 1967), popularly known as Connie Mack IV, is an American politician and lobbyist. He is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2005 to 2013. A Republican, he ran for the U.S. Senate in ...

–– Former U.S. Representative and son of former

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...

Connie Mack III Cornelius Alexander McGillicuddy III (born October 29, 1940), also known as Connie Mack III, is an American retired Republican politician. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Florida from 1983 to 1989 and t ...

Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the ...

––

, candidate in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, former Speaker of the

Karen Thurman Karen L. Thurman (born January 12, 1951) is a former U.S. Representative from Florida, serving five consecutive terms from 1993 to 2003. She is a Democrat. Early life and education She was born on January 12, 1951, in Rapid City, South Dakota, ...

–– Former U.S. Representative and Chair of the

Florida Democratic Party The Florida Democratic Party (FDP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Florida, headquartered in Tallahassee. Former mayor of Miami Manny Diaz Sr. is the current chair. Andrew Jackson, the first territorial governo ...

Clovis Watson Jr. Clovis Watson Jr. (born September 30, 1958) is the sheriff of Alachua County, Florida. A Democrat, he was elected in 2020. Previously, he served four terms in the Florida House of Representatives from 2012 to 2020, representing the 20th Distri ...

–– Former member of the

and current Alachua County Sheriff.

References

External links

*
Official athletics website
{{Authority control 1965 establishments in Florida Buildings and structures in Gainesville, Florida Education in Alachua County, Florida Education in Bradford County, Florida Education in Gainesville, Florida Educational institutions established in 1965 Florida College System NJCAA athletics Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools