Saint Leo University is a private, non-profit, Catholic university located in Saint Leo, Florida, next to San Antonio, Florida, which is north of Tampa, Florida. Dr. Arthur F. Kirk, Jr. has been the president of the university since January 1997. It is associated with the Benedictine Holy Name Monastery, and Saint Leo Abbey. The monastery was founded in 1889 and the college in 1890.
A Roman-Catholic University, founded by the Benedictine Order in 1883 (1889 received its Charter by the State of Florida). The University was opened by the order of Pope Leo, to ensure that students in Florida and the south east could obtain a traditional European/Roman Catholic education.
From 1890 to 1920, the college's curriculum was geared towards the acquisition of a Master of Accounts degree. In 1921, the focus of the college shifted to that of a college preparatory institution. the name changing to Saint Leo College Preparatory School in 1929. Some of its more famous students included actor Lee Marvin and Nicaraguan president Anastasio Somoza Debayle.
In 1959, the College was reopened, offering associates degrees in various fields with four-year bachelor's degree programs soon added. In 1973, small campuses were added to U.S. military bases across the country. By 1999, Saint Leo, now called Saint Leo University, had become "the sixth largest provider of higher education to military-related personnel in the United States."
The university, which is one of the nation's largest and oldest Catholic institutions of higher learning offers Associate, Bachelor and Masters degrees in the Liberal Arts, Natural Sciences, Classics, as well as Pre-Professional (Medicine and Law). |
