Santa Fe College is a

public college A public university, state university, or public college is a university or college that is State ownership, owned by the state or receives significant funding from a government. Whether a national university is considered public varies from o ...

Gainesville, Florida Gainesville is the county seat of Alachua County, Florida, United States, and the most populous city in North Central Florida, with a population of 145,212 in 2022. It is the principal city of the Gainesville metropolitan area, Florida, Gainesv ...

, United States. It is part of the Florida College System and offers both associate and baccalaureate degree programs. Established in 1965 by the Florida Legislature as Santa Fe Junior College, the institution began classes in September 1966. It was renamed Santa Fe Community College in 1972 and became "Santa Fe College" in 2008 to highlight its baccalaureate programs.

Campuses

Santa Fe College operates multiple campuses and centers throughout Alachua and

Bradford Bradford is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in West Yorkshire, England. It became a municipal borough in 1847, received a city charter in 1897 and, since the Local Government Act 1972, 1974 reform, the city status in the United Kingdo ...

counties: * Northwest Campus: The main campus, located on in northwest Gainesville, opened in 1972. * Andrews Center: Located in Starke, opened in 1985 and has since expanded. * Blount Center: Situated in downtown Gainesville, opened in 1990, with expansions in 1993 and 2006. * Charles R. and Nancy V. Perry Center for Emerging Technologies: Located in Alachua and opened in 2009, this center focuses on clinical laboratory technology and 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 modern ...

and opened in 2003. * Kirkpatrick Center: Near Gainesville Regional Airport, opened in 1972 and is also known as the Institute of Public Safety, providing training for law enforcement, emergency medical services, and aviation sciences. * Watson Center: Located in Keystone Heights, opened in 2005 and added a second building in 2006.

Academics

Santa Fe College offers over 50 accredited programs in technology and applied sciences, primarily leading to associate degrees. It provides programs in fields such as dental assisting, air conditioning repair, automotive technology, and more. The college’s zoo animal technology program is notable for its onsite training at the Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo. The college offers nine bachelor’s degrees in areas including 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

The Lawrence W. Tyree Library, located on the Northwest Campus, opened in January 2002. The $10 million facility includes study rooms, a coffee shop, computer stations, and a comprehensive online catalog. It is named in honor of Lawrence W. Tyree, a former president of the college.

Athletics

Santa Fe College is represented by the Santa Fe Saints, with varsity teams competing in Region 8 of the

National Junior College Athletic Association The National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) is the governing association of community college, state college, and junior college athletics throughout the United States. Currently the NJCAA holds 24 separate regions across 24 states ...

(NJCAA).

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 Variations of baseball, variation of baseball, the difference being that it is played with a larger ball, on a smaller field, and with only underhand pitches (where the ball is released while the hand is primarily below the ball) ...

games in Gainesville. The song was a collaboration between Chris Sharp, the college's director of bands, and Ryan B. Leverone, a Santa Fe College student.

Awards and recognition

In 2012 and 2014, the

Aspen Institute The Aspen Institute is an international nonprofit organization founded in 1949 as the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., but also has a campus in Aspen, Colorado, its original home. Its stated miss ...

named Santa Fe College one of the ten best community colleges in the U.S. In 2015, the college received the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, recognizing it as the top community college in the country. In 2015, the Lawrence W. Tyree Library received the Excellence in Academic Libraries Award from the

Association of College & Research Libraries The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

Notable alumni

* Debbie Boyd, politician * Robin Campbell, U.S. Olympian (1980–1984) * Craig Fugate, former FEMA Director * Adam Kluger, advertising executive and founder of The Kluger Agency *

Connie Mack IV Cornelius Harvey McGillicuddy IV (born August 12, 1967), known popularly 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 i ...

, former U.S. representative *

Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (; born May 28, 1971) is an American politician, lawyer, and diplomat serving since 2025 as the 72nd United States Secretary of State, United States secretary of state. A member of the Republican Party (United States) , Rep ...

, politician * Jeremy Hunter, musician and composer known as Skatune Network * Mallex Smith, professional baseball player * Karen Thurman, former U.S. representative and chair of the Florida Democratic Party * Clovis Watson Jr., politician and law enforcement officer

References

External links

*
Official athletics website
{{Authority control 1965 establishments in Florida Education in Alachua County, Florida Education in Bradford County, Florida Education in Gainesville, Florida Universities and colleges established in 1965 Florida College System NJCAA schools Universities and colleges accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Two-year colleges in the United States