ST. LEO – Saint Leo University will welcome close to 700 freshmen and transfer students at its annual move-in day, Thursday, August 17. Classes begin on Tuesday, August 22.
Most incoming students will pursue bachelor’s degrees in biology with an emphasis on biomedical and health sciences with 91 incoming students declaring that major. Business, criminal justice, sport business, computer science, elementary education, management, and psychology are among the most popular majors with the new class. Some students—57—have not decided on a major.
University faculty and staff are busy making preparations for the new year. Saint Leo’s Week of Welcome begins with Bio-Boot Camp students moving in to their residence halls on Saturday, August 12. The program is designed for incoming students who plan to major in biology to prepare them for the rigorous classwork and labs.
International students as well as those enrolled in the Honors Program and the Emerging Mathematics and Computer Science Scholars cohort, will move in on Tuesday, August 15.
The big move-in day begins at 8 a.m., Thursday, August 17, when new students living on campus are welcomed to their new home away from home. Students and their families will find plenty of help to unload their vehicles as faculty, staff, orientation leaders, and student-athletes carry the gear to their rooms.
A student leadership fair will be held at 3 p.m. in the Marion Bowman Activities Center gymnasium for the incoming class to learn about organizations and activities. At 3:50 p.m., Dr. William J. Lennox Jr., university president, will welcome the Class of 2021. Parents will say their goodbyes from 4:15 to 4:30 p.m.
The Week of Welcome will continue with on-campus activities and academic advising as well as trips to the movies and Busch Gardens.
Preparing the incoming students to succeed is the objective of the university and the Office of First Year Experience.
“The goal and mission of First Year Experience is to engage and educate students in the vast opportunities the campus has to offer,” said Matthew Battista, director of First Year Experience. “We also want to help students make long-lasting connections—ones they will have for years to come.”
Battista’s advice for incoming students: Ask questions. “Ask your orientation leaders, ask any of us,” he said. “We always want students to come out to the programs and stay active. Don’t skip on anything with orientation. We hope to have students feel connected to the community and the campus, and enjoy their college career.”
Students also take a one-credit course, known as SLU 101, that introduces students to the history and culture of Saint Leo University as well as its various departments, resources, and services. It also encourages the development of good decision making by using critical thinking skills and the university’s core values.
New Programs
Students will be offered a number of new learning opportunities this year.
Associate of Arts
The Associate of Arts degree in cybersecurity will prepare students for entry-level positions in the emerging cybersecurity and information assurance/security fields. The overall goal of the program is to provide students with the background knowledge and tools to understand cybersecurity threats and countermeasures.
Students who complete the online AA degree program and decide they want further education can easily continue with Saint Leo’s Bachelor of Science degree in cybersecurity, noted Dr. Balbir Bal, dean of the Donald R. Tapia School of Business.
Master of Business Administration, Data Analytics concentration
This new 36-hour online program prepares graduates for careers in business intelligence, which can span multiple disciplines.
Students complete the 21 MBA credit hours that provide the fundamentals of business operations. The data analytics concentration includes another 15 credit hours that will teach students how to approach the world of “Big Data” to retrieve, understand, and apply information to make sophisticated and strategic business decisions.
Master of Science in Emergency and Disaster Management – specialization in Fire Science Administration
This new program is directed toward those who are working in the field and hope to advance. Along with the core curriculum, this specialization includes an additional four courses, each of which lasts for an eight-week term, that students take online at their own pace. It is designed to be completed in two years, but students can take more time if they need it.
New Courses
Among the interesting new courses set to begin this fall are an interdisciplinary course and a history course.
Interdisciplinary Approaches to Service and Therapy Animals will be offered 12:30 to 1:50 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. This course provides an overview of how human-animal interactions (HAI) and the human-animal bond (HAB) can affect animals and society. The content of this course is applicable to the education, human services, social work and criminal justice professions.
History of the American West will introduce students to the history of the “Wild West” and explore the myths and realities related to cowboys, American Indians, miners, gunfighters, lawmen, western women, the buffalo, the railroad, and more. The course will be offered at University Campus at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
New Projects
Tutor Zones are being created in first-year residence halls so that students have help before midterm and final exams. “In-house” tutoring will be available to conveniently provide important resources and to help students better understand the tutoring resources available to them.
Other programs to begin in the fall are:
• Humans of Saint Leo (mimicking the “Humans of New York” social media campaign);
• What’s Your Step Count? (encouraging fitness and healthy living); and,
• Can-Struction (a building competition connected to a canned food donation drive).
New Sports
Saint Leo University will add beach volleyball to its intercollegiate athletics program, with competition to begin in Spring 2018. One of the fastest growing sports among NCAA institutions, beach volleyball will be Saint Leo’s 20th intercollegiate sport and its 11th offering in women’s athletics.
About Saint Leo University
Saint Leo University (www.saintleo.edu) is a modern Catholic teaching university that is firmly grounded in the liberal arts tradition and the timeless Benedictine wisdom that seeks balanced growth of mind, body, and spirit. The Saint Leo University of today is a private, nonprofit institution that creates hospitable learning communities wherever students want to be or need to be, whether that is a campus classroom, a web-based environment, an employer’s worksite, a military base, or an office park. Saint Leo welcomes people of all faiths and of no religious affiliation, and encourages learners of all generations. The university is committed to providing educational opportunities to the nation’s armed forces, veterans, and their families. Saint Leo is regionally accredited to award degrees ranging from the associate to the doctorate, and the faculty and staff guide all students to develop their capacities for critical thinking, moral reflection, and lifelong learning and leadership.
The university remains the faithful steward of the beautiful lakeside University Campus in the Tampa Bay region of Florida, where its founding monks created the first Catholic college in the state in 1889. Serving nearly 15,000 students, Saint Leo has expanded to downtown Tampa, to other sites in Florida and beyond, and maintains a physical presence in seven states. The university provides highly respected online learning programs to students nationally and internationally. More than 85,000 alumni reside in all 50 states, in Washington, DC, in three U.S. territories, and in 76 countries.
Media Contact: Mary McCoy, University Writer & Media Relations, mary.mccoy02@saintleo.edu, (352) 588-7118 or cell (813) 610-8416