Why do students like Flagler College

By Stetson Myers

The price was right for Fianna Fluess, 21, who transferred from the University of Miami to Flagler College.

Fluess said, “I came here because the price was awesome and it was beautiful, the art program, I heard really good stuff about it.”


Tuition at Flagler College is $13,860 for the 2010-2011 school year while tuition at the University of Miami is $36,962.

Flagler College’s beachside location is also a major selling point for potential students.

“I fell in love with the beach and how close it was and there is nothing like it; I’m from Philli and it’s cold and miserable, so here’s a little bit different,” Sean Gormley, a former Flagler College student, said.

“I’m from Connecticut so they change of weather is really nice. I like the location and how close it is to the beach, small classes,” Jon Champlain, freshman, said.

Compared to larger state universities, Flagler College’s student body is smaller which influences potential students’ decision to apply.

In the fall of 2008. Florida State University had a student body of 39,136 and the University of Florida had a student body of 51,725. This year Flagler College’s student body was 2, 678.

“I came from a small high school and small community so I didn’t want to be overwhelmed with a large university,” Taylor Davis, a freshman, said.

“I liked the small classes and the overall atmosphere of the campus. The people around here are really nice and it is a great place to learn,” Gormley said.

In 2010, the Flagler College Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) chapter launched Mission: Media, a program that lets St. Augustine’s Boys and Girls Club children control the news for a day. In Mission: Media, the children generate and develop story ideas in a “news budget” meeting that SPJ members lead before heading out into the field. Each SPJ member guides a few children through the city and helps them find and interview sources. After the children finish reporting, they return to the Flagler College Gargoyle office to write and publish their work here.