St. Thomas University (Florida)

St. Thomas University's history can be traced back to 1946 Havana, Cuba, where it was founded as the Universidad Católica de Santo Tomás de Villanueva, named after Saint Thomas of Villanova. In 1961, Fidel Castro's militia confiscated the school's land and expelled the faculty and priests. In turn, the Augustinians fled to Miami and opened a new Catholic men's college – Biscayne College. In 1984, with the establishment of the School of Law and other graduate degree programs, the college, by then co-educational, again became St. Thomas University. The university came under the sponsorship of the Archdiocese of Miami in 1988, conferring upon St. Thomas the distinction of being the only Catholic Archdiocesan sponsored university in the state of Florida.

From 1970 until 1993, St. Thomas University was the training camp home{{Cite web|url=https://www.pro-football-reference.com/teams/mia/training-camps.htm|title=Miami Dolphins Training Camp Locations {{!}} Pro-Football-Reference.com|website=Pro-Football-Reference.com|language=en|access-date=May 3, 2017}} of the Miami Dolphins NFL team. It was also the spring training home of the Baltimore Orioles.

The university was located in the Opa-locka North census-designated place, in an unincorporated area,{{cite web|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/blk2000/st12_Florida/Place/1251662_OpalockaNorth/CBP1251662_000.pdf|title=Census 2000 Block Map: Opa-locka North CDP|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau}} - Pages [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/blk2000/st12_Florida/Place/1251662_OpalockaNorth/CBP1251662_001.pdf 1] and [https://www2.census.gov/geo/maps/blk2000/st12_Florida/Place/1251662_OpalockaNorth/CBP1251662_002.pdf 2] - Compare to the university's maps and addresses.{{cite web|url=https://www.stu.edu/about-stu/campus-map/|title=Campus Map|publisher=St. Thomas University|access-date=2020-05-12|quote=16401 NW 37th Avenue, Miami Gardens, FL 33054}} until Miami Gardens incorporated as a city on May 13, 2003.{{Cite web|url=http://www.miamigardens-fl.gov/demographics.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151010144207/http://www.miamigardens-fl.gov/demographics.html|url-status=dead|title=City of Miami Gardens: Demographics|year=2009|archive-date=October 10, 2015}}

In 2019, St. Thomas University formally installed David A. Armstrong as the university's tenth president.{{Cite web|url=https://www.stu.edu/inauguration/|title=Inauguration|website=St Thomas University|language=en-US|access-date=2019-07-03}}

St. Thomas University offers 23 undergraduate majors, 24 graduate majors, four doctoral programs, and one professional law program through its four colleges and schools:{{cite web|url=http://www.stu.edu/Academics |title=St. Thomas University > Academics |publisher=Stu.edu |access-date=May 1, 2017}}

• Benjamin L. Crump College of Law{{cite web|url=http://www.stu.edu/law |title=St. Thomas University > School of Law |publisher=Stu.edu |access-date=May 1, 2017}}
• Biscayne College of Social and Human Sciences{{cite web|url=http://www.stu.edu/biscayne |title=St. Thomas University > Biscayne College |publisher=Stu.edu |access-date=May 1, 2017}}
• Gus Machado School of Business{{cite web|url=http://www.stu.edu/business |title=St. Thomas University > Gus Machado School of Business |publisher=Stu.edu |access-date=May 1, 2017}}
• School of Science, Technology and Health{{cite web|url=http://www.stu.edu/science |title=St. Thomas University > School of Science, Technology and Engineering Management |publisher=Stu.edu |access-date=May 1, 2017}}

St. Thomas University is a member of the Florida Association of Colleges and Universities,{{Cite web|url=https://www.facuflorida.org/collegesuniversities.html|title=Florida Association of Colleges and Universities - Board of Directors|website=facuflorida.org|access-date=2019-07-03}} the Independent Colleges & Universities of Florida, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities,{{Cite web|url=https://www.naicu.edu/membership/membership-directory|title=NAICU Member Directory}} and the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities.{{Cite web|url=https://www.hacu.net/assnfe/CompanyDirectory.asp?STYLE=2&COMPANY_TYPE=1,5&SEARCH_TYPE=0#Florida|title=Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities - HACU|website=hacu.net|access-date=2019-07-03}}

In 2024, St. Thomas University accepted 65.1% of undergraduate applicants, was considered to have "Extremely Easy Admission Standards" with those enrolled having an average 3.24 high school GPA and with standardized test scores of an average 860-1060 SAT score, or an average 16-21 ACT score.{{cite web |title=St. Thomas University Admission Standards |url= https://www.collegesimply.com/colleges/florida/saint-thomas-university/#google_vignette|website=collegesimply.com |publisher=CollegeSimply {{!}} U.S. Department of Education National Center for Education Statistics |access-date=15 January 2025}}

{{Infobox US university ranking

| USNWR_NU= 392-434

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U.S. News & World Report ranked St. Thomas University in the No. 392-434 category out of 436 universities in the National Universities category in its 2025 Best Colleges ranking.{{Cite web |date=April 8, 2025 |title=U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges St. Thomas University |url=https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/st-thomas-university-1468 |website=U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges}}

Study abroad opportunities offer students study abroad experiences in Croatia, India, Israel, Italy, and Spain.{{Cite web|url=http://www.stu.edu/biscayne/Programs/Study-Abroad#tab-Spain|title=St. Thomas University - Biscayne College - Study Abriad|website=stu.edu|language=en-US|access-date=May 3, 2017}}

The 150-acre campus is located in Miami Gardens, Florida; minutes away from Miami's beaches, Wynwood Art District, the MiMo District, Fort Lauderdale, and Miami Downtown. The University Library also contains the Archbishop John C. Favalora Archive and Museum.{{cite web|url=http://library.stu.edu/archive/ |title=Saint Thomas University: Archbishop John C. Favalora Archive & Museum |publisher=Library.stu.edu |access-date=October 16, 2015}} The museum opened in 2008.

St. Thomas has six residence halls: Villanova Hall, Cascia Hall, Sullivan Hall, University Inn, Murphy Family Hall, and New Hall.{{Cite web|url=https://www.stu.edu/students/Housing|title=St. Thomas University - Students > Housing|website=stu.edu|language=en-US|access-date=May 3, 2017}}

{{Main|St. Thomas Bobcats}}

The St. Thomas athletic teams are called the Bobcats. The university is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA),{{cite web|title=Schools|url=http://www.naia.org/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=27900&ATCLID=205322922|website=NAIA.ORG|publisher=NAIA|access-date=11 November 2015}} primarily competing in the Sun Conference (formerly known as the Florida Sun Conference (FSC) until after spring 2008) since the 1990–91 academic year;{{cite web|title=Members|url=http://thesunconference.com/sports/2012/7/2/members.aspx|website=Thesunconference.com|access-date=11 November 2015}} while its men's wrestling team competes in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) and its eSports team competes in the Mid-South Conference (MSC). The Bobcats previously competed in the Sunshine State Conference (SSC) of the NCAA Division II ranks from 1975–76 to 1986–87.

St. Thomas competes in 28 intercollegiate varsity sports: Men's sports include baseball, basketball, cross country, football, golf, rugby, soccer, swimming & diving (2020), tennis, track & field and wrestling (2020); while women's sports include basketball, beach volleyball, bowling, cross country, flag football (2020), golf, lacrosse, rugby, soccer, softball, swimming & diving (2020), tennis, track & field and volleyball; and co-ed sports include cheerleading, competitive dance and eSports.

Last year, 12 of its 14 athletic teams received NAIA Scholar Team honors while five of the teams competed in national tournaments. Moreover, athletes annually maintain a 3.0 overall GPA. St. Thomas University prides itself on being "Champions of Character" and has annually been sighted as a Five Star Champions of Character Institution by the NAIA.{{Cite web|url=http://www.naia.org/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=205402257&DB_OEM_ID=27900|title=NAIA Scorecard Winners|website=NAIA.org|date=September 7, 2016 |language=en|access-date=2019-07-03}}

{{Main|List of St. Thomas University Alumni}}

Notable alumni of the university include:

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• [https://stubobcats.com/ Athletics website]

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Category:1961 establishments in Florida

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