St. Thomas University (Florida)

St. Thomas University

STU
Logo of St. Thomas University
Former names	Biscayne College
Motto	"Developing Leaders for Life"
Type	Private
Established	1961
Affiliation	Roman Catholic, Archdiocese of Miami
Endowment	$24.2 million as of 2014.
President	Monsignor Franklyn M. Casale
Provost	Dr. Irma Becerra
Students	4,000
Location	Miami Gardens, Florida, U.S.
Athletics	NAIA
Mascot	Bobcats
Website	http://www.stu.edu/

St. Thomas University (STU) is a private Roman Catholic university in Miami Gardens, Florida, United States.

The university traces its roots to the Universidad Católica de Santo Tomás de Villanueva, founded in 1946 in Havana, Cuba, named after Saint Thomas of Villanova, by American Augustinians with assistance from European Augustinians. When the Castro government expelled the Augustinians from Cuba in 1961, several of the American Augustinians came to Miami where they founded Biscayne College in 1961. Its first president had been vice rector of Universidad Villanueva. The college was accepted as a member of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and first accredited by the Commission on Colleges in 1968. Through continued growth and development, Biscayne College earned university status in 1984 after the addition of 10 Master's degree programs and the opening of the School of Law. At that point, its name changed to 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.

Florida Center for Theological Studies (FCTS) was a Christian theological seminary in Miami, Florida, founded in 1983 and incorporated in 1985 by Dr. Melvin E. Schoonover. The Florida Center for Theological Studies merged into the School of Theology and Ministry at St. Thomas University in April 2011.

The Miami Dolphins NFL team trained at St. Thomas University, from 1970 until 1993.

The campus is located in Miami Gardens, Florida, on 150 acres (61 ha) bounded on the north by the Palmetto Expressway, on the west by NW 37th Avenue, and on the east by NW 32nd Avenue. The northern side of the campus is occupied by woods and a monastery.