Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» launches 60th anniversary at gathering of faculty, staff
March 31, 2026
Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» (Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³») officially kicked off the celebration of its 60th anniversary
at the college’s annual professional development program for faculty and staff March
27. The anniversary was earlier formally recognized by the Florida House in a resolution
honoring the College's six decades of academic excellence, and advancing opportunity
for their local community and the region.
On March 5, 2026, Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» was represented in the State House gallery by President Paul Broadie II and Liam McClay, Vice President for Public and Government Affairs for the reading of Florida House Resolution 8107 by State Representative Charles "Chuck" Brannan III, of District 10.
"Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» was established in 1965 to expand access to affordable, high-quality higher education for the citizens of North Central Florida," Brannan said. "Santa Fe has grown from a modest beginning to a comprehensive institution supporting the citizens of Alachua and Bradford Counties."
The resolution noted the College's longstanding impact on workforce development, community engagement, culture of teaching excellence and student success, as well as its distinction as a 2015 Aspen Institute Award winner for "Community College Excellence," being the inaugural recipient of the "Impact and Success Award" from the Association of Community Colleges (ACCT), its highly ranked standing for veterans and their families, and for being the top state college for sending transfers on to the University of Florida.
The College’s first classes were offered in Fall 1966 at Buchholz Junior/Senior High School as Santa Fe Community College. The first year’s enrollment was 889 students.
With a current $413 million impact on the regional economy, Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» is broadening its education delivery by both growing its footprint with new facilities — like the state-of-the-art Ralph W. Cellon, Jr. Institute for Skilled Trades and Advanced Manufacturing and an Automotive Training and Technology Center — and through partnerships with Alachua County and Bradford County, who have provided existing space for students pursuing careers in Diesel Systems Technology and Nursing.
In April 2025, Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» was one of only two Florida public colleges to earn the designation "Opportunity Colleges and Universities" by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education for higher access and higher wages, with graduates earning 30 percent more than the regional average. And, in August, the College was the inaugural recipient of the 2025 "Impact and Success Award" for the Southern Region from the Association of Community Colleges Trustees (ACCT), only one of five institutions across the country to be recognized.
Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» boasts the No. 1 graduation rate for Florida College System schools, high rates of admission for transfers to four-year institutions, including more transfers to the state’s flagship institution, the University of Florida, than any other college, and top-percentile job placement among graduates in vocational/trades, Nursing and several disciplines in Allied Health.
Staying true to its commitment to being a student-centered institution that seeks to broaden access and opportunity for every sector of the community, Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³» has been proactive about creating initiatives and programs that meet the needs of potential student populations who want to reengage in the workplace after a significant life change, upskill to open doors to career advancement or even reimagine their productivity in older age or after a term of incarceration, thoughtfully crafting them in ways that serve to balance the needs of working parents.
