Florida Southern College

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Florida Southern College

Motto: Lux Sapientia Lex
(Latin: "Light, Wisdom, Law")
Established: 1883
Endowment: US $70,332,000 [1]
President: Anne B. Kerr
Faculty: 109 [2]
Undergraduates: 1,800
Postgraduates: 96
Location: Lakeland, Florida, United States
Campus: 100 acres (0.4 km²)
Colors: Scarlet and White         
Nickname: Moccasins
Mascot: Mocsie
Website: http://www.flsouthern.edu

Florida Southern College (commonly referred to as Florida Southern or FSC) is a private college located in Lakeland, Florida. It was selected by U.S. News & World Report as one of the top ten Southern Comprehensive Colleges-Bachelors, and by The Princeton Review as a Best Southeastern College, a Best Value College, and included in the Best 366 Colleges: 2008, Florida Southern is the home of the world’s largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture.

Contents

[edit] History

The college was founded in Orlando in 1856, and moved to Leesburg in 1885 (some debate this to be the true establishment) under the sponsorship of the United Methodist Church and was open to both male and female students. It moved to Sutherland (now Palm Harbor) in 1901 and changed its name to Southern College. Due to fires in the early 1920s it was temporarily relocated to Clearwater Beach and then moved to Lakeland in 1922. In 1935 it was renamed Florida Southern College by the trustees.

The present campus comprises some 64 buildings on 100 acres (405,000 m²) of land and is the home of the largest collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world. The campus itself is designated a National Historic Site, due to the historic significance of its buildings.

[edit] Sports

Florida Southern Mocs logo

Florida Southern's athletic teams are known as the Moccasins, often shortened to Mocs. The school adopted the nickname in 1926 (prior to then the teams were known as the Southerners). The official colors are scarlet and white, though athletes sport red, white, and blue uniforms. The college's athletic teams participate in the Sunshine State Conference, or SSC, an NCAA Division II institution. Florida Southern has won 26 NCAA Division II championships in Men's Golf (11), Baseball (9), Women's Golf (4), Men's Basketball (1), and Softball (1). Florida Southern's most recent championship came in May of 2007 when the women's golf team won their fourth NCAA national title.

Florida Southern offers men's teams in baseball, basketball, cross country, golf, soccer, swimming and tennis and women's teams in basketball, cross country, golf, softball, soccer, swimming, tennis and volleyball. Florida Southern recently announced the initiation of a men's lacrosse program in the 2008-2009 academic year.

The men's basketball program has experienced significant success, dominating the SSC and winning a national title in 1981. In the first 30 seasons of SSC basketball (1975-2006), the Mocs have won the regular season 16 times (10 outright) and have been crowned tournament champions 17 times. FSC also has more conference wins than any other SSC team (290), along with owning the best winning percentage of any current member (.697). Since 1980, FSC has also recorded more overall wins (641) than any other four-year institution in the state of Florida. However, the team faltered in the 2006-2007 season, only managing an 8-20 record. (See 2006-07 Media Guide)

Rivaling (and perhaps surpassing) the basketball program in accomplishments, the baseball program has also experienced its own success. The Mocs have won 17 SSC baseball championships and nine national championships (1971, 1972, 1975, 1978, 1981, 1985, 1988, 1995, and 2005). The Moccasins finished the successful 2007 season with 44 wins and only 16 losses. (See 2006-07 Media Guide)

The Detroit Tigers, who conduct their Spring Training in Lakeland, traditionally play an exhibition game against Florida Southern's baseball team prior to the start of the Grapefruit League season of major league spring games.

[edit] Frank Lloyd Wright Architecture at FSC

Annie Pfeiffer Chapel
Annie Pfeiffer Chapel
FSC logo
Main article: Child of the Sun

The collection of Frank Lloyd Wright Architecture at Florida Southern College is called Child Of The Sun. This includes:

  • Annie Pfeiffer Chapel - First completed Frank Lloyd Wright building, begun 1938, dedicated 1941, French-door balconies restored in 2007
  • Buckner Building (Original Roux Library) - begun 1942, completed 1946
  • Ordway Building (Originally called the Industrial Arts Building) - begun 1950, completed 1952
  • Danforth Chapel - begun 1954, completed 1955
  • Polk County Science Building (Called Polk Science by faculty and students) - begun 1952, completed 1958
  • Watson/Fine Building (Administration Building) - begun 1946, completed 1949
  • Water Dome - partially completed 1949, fully completed and restored in 2007 to Wright's original plans
  • Three Seminars (Now the Business Office) - begun 1940, completed 1942, formed into one office building in 1958
  • The Esplanades - various completion times, currently undergoing restoration around the campus

[edit] Fine Arts

[edit] Theatre

Generally the FSC Theatre Department puts on 4 mainstage shows a year in the Buckner Theater, with the 3rd show usually a musical. As of the 2005-2006 school year, the theatre dept consisted of two full-time professors and one adjunct professor.

[edit] Music

The music department teaches individual lessons, ensemble participation, music classes, and performance. The school's musical groups include the wind ensemble, symphony band, jazz ensemble, Moccasin pep-band, symphony orchestra, and several choral groups. Smaller ensembles include the flute choir, clarinet choir, saxophone choir, horn choir, trumpet choir, trombone choir, tuba choir, percussion ensemble, vocal chamber ensemble, and opera theater.

Students have the option of minoring in music, or majoring with the concentration of music, performance, management, or education. The music department is a prestigious component of Florida Southern College's degree of excellence.

[edit] Festival of Fine Arts

Lawrence Burke, Director of the Festival of Fine Arts, presents both departmental and world-renowned shows throughout the year.

[edit] Student life

[edit] Greek life

Fraternities

Sororities

Currently Not Active

  • Delta Zeta 1937 (closed since 1979)
  • Phi Sigma Sigma 1947 (closed since 1958)
  • Phi Mu 1954 (currently closed)
  • Sigma Sigma Sigma 1955 (closed since 1975)
  • Alpha Gamma Delta 1958 (closed since 1976)
  • Pi Kappa Alpha
  • Pi Kappa Phi 1948 (closed since 2001)
  • Sigma Phi Epsilon
  • Alpha Kappa Alpha
  • Kappa Alpha Psi

[edit] Social life

Organizations

  • ACE (Association of Campus Entertainment)
  • RHA (Residence Hall Association)
  • Beta Beta Beta (Biology Fraternity)
  • Circle K International (Service Organization, College branch of Kiwanis)
  • Delta Omicron (Chapter Alpha Phi, International Professional Music Fraternity)
  • Interlachen (Yearbook)
  • Historians Club
  • Omicron Delta Kappa (Leadership Fraternity)
  • Psi Chi (Psychology Fraternity)
  • Sigma Rho Epsilon (Religious Community Service Fraternity)
  • Theta Chi Beta (Gimel Chapter, Religion Honorary)
  • Phi Alpha Delta (Law Fraternity, International)
  • SteppenDwarf(former second stage comedy troupe)

Campus Ministries

  • Beyond
  • Fellowship of Christian Athletes
  • Newman Club (former Catholic campus ministry)
  • Sandwich Ministry (Ministry to the homeless community)
  • Upper Room Ministries
  • Wesley Fellowship (United Methodist Campus Ministry)

[edit] Resident life

Residence Halls

  • Allan Spivey (Freshmen Women)
  • Joseph Reynolds (Freshmen Women. Called 'JR' by students)
  • Hollis (Freshmen Men)
  • Miller
  • Dell
  • Jenkins
  • Publix Commons (includes all sororities houses, Lambda Chi Alpha and Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity houses)
  • Columbia
  • Princeton (no longer present)
  • Harvard (no longer present)
  • Panhellenic (former sorority houses, currently being torn down and rebuilt)

[edit] Florida Southern College in Media

  • Annie Pfieffer Chapel, Esplanades and the Hindu Gardens appeared in an episode of seaQuest DSV.
  • Featured in the Adam Sandler movie The Waterboy (in particular, the medulla oblongata scene, which was filmed in Edge Hall)
  • Opening the 2008 Detroit Tigers spring schedule. The FSC lineup included freshman second baseman Colin Kaline, grandson of former Tiger great Al Kaline Source: Detroit News

[edit] Notable Alumni

[edit] See also

[edit] External links