LAURINBURG — St. Andrews University is gearing up to welcome one of its larger incoming freshman classes for Fall 2019.
With an addition of new concentrations and enduring damage from the past hurricane, the university is still vying for higher education success.
“Our classes don’t start until Aug. 27,” said Brian Stanley, vice president of enrollment management. “We are a month out, but our overall number of applications received have increased as well as the number of students accepted. So, that shows that this will be a larger class than last year.”
He added that renovations are still underway, some fixing the damages left by Hurricane Florence.
“(When Florence occurred), we missed two weeks of school, but all of our students returned,” said Stanley. “We are partnering with FEMA for all renovations of that process.”
In April, the Federal Emergency Management Agency approved $2.3 million to reimburse St. Andrews University in Laurinburg for emergency protective measures taken following Hurricane Florence.
Beginning Sept. 18, 2018, St. Andrews University hired contractors to restore power, remove standing water and clean campus buildings. The approved funds cover work completed through Jan. 5, 2019.
For now, Stanley adds that some updates are for the college in general, not just because of Florence, to prepare for returning and incoming students.
“During the summer, we are painting and cleaning all the residential housing and painting and renovating the academic classes,” said Stanley. “We also have nine new faculty members coming on board.”
With a growing student and faculty population, St. Andrews is also offering new programs, including:
— Bachelor of science in sports performance health
— Bachelor of arts in health services administration
— Bachelor of arts in sports management
— Bachelor of arts in biology with a specialization in biomedical sciences
— Bachelor of arts in interdisciplinary studies with concentration pre-doctor of physical therapy program
St. Andrews University, a branch of Webber International University, has an application for licensure of the BSSPF pending for Sports Performance Health and Health Services Administration before the University of North Carolina Board of Governors and that licensure is required prior to the start date of the BSSPF.
Those interested can sign up for a personal private visit or the last summer open house on Aug. 2, online at https://www.sa.edu/admissions-pages/visit.
Jael Pembrick can be reached at 910-506-3169 or jpembrick@laurinburgexch.wpenginepowered.com.
