Marianna Aristizabal
Staff Writer
Nature floods the promenades of Florida Southern College as students walk through campus. Spanish moss dangles from a tree branch as they’re relaxed by the soothing sounds of the Waterdome’s fountain, passing fellow students fascinated by the same scenery.
Along with the captivation of Mother Earth, one will see a variety of Frank Lloyd Wright’s world renowned architecture.
With these factors combined, Princeton Review’s Best Colleges Guide ranks Florida Southern College as the #6 “Most Beautiful College”for 2024 out of 389 schools in the country.
Florida Southern has been ranked in the Princeton Review’s Best Colleges Guide numerous times over the years, earning the top ten. It holds the honor of being the first college to receive number one for the “Most Beautiful College” in the nation for two consecutive years in 2012 and 2013.
Schools are chosen by student surveys who attend college to get insight from all around. The survey was recently placed online in hopes of reaching more people and getting more voices from all over the country.
Additionally, the Florida Southern College Historic District was designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Park Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior in 2012 for being the largest single-site collection of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture in the world.
Wright’s ability to build architecture in his natural surroundings to make them appear rooted in the soil makes him stand out from the rest. According to the Frank Lloyd Wright Trust website, architecture should be seen as suited to its environment and is a product of its place, purpose and time. This is exactly what he did.
And he did more. Using the environment around where the structure would be, he would design and build accordingly. Unique structures and homes that fit their landscape came in result, rather than the traditional cookie-cutter home. Some of those structures include the Annie Pfeiffer Chapel, Ordway Arts Building, E.T. Roux Library, etc.
While Lloyd’s architecture may be notable, its historic prevalence prevents the school’s ability to update certain classrooms, dorms and promenades.
Senior Anushka Mercado said she loves the natural feel of the school but hates how the classrooms are deteriorating. Though she understands the school is hesitant to change a piece of history, the older facilities can make student life difficult.
Another student, junior Alex Zweck, disagreed. He loves how he can feel the rich embodiment of campus tied into the Frank Lloyd Wright architecture. It doesn’t feel like every other basic campus, which led him to choose FSC.
Despite the differing opinions of students, the survey results are the ones that matter to the Princeton Review. And based on these results, Florida Southern continues to hit the lists in rankings whether it’s the campus, student life or programs.
