Saint Leo University opened its fall semester Monday with nearly 850 new students arriving at its Pasco County campus, almost a year into President Jim Burkee’s tenure and the growth strategy he brought with him.
Those students enter an academic lineup increasingly geared toward health care, technology and business, priorities Burkee has placed at the center of his plans to grow Saint Leo. More than 10 undergraduate and graduate programs are being introduced for the 2026-27 academic year, including bachelor’s degrees in business analytics and finance, a direct-entry master’s in nursing and an artificial intelligence minor.
Some of those academic priorities have drawn investment beyond the university, including $1.8 million in state funding to expand cybersecurity and nursing and a $2 million commitment from Arnie and Lauren Bellini toward an accelerated graduate program for cybersecurity executives expected to launch in spring 2027.
That outside investment reaches beyond academics through another $1 million from Dewey and Becky Mitchell, whose donation will establish the Derek J. Mitchell Collegiate Recovery Program and support its first cohort in spring 2027. Together, the state funding and private commitments total $4.8 million.
Yet the broadest change to what Saint Leo students will learn requires no particular major, advancing a plan Burkee laid out earlier this year to put AI training into every student’s curriculum. The university is embedding AI and digital fluency training through IBM SkillsBuild across every academic program this fall.
That reach underpins Saint Leo’s stated goal of becoming the first university in the country to fully integrate the IBM platform across every field of study, making AI and digital skills part of the education students receive regardless of the degree they pursue.
Extending that preparation from what students learn to how they enter the workforce, Saint Leo plans to bring academic advising and career and workforce services into one system while expanding opportunities for professional experience through internships, clinical work and employer partnerships.
The effort builds on another Burkee priority: developing deeper relationships with Tampa Bay employers and ultimately requiring every undergraduate to complete a substantial internship before graduating.
For students beginning that progression this fall, Saint Leo itself extends beyond the Pasco County campus, with classes offered online and through education centers at Pasco-Hernando State College, MacDill Air Force Base, Savannah, Georgia and Key West.