Colleges in Manatee, Sarasota welcome students back Monday

MANATEE — In line with the area’s public schools, local colleges and universities welcomed students back for class on Monday.
University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee, State College of Florida Manatee-Sarasota and New College of Florida all started classes for the 2015-16 year. Manatee and Sarasota public schools started Monday as well.
New College welcomed almost 293 incoming students on Monday, making the freshman class the largest one in the school’s history.
“We had an amazing year in admissions,” New College President Don O’Shea said in a statement.
The new students completed a week of orientation programs, including their first “class” — a session titled “College Life 101” — about New College’s community standards before academic classes started. Short presentations from professors helped students prepare their schedules.