Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee, Florida is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2022, the population was 201,731, and its metropolitan area had 385,145 people.
With a student population exceeding 70,000, Tallahassee is a college town, home to Florida State University; Florida A&M University, a public historically black university; and Tallahassee Community College, a large state college that serves mainly as a feeder school to Florida State and Florida A&M.
Tallahassee's terrain is hilly by Florida standards, with an elevation that varies from near sea level to just over 200 ft above sea level. The city includes two large lake basins, Lake Jackson and Lake Lafayette. Tallahassee also borders the northern end of the Apalachicola National Forest.
The flora and fauna are similar to those found in the mid-south and low country regions of South Carolina and Georgia. The palm trees are the more cold-hardy varieties like the state tree, the Sabal palmetto. Pines, magnolias, hickories, and a variety of oaks are the dominant trees. The Southern Live Oak is perhaps the most emblematic of the city.
The distribution of the population in 2020 was as follows:
| Race / Ethnicity | Pop 2010[1] | Pop 2020[2] | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 96,753 | 94,095 | 53.34% | 47.97% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 62,538 | 67,503 | 34.48% | 34.41% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | 381 | 398 | 0.21% | 0.20% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 6,566 | 8,665 | 3.62% | 4.42% |
| Pacific Islander alone (NH) | 88 | 100 | 0.05% | 0.05% |
| Some Other Race alone (NH) | 373 | 924 | 0.21% | 0.47% |
| Mixed Race/Multi-Racial (NH) | 3,331 | 7,821 | 1.84% | 3.99% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 11,346 | 16,663 | 6.26% | 8.49% |
| Total | 181,376 | 196,169 | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos can be of any race.
Law, government and politics
Tallahassee has traditionally been a Democratic city, but the party has been supported by different ethnic groups over time, with a major shift in the late 20th century. Leon County has voted Democratic in 24 of the past 29 presidential elections since 1904. But until the late 1960s, most African Americans were disenfranchised from the political system, dating from a new constitution and other laws passed by Democrats in Florida (and in all other Southern states) at the turn of the century. At that time, most African Americans were affiliated with the Republican Party, and their disenfranchisement resulted in that party being non-competitive in the region for decades. Subsequently, these demographic groups traded party alignments.
Since passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and enforcement of constitutional rights for African Americans, voters in Tallahassee have elected black mayors and black state representatives.[3]97 It has become a city in the Southern U.S. that is known for progressive activism.Template:Citation needed This is likely due to the large student population that attends Florida State University, Florida A&M University, and Tallahassee Community College. In addition, in the realignment of party politics since the late 20th century, most of the African-American population in the city now support Democratic Party candidates.[4][5]
As of December 2, 2018, there were 112,572 Democrats, 58,083 Republicans, and 44,007 voters who were independent or had other affiliations among the 214,662 voters in Leon County.[6]
Leon County's voter turnout percentage has consistently ranked among the highest of Florida's 67 counties, with a record-setting 86% turnout in the November 2008 general election. The county voted for Barack Obama in the presidential election.[7]
Education
Public schools belonging to universities
- Florida State University School ("Florida High") (K–12)
- Florida A&M University Developmental Research School (K–12)
Florida State University
Florida State University (commonly referred to as Florida State or FSU) is an American public space-grant and sea-grant research university. Florida State is on a 1,391.54-acre (5.631 km2) campus in the state capital of Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the state of Florida.[8][9]
For 2022, U.S. News & World Report ranked Florida State as the 19th best public university in the United States and 55th among top national universities.[10]
Florida A&M University
Founded on October 3, 1887, Florida A&M University (commonly referred to as FAMU) is a public, historically black university and land-grant university that is part of the State University System of Florida and is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. FAMU's main campus comprises 156 buildings spread over 422 acre (Expression error: Missing operand for round. km2) on top of the highest geographic hill of Tallahassee. The university also has several satellite campuses, including a site in Orlando where its College of Law is located and sites in Miami, Jacksonville and Tampa for its pharmacy program. Florida A&M University offers 54 bachelor's degrees and 29 master's degrees. The university has 12 schools and colleges and one institute.
FAMU has 11 doctoral programs which include 10 PhD programs: chemical engineering, civil engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, biomedical engineering, physics, pharmaceutical sciences, educational leadership, and environmental sciences. Top undergraduate programs are architecture, journalism, computer information sciences, and psychology. FAMU's top graduate programs include pharmaceutical sciences along with public health, physical therapy, engineering, physics, master's of applied social sciences (especially history and public administration), business and sociology.
Tallahassee Community College
Tallahassee Community College (TCC) is a member of the Florida College System. Tallahassee Community College is accredited by the Florida Department of Education and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Its primary campus is on a 270-acre (1.092 km2) campus in Tallahassee. The institution was founded in 1966 by the Florida Legislature.[11]
TCC offers Bachelor's of Science, Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, and Associate of Applied Sciences degrees. In 2013, Tallahassee Community College was listed 1st in the nation in graduating students with A.A. degrees.[12] TCC is also the No. 1 transfer school in the nation to Florida State University and Florida A&M University. As of Fall 2015, TCC reported 38,017 students.[13]
In partnership with Florida State University, and Florida A&M University Tallahassee Community College offers the TCC2FSU, and TCC2FAMU program. This program provides guaranteed admission into Florida State University and Florida A&M University for TCC Associate in Arts degree graduates.
Economy
Companies based in Tallahassee include: Citizens Property Insurance Corporation, the Municipal Code Corporation, the State Board of Administration of Florida (SBA), the Mainline Information Systems,[14] and United Solutions Company.[15]
According to Tallahassee's 2021 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report,[16] the top employers in the city are:
| # | Employer | # of Employees | # of Employees in 2012 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | State of Florida | 26,042 | 20,961 |
| 2 | Florida State University | 15,011 | 13,501 |
| 3 | Tallahassee Memorial Hospital | 5,349 | 3,060 |
| 4 | Leon County School Board | 4,300 | 4,306 |
| 5 | City of Tallahassee | 2,856 | 2,848 |
| 6 | Walmart | 2,655 | 2,000 |
| 7 | Publix | 2,543 | n/a |
| 8 | Florida A&M University | 1,749 | 1,937 |
| 9 | Leon County | 1,744 | 1,783 |
| 10 | Tallahassee Community College | 1,475 | 1,821 |
| 11 | Capital Regional Medical Center | 1,095 | 1,122 |
Provenance
- Some content on this page may previously have appeared on Wikipedia.
References
- ↑ P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2010: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Tallahassee city, Florida.
- ↑ P2 HISPANIC OR LATINO, AND NOT HISPANIC OR LATINO BY RACE – 2020: DEC Redistricting Data (PL 94-171) – Tallahassee city, Florida.
- ↑ Eisenberg, Daniel. In Tallahassee, pp. 97–101.
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Tallahassee city, Florida; UNITED STATES.
- ↑ Just How Liberal Are College Students? – Harvard Political Review (April 25, 2014).
- ↑ Home – Leon County Supervisor of Elections.
- ↑ Leon Supervisor of Elections Office.
- ↑ Meginniss, Benjamin A. (1902). The Argo of the Florida State College. The Franklin Printing & Publishing Co., Atlanta.
- ↑ Klein, Barry. FSU's age change: history or one-upmanship?, July 29, 2000.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedusnews.com - ↑ Tallahassee Community College.
- ↑ Associate Degree & Certificate Producers, 2013.
- ↑ The Fact Book.
- ↑ Mainline – IT Solutions, Software, Managed Business Services.
- ↑ Core Processing for Credit Unions.
- ↑ City of Tallahassee ACFR.