“There is no better  
investment a nation  
can make than  
education.”   
Steve Nguyen

Much has changed at Saint Augustine’s since 1975. Most notably, the monastery has closed. No longer do monks live in the facility or work at the school. The monastery property is now owned by the Archdiocese of Nassau. From what I’ve heard, no particular plans for the facility have been adopted as of this time.

The campus at the bottom of the hill is thriving. The aerial view of the campus shows that there are currently twelve classroom buildings, two more than in 1975. A central outdoor corridor separates the two sets of six classroom wings. In 1975, walking up that corridor towards the administration building afforded a spectacular view of the monastery on the hill above. Today, due to the growth of trees over the past fifty years, the monastery is no longer visible from the campus.

At the end of the campus nearest the monastery, the main entrance to the campus features the administration building and a library/audio visual center. The book signing event for A Bahamian Odyssey will be held in the library on Sunday afternoon from 1-4. 

In addition to the academic buildings, a physical education building is located between the swimming pool and the administration building. It houses locker room facilities for boys and girls, along with office and storage space for the Director of Athletics. 

On that same side of the campus are the SAC athletic fields and outdoor basketball courts. The athletic facilities are not fancy, but they are quite functional. Saint Augustine’s College is well known for its outstanding athletic teams.

On the opposite side of the campus from the athletic fields is the school cafeteria. Since 1975, they have added an outdoor covered pavilion to expand the seating capacity of the facility.

While the monks sold off some of the property around the campus for residential development, there is still sufficient room for growth at this site. Plans are in the works for a state-of-the-art athletic complex to replace the current athletic facilities. 

This campus, and the memories I have of the time I spent teaching at SAC, will always have a special place in my heart. 

After a brief visit to SAC this afternoon, I stopped by the home of one of my former colleagues, Winston Carter, who I mention multiple times in my book. He taught at SAC for 45 years! I had not seen him since 1975. Not surprisingly, he didn’t know who I was when I showed up at his front door, but when I showed him the book and introduced myself, his face lit up and he invited me inside. We had a great visit. Meeting with him is one of the highlights of this trip.