University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences

The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences (USAHS) is a private for-profit health sciences university headquartered in San Marcos, California. It was founded in 1979 as the Institute of Physical Therapy.^[1] It has campuses in San Marcos and in St. Augustine, Florida; Miami, Florida; Austin, Texas; and Dallas, Texas.^[2] The university is owned by Perdoceo Education Corporation.^[3]

University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences

Type	Private for-profit
Established	1979
Founder	Stanley V. Paris
Chancellor	Vivian A. Sanchez
President	Brian Goldstein
Students	5,152
Location	San Marcos, California(HQ), Miami, Florida, St. Augustine, Florida, Austin, Texas, and Dallas, Texas , United States
Website	www.usa.edu

History

The school that ultimately became the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences was founded in Atlanta, Georgia, in 1979 by Stanley V. Paris as the Institute of Physical Therapy. Paris retired from USAHS in 2007.^[4]

In 1997, the school officially became "The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences." It purchased a small private hospital and an adjoining 26 acres of land at the Flagler Health Park Campus in St. Augustine, creating its current St. Augustine campus.^[5]

In 2007, USAHS expanded to California, opening a campus in San Diego. The university also completed work on a 98,000-square-foot academic and clinic building at the St. Augustine campus.^[6] Two years later, the San Diego campus moved to San Marcos, California.^[7]

In 2012, the university opened its third campus, a new location in Austin, Texas.^[8] The following year, Laureate International Universities acquired a majority interest in USAHS.^[9] Three years later, it opened a campus in Miami, Florida.^[10]

Altas Partners, a Canadian long-term private equity firm, purchased USAHS from Laureate in 2019.^[11] Shortly thereafter, USAHS opened its fifth location in Dallas, Texas.^[12]

On December 2, 2024, Perdoceo Education Corporation paid a cash consideration of approximately $138M (net of cash acquired) at closing to acquire 100% ownership of the University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences.^[13]

Academics

USAHS is accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission.^[14]

Notable alumni

• Sarah Levy (born 1995), Olympic bronze medalist, rugby union and rugby sevens player

Notable faculty

USAHS founder Stanley V. Paris was the first president of the Orthopaedic Section of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA).^[15]

Faculty member Todd Bourgeois is a three-time national qualifying contestant on the NBC show American Ninja Warrior. Nicknamed the “Cajun Cowboy,” Bourgeois has been competing on the show since 2013.^[16]