Saint Leo University is a private, non-profit, Roman Catholic liberal arts university established in 1889 and located in Saint Leo, Florida, 35 miles north of Tampa. The University is associated with the Holy Name Monastery, a Benedictine convent, and Saint Leo Abbey, a Benedictine monastery. Saint Leo University operates 17 continuing education centers in seven states, including California, Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia, as well as dozens of military base centers and the University's Center for Online Learning. Worldwide Saint Leo University had a total enrollment of 15,565 students in 2010, a majority of which were military-related students and of which 1,862 were enrolled at the main Florida campus.

Saint Leo University offers over 40 associate, baccalaureate and master's degree and certificate programs in the liberal arts. The University utilizes no teaching assistants, but employs 906 full-time and adjunct faculty members. One of the first American universities to provide distance learning opportunities to students, Saint Leo began educating military men and women in 1973 during the Vietnam era at the height of the anti-war movement.