Aiming to expand Samford’s global footprint and create a unique work-and-serve cultural opportunity, the university announced the purchase of a new international study campus in Costa Rica.
Officially acquired in mid-August, the property—a 10,000-square-foot home on 14 acres of mountainous countryside near the capital city of San Jose—will be known as Finca de Samford, which translates to “Samford Estate.”
University President Beck A. Taylor heralded the news during his annual State of the University address, citing global influence as a key pillar of Samford’s strategic master plan Fidelitas.
The purchase comes two years after Taylor commissioned university leaders to develop a second global study center complementary to the Daniel House in London, but in a less cosmopolitan setting. Seeking Samford's next “home away from home,” Taylor aspired a location in a Spanish-language country—preferably in the Americas—with a developing but politically stable climate.
"(Finca de Samford in Costa Rica) is especially situated to provide our students space to reflect and experience God at work in the world."
— President Beck A. Taylor
“Those of us who have been involved in the prayerful search, identification and now purchase of this property have felt God moving all along through this process,” Taylor said.
Finca de Samford, in programming and environment, will offer an appeal distinctive from the Daniel House, which celebrated its 40th anniversary last year.
“There are similarities to the Daniel House, which has been a fantastic model, but that model provides merely a scaffold,” said Colin Coyne, vice president for finance, business affairs and strategy. “Daniel House is in the heart of Kensington. This is on an estate in the hills overlooking Ciudad Colón, abutting a national forest and a coffee plantation. So this process of creating another immersive experience required us having malleable minds and asking what we could do differently, what we could do better.”
MORE: SamfordGlobal makes international opportunities accessible
Lauren Doss, executive director of SamfordGlobal, was part of the team that evaluated locations for the Costa Rican center, which furthers the goal of giving every student the chance to study abroad. Situated mere miles from the United Nations’ University for Peace, the town of Ciudad Colón offers a hospitable environment for students learning Spanish, going to market, attending church and participating in local life—an emphasis that stretches far beyond academic tourism.
“This will become an amazing academic exploration,” Doss said. “We’re thinking about the service opportunities for all disciplines, especially for our College of Health Sciences programs. Our biology classes could identify the flora and fauna on our property because it’s so vast. There’s a garden that could drive sustainability practices and research.”
The administration anticipates capacity ranging from 10 to 20 students, with a pilot group projected to visit for spring semester 2026. Plans include an on-site residence director, a faculty member in residence and full-time staff.
“This will become an amazing academic exploration."
— Lauren Doss of SamfordGlobal
“The property is full of curricular and co-curricular opportunities for a variety of programs, and it is especially situated to provide our students space to reflect and experience God at work in the world,” Taylor said.
The purchase price will be completely covered by the sale of property Samford owns on the north side of campus in Homewood. Said Taylor, “It is a great example of reallocating resources to their most pressing needs.”
