Floyd T. Christian

Who was Floyd T. Christian?

Floyd Thomas Christian, Sr. was Florida Commissioner of Education from 1965 to 1973.

Christian was born in Bessemer, Alabama. He moved to Pinellas County with his family in 1927.

Christian graduated from St. Petersburg High School in 1933. He received his Bachelor of Arts from the University of Florida in 1937 and was a teacher and coach at Clearwater High School and coach at Fort Myers High School from 1938 to 1941. In World War II he served as battalion commander of the 697th Field Artillery and discharged as a Colonel in 1946. He received the Legion of Merit, the French Croix de Guerre, a Bronze Star Medal, a Silver Star, and the Italian Medal of Valor.

After the war, Christian was an administrator at the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs in St. Petersburg from 1946 to 1948. Christian was Superintendent of Public Instruction for Pinellas County from 1948 to 1965. Around this time Christian served as president of the Florida Association of County Superintendents, president of the Florida Education Association, and as the first chair of the Florida Educational Television Commission. He received his master's degree in education from the University of Florida in 1950. Christian was also served on the Florida Board of Regents, and was one of its first appointees when the board was organized in 1965.