learning by race and gender. Instead, the Florida Board of Control selected Andrew Sledd, then the president of the University of Florida in Lake City, to be the first president of the new men's university. Murphree continued to serve as the president of Florida State College, which became the all-female Florida Female College under the Buckman Act. From 1905 to 1909, Murphree emphasized greater academic expectations for his female students, while upgrading and expanding the college's curriculum to meet modern university standards. In 1909, Murphree convinced the legislature to change the name of the college to the Florida State College for Women. When the first president of the University of Florida, Andrew Sledd, was not re-appointed for the 1909–10 school year because of a conflict over what the new governor and members of the Florida Board of Education believed were Sledd's inflexible admissions standards that were impeding the growth of the university, Murphree's name was once again advanced as a replacement. This time, the Board of Control voted unanimously to approve his appointment. Murphree assumed his new duties during the summer of 1909, and worked diligently with his predecessor to ensure a smooth transition that capitalized on previous successes. In a surprise to some of his previous political supporters, Murphree endorsed Sledd's admissions standards, and thereafter actually tightened the requirements for entry again in 1912. Beginning in 1910, Murphree reorganized the university's administration into four academic colleges: the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Law, the College of Agriculture, and the College of Engineering, as well as the Graduate School. Murphree took particular interest in the "School of Graduate Studies," and the university awarded its first master's degree in 1910. He later oversaw the addition of the College of Education in 1912, the School of Pharmacy in 1924, the School of Architecture in 1925, and the College of Commerce and Journalism in 1927. During Murphree's term, he oversaw the construction of ten new major buildings, including such historical landmarks as Flint Hall (Science Department), Floyd Hall (College of Agriculture), Peabody Hall (College of Education), the University Auditorium, and the new University Library (now known as Smathers Library East). The University of Florida's enrollment grew from 186 students in 1909 to over 2,000 in 1927. Murphree is reported to have taken pride in knowing every Florida student by name. Under Murphree, student leaders formed the Florida Blue Key leadership