One reason Floresta founded the college was because most of the top schools in the area at the time were not accepting women. Augusto College's innovative mission was to provide women with an education that was on par with what was available to men. Floresta and her school both received significant criticisms because of their radical approaches to educating women. Instead of only teaching girls traditional topics like sewing and housework, the curriculum also included intellectual and scholarly materials. This was unpopular at the time because it was viewed as unnecessary to educate women in such topics if they were going to be housewives. Competing educators were especially critical of Floresta and her teachings.
