Coordinates: 28°36′06″N 81°12′02″W / 28.6016°N 81.2005°W / 28.6016; -81.2005

The University of Central Florida, commonly referred to as UCF, is a metropolitan public research university located in Orlando, Florida, United States. UCF is a member institution of the State University System of Florida, and is the second-largest university in the United States by enrollment.^[5]

The University of Central Florida was authorized by the Florida State Legislature in 1963, and opened in 1968 as Florida Technological University, with the goal of providing highly-trained personnel to support the Kennedy Space Center, located only 35 miles (56 km) to the east. As the university's academic scope had expanded to encompass other disciplines, along with concerns over potential confusion with the Florida Institute of Technology, also known as "Florida Tech", the school was renamed the University of Central Florida in 1978. Although initial enrollment in 1968 was only 1,948 students, as of 2011 enrollment consists of 58,698 students representing over 140 countries, all 50 states and the District of Columbia.^[2] The majority of the student population is located on the university's 1,415-acre (573 ha) main campus approximately 13 miles (21 km) east-northeast of downtown Orlando and 55 miles (89 km) south-southwest of Daytona Beach.^[2] The university offers over 210 separate degree options through twelve colleges and twelve satellite campuses throughout Florida.^[6] Since its founding, UCF has awarded more than 225,000 degrees, including 40,000 graduate and professional degrees, to nearly 185,000 alumni worldwide.^[2]

UCF is a space-grant university and has made noted research contributions to optics, modeling and simulation, digital media, engineering and computer science, business administration, education, and hospitality management, and is considered to be the fourth-best up-and-coming national university by U.S. News and World Report.^[7] UCF's official colors are black and gold and the academic logo is a Pegasus. The athletic teams, called the 'Knights' and represented by the mascot Knightro, are members of Conference USA until the start of the 2013-2014 season, when they will become all-sports members of the Big East.^[8]

History[link]

Establishment[link]

Millican Hall, named after UCF's first President, Dr. Charles Millican.

The university was established on June 10, 1963 when the Florida State Legislature passed, and Governor Farris Bryant subsequently signed into law Bill No. 125. The Board of Regents appointed Charles Millican the first president of the new university in 1965. Millican, with the consultation of a citizen advisory group, would choose the name Florida Technological University as well as co-design the school's distinctive "Pegasus" seal.^[9] Before the university was constructed, the land where it would be was desolate farm land. In fact, the first time that Millican went to see the land where the new university would be, he could not find it and had to return weeks later with specific directions from the Chancellor of the Board of Regents.^[10]

In March 1967, Florida Governor Claude Kirk presided over the groundbreaking of the new Florida Technological University. Eighteen months later on October 7, 1968, classes began with 1,948 students, 90 instructors and 150 staff members, in the school's first academic building, the library.^[11] During the university's inaugural year, fifty-five degree programs were offered within its five colleges: Business Administration, Education, Humanities and Social Sciences, Natural Sciences, and Engineering and Technology. The university's first mascot was the Citronaut, a mix between an orange and an astronaut.^[12]

UCF was founded as a non-segregated and coeducational university, with the founding goal being to educate current and future students for promising space-age careers in engineering, electronics and other technological professions, thus serving as a support system for the nearby Kennedy Space Center. In addition, the Central Florida Research Park, located adjacent to the UCF campus, serves as a major focus of simulation for space and defense-related research.

Expansion and growth[link]

The university's second president, Dr. Trevor Colbourn, recognized the diversification and growth of UCF's academic programs away from its strictly technological and scientific beginnings. From its establishment the university was known as Florida Technological University, nicknamed Florida Tech, until December 1978 when Governor Reuben Askew signed legislation changing the school's name to the University of Central Florida.^[2]

The official colors of the university were chosen by Charles N. Millican, UCF's Founding President. When the first student handbook was being drafted, the university had no official mascot. During the school's first year, the student newspaper, the FuTUre, compiled mascot suggestions from its readership body. A night nurse at the Health Center, Judy Hines, proposed "Vincent the Vulture" in 1970, which remained the school's unofficial mascot for more than a year. Later that year, UCF students voted and selected the "Knight of Pegasus" as their official mascot. Until 1994, the Knights were represented by a jouster from the Medieval Times dinner show located in nearby Kissimmee, Florida. That same year, Knightro was introduced at the staple homecoming event, "Spirit Splash." Two years later, UCF students were introduced to Knightro's girlfriend, Glycerin.^[13]

Recent history[link]

During its brief history, UCF has hosted numerous notable speakers. Among these include Presidents Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton, then Senator and current Vice President Joe Biden, Senators Bill Nelson, Mel Martinez, John Edwards, and Florida Governors Jeb Bush, Charlie Crist and Bob Graham to name just a few.

The past decade has seen enrollment increase by over forty percent at UCF,^[14] the acceptance rate for first time in college students falling from over 60% to near 40% in 2008, and the doubling of expected annual expenses.^[2][14] Since 2000, the university has awarded over 100,000 degrees.^[2][14]

Once known mainly as a small commuter and technology school, in recent years UCF has undertaken an effort to increase its academic and research standings while also evolving into a more traditional research university. The university has changed dramatically since its founding in 1963. As of 2011, there are approximately 58,698 students attending classes on twelve campuses spread across Central Florida. The university consists of twelve colleges and employs more than 10,150 faculty and staff.^[2] Since its founding, the university has been led by four presidents. Under the direction of current President Dr. John C. Hitt, UCF has raised admissions standards, increased research funding, built new facilities, and established notable partnerships with major research institutions.^[15] Hitt's efforts have resulted in not only an increase in the university's academic profile, but also an on-campus football stadium, new arena, more on-campus housing, and the development of the UCF College of Medicine at Lake Nona.

UCF is currently the largest university in the nation by terms of undergraduate enrollment, the largest university in Florida,^[16] and in 2003 held the distinction of being the fastest-growing university in the United States.^[17] During its Spring 2010 graduation ceremonies, the University of Central Florida awarded its 200,000th degree,^[18] less than five years after awarding its 150,000th diploma.^[19]

Campuses[link]

Main campus[link]

The UCF Reflection Pond and walkway in front of Millican Hall at night

The University of Central Florida has a unique campus layout that has become a model for other universities, reminiscent of the plans by Walt Disney for his Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow (EPCOT). The campus was designed to be a pedestrian oriented campus, with a series of concentric circles.^[20] The outermost circle is Gemini Blvd, which is also the main road for vehicular traffic on campus. Inside of Gemini, there is Apollo Circle, Mercury Circle, and finally Pegasus Circle as the innermost circle.^[21] Pegasus Circle contains the student union, which is the center of the campus, with the John C. Hitt Library located directly to the south of it. All academic buildings are located inside of Gemini, with the circle divided up into pie-shaped sections for each college.^[22] As there are very few roads inside of Gemini, many buildings' loading docks are accessible only by sidewalks and thus receive most deliveries at night. The University of Central Florida campus is one of only two in the nation with a concentric circle design, the other being the University of California, Irvine.^[23] Newsweek has ranked UCF as having the 20th most beautiful university campus in the country.^[24]

Student housing is provided along the perimeter of the campus. Outside of Gemini, the campus is divided up into different themed sections. The northwest side of campus includes Greek communities, the north side contains Knights Plaza, an uptown style athletic village, the east side contains the Arboretum of the University of Central Florida, and the south side contains student recreation and wellness facilities.

Located directly south of the main campus is Central Florida Research Park, which is the seventh largest research park in the nation and the largest in Florida,^[25] housing over 116 corporations. The park provides more than 10,000 jobs to over 500 students and thousands of alumni.^[26]

Regional campuses[link]

In addition to the main campus in Orlando, the University of Central Florida has several other campuses to service the central Florida region. In Orlando, there are three other campuses, located in Downtown, Valencia West, and South Orlando, as well as partnerships with the local community colleges of Brevard Community College, Lake-Sumter Community College, Seminole State College of Florida and Valencia Community College.^[6]

Outside Orlando, there are campuses in Cocoa, Clermont, Daytona Beach, Kissimmee, Leesburg, Ocala, Palm Bay and Sanford.^[6] In addition to having standard classes at these campuses, some courses are offered via alternative methods, such as 2-way TV from the main campus or via broadband.

UCF, in partnership with local colleges, participates in a program called DirectConnect.^[27] Through this program all students and alumni of Brevard Community College, Lake-Sumter Community College, Seminole State College of Florida and Valencia Community College are assured admission to the university. DirectConnect is considered to be the most productive community college-university partnership in America.^[28]

Health Sciences Campus at Lake Nona[link]

The 50 acre (0.20 km²) UCF Health Sciences Campus at Lake Nona includes the College of Medicine and the Burnett Biomedical Sciences Building. The Burnham Institute for Medical Research, a Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Nemours Children’s Hospital, Tavistock Group, M.D. Anderson Cancer Research Institute, and a University of Florida research facility will also call Lake Nona home, turning the area into a medical city.^[29][30][31] The campus will also serve as the future home of the UCF College of Nursing and the newly approved UCF College of Dental Medicine.^[32][33] The College of Medicine welcomed its charter class in August 2009.

Upon completion of construction, the campus could accommodate as many as 5,000 upper division, professional, and graduate students and faculty members in the health-related programs, and include up to two million square feet of research and instruction space.^[31][34]

Rosen College of Hospitality Management[link]