I am pleased to announce Dr. Ross Wolf is moving to full-time as interim assistant provost of UCF Downtown as our new leading-edge campus nears its second semester of operations.
In April, I appointed Ross to serve as interim assistant provost to guide academic excellence and innovation at UCF Downtown, which this fall welcomed more than 7,000 students in collaboration with Valencia College. He assumed those duties while continuing his work as an associate dean in the College of Community Innovation and Education (CCIE).
In his expanded role, Ross will focus exclusively on UCF Downtown academics and operations. His new responsibilities include oversight of space and classroom utilization, course scheduling, communications, and operational initiatives that support UCF Downtown students, faculty, and staff. Ross will continue to work closely with CCIE’s dean, Dr. Pamela “Sissi” Carroll, and Dr. Robert Littlefield, director of the Nicholson School of Communication and Media, in supporting collaborative curriculum and academic programs downtown.
Ross’s broader role coincides with new responsibilities for Mike Kilbride, who guided the construction of our new campus as assistant vice president at UCF Downtown. Mike recently joined the Office of the President as assistant vice president for Administration and Operational Innovation, with a particular focus on the effective execution of Interim President Seymour’s UCForward initiatives. Mike will continue to close out several remaining priorities for UCF Downtown, and he will be available to consult as needed in the future, especially regarding construction.
The successful designing, building, and opening of UCF Downtown required an array of talents and the hard work of many dedicated teams of faculty and staff to achieve. I want to thank all of them for their amazing efforts in creating a unique learning environment. And I applaud Mike for his outstanding leadership and unwavering dedication in coordinating the launching of the infrastructure and operations that brought the campus to life.
I also commend Ross for the key role he has played in the past eight months in leading the delivery of a high-quality academic experience to our students and ensuring a smooth transition for our faculty and staff who relocated to UCF Downtown. In addition to working with our UCF community, Ross has also led our academic partnership with Valencia College.
UCF Downtown is a reminder that our faculty, staff, and students aim high and thrive on creativity. As our downtown campus operations evolve, I’m grateful for our committed and energetic stakeholders who are defining what a premier 21st-century higher education can and should look like.
Please join me in supporting Ross and Mike as they continue to advance a bold future for UCF.
