Our campus may seem a little quieter, but summer courses are in full swing. It takes a considerable team effort to make a year-round robust learning environment possible.
At UCF, we believe if we can find a better way of doing something, we should do it. In that spirit, this past year we launched two new colleges — the College of Health Professions and Sciences and the College of Community Innovation and Education — along with a new school, the Nicholson School of Communication and Media. The changes better position UCF to provide new opportunities for interdisciplinary research and learning, tackle complex issues and real-world challenges, and prepare more students to excel after graduation.
As the summer unfolds, I am working with Interim President Thad Seymour Jr., our deans, faculty and staff to identify and pursue additional opportunities for enhancing the academic experience and the success of our faculty and students.
Among other items, we are examining academic advising, resources, course availability, enrollment strategies and academic processes.
UCF Downtown Progresses
Construction and other preparations are in high gear for the first day of classes on Aug. 26 at our leading-edge campus, UCF Downtown in partnership with Valencia College.
Faculty and staff members will fill their new workspaces starting in early August, and students move into the 600-bed UnionWest at Creative Village housing complex starting Aug. 21. The shuttle schedule between UCF Downtown and the main campus is already set.
Thanks to our administrators, academic leaders and faculty who are diligently preparing the facilities, academic programs, and services for more than 7,700 students who will be the first to experience a bold new urban environment for learning, teaching, serving, and working.
Celebrating Pride Month
June is recognized across the globe as Pride Month. This month reminds me how important diversity and inclusion are in fostering a vibrant campus atmosphere where learning, engagement and opportunities for scholarship flourish for the benefit of all.
To our LGBTQ+ faculty, staff and students, thank you for your many contributions that enhance UCF. Diversity and inclusion are part of our DNA as a university. They make us stronger, smarter and more competitive.
Together, we are better, and that concept is worth celebrating in any month!
Knights Notables
I am constantly impressed by the scope of our achievements and impact at UCF. Recent examples include:
⢠The 117 future doctors who earned degrees last month from UCF’s College of Medicine. This year’s class achieved a 99 percent match rate for residencies, which involve hospitals that include Orlando Health, AdventHealth, Yale, Vanderbilt, Johns Hopkins, and the Mayo Clinic.
⢠The addition of UCF to Disney’s Aspire education investment program, which enables eligible Disney employees and cast members to take free courses at our university.
⢠Recent Knights alumni Alexis Jahncke, Haley Lehew, Evan Rosato, Noa Tann, and Paige Timmerman, who are now among the 40 Knights in UCF history who have received prestigious Fulbright awards for scholarship abroad.
To be better, we must do better, and I am excited about the brighter future we are building together for UCF, our community and the world. Take care of yourself this summer, and let’s look forward to an exciting 2019-20!
