The UCF Student Union: A Hub of Campus Life Through History and Service
The Student Union at the University of Central Florida (UCF) stands as the "Heart of Campus," a central gathering place on the Orlando campus. More than just a building, it embodies the spirit of community, providing spaces and services that cater to the diverse needs of the student body, faculty, and staff. From its humble beginnings alongside the university itself, the Student Union has evolved to become a multifaceted resource, adapting to the changing needs of a growing and dynamic university.
A Central Hub: Spaces and Services
The Student Union provides a welcoming environment for members of the UCF community to study, socialize, eat, host events, attend meetings, celebrate traditions, and engage in campus life. The facility provides a home to many vibrant university departments, access to key student services, and collaborative spaces for students to connect on campus. The UCF Student Union strives to create an innovative and inclusive environment acting as a catalyst for campus engagement.
The Student Union has grown to encompass more than just the main facility. The Union also manages the All Knight Study spaces at both the north and south ends of campus, Ferrell Commons, the Live Oak Event Center, Cypress Room, and the Knights Helping Knights Pantry, extending its reach and impact across the university.
The Genesis of UCF: From "Space University" to Metropolitan Research Institution
The story of the Student Union is inextricably linked to the history of UCF itself. In the early 1960s, Orange County's future was increasingly intertwined with the burgeoning aerospace industry. The Mercury program at nearby Cape Canaveral and the new Martin Marietta facility fueled the need for skilled professionals in engineering, electronics, and other technological fields.
Driven by the vision of becoming a "Space University," business, professional, and government leaders rallied to establish an institution that would educate the workforce for this new era. William H. Dial, a bank president and lawyer, spearheaded the effort, lobbying for the passage of Florida Senate Bill No. 125. With the support of former state Senate President William Shands, Orlando Sentinel publisher Martin Anderson, and Senator Beth Johnson, the bill successfully passed both the House and Senate.
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On January 24, 1964, the Board of Control selected a 1,227-acre tract along Alafaya Trail as the site for the new university. The location was chosen for its accessibility to the largest number of people in the east central Florida area. Most of the land was acquired from Frank Adamucci. Eighty-nine Orange County residents pledged a total of $1 million in cash and securities to secure the purchase of the site. With immediate funding secured, the project was moved to No. 1 on the state's priority list.
In October 1965, Charles N. Millican was chosen as the president. Millican opened the University’s first offices above a drugstore at Church Street and Orange Avenue in downtown Orlando. Market surveys revealed a need for business people and teachers in addition to scientists and engineers. In February 1966, the Citizens Advisory Committee and the Board of Regents selected the name Florida Technological University (FTU) for the new school.
Governor Claude Kirk presided over the FTU groundbreaking on March 19, 1967. Classes began on October 7, 1968, with 1,948 students, 90 instructors, and 150 staff members. Fifty-five degree programs were offered within five colleges: Business Administration; Education; Humanities and Social Sciences; Natural Sciences; and Engineering and Technology.
The official university seal, Pegasus, the winged horse of the muses in Greek mythology was selected, with a single star and the motto “Reach for the Stars” and the school colors of Black and Gold were introduced. Pegasus contrasted and connected the old and new, the humanities with science and technology.
In 1978, the institution's name was changed to the University of Central Florida, reflecting its expanded mission beyond technology. UCF has evolved into a leading metropolitan research university, with a diverse range of academic programs and a strong commitment to community engagement.
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The Black Student Union: A Legacy of Advocacy and Inclusion
The history of the Black Student Union (BSU) at UCF is a testament to the power of student activism and the ongoing pursuit of diversity and inclusion. Formed on October 29, 1969, at Florida Technological University, the BSU emerged from a need for Black students to unite and advocate for change on a predominantly white campus.
Sixteen out of the twenty-five black students at FTU collectively formed a union that would fill the absence of black leadership on the campus for many years to come. Dan Slater and Roland Williams were elected as the first President and first Vice President of the BSU in 1969. The union wanted to stress black pride and unity, help to improve communication with administration, and begin to celebrate the lives of well-known black Americans. Within the first year of existence, the BSU started their first community service project. The Thanksgiving Food Drive would become an annual event where the BSU collects and delivers food to the Salvation Army to be distributed to less fortunate families within the Orlando area.
Under the leadership of Dan Slater, the Black Student Union began to demand change on campus. In December of 1969, Slater and five other representatives of the BSU met with President Charles Millican to address their concerns over the lack of black faculty and black history curriculum on campus. Finally, in the spring of 1970, President Millican gave in and History 324-01, Black American History was added to the course schedule. Joseph Taylor, an assistant professor of American History at Bethune-Cookman College in Daytona Beach would be asked to teach the course, making him the “first part-time black faculty member at FTU.”
By 1970, the BSU went on to establish an annual Black Liberation Week, during the month of February, honoring the legacy of Malcolm X. In the spring of 1972, the BSU started Black Expression Week. In 1975 the name was changed to Black Awareness Week. The week included a fashion show, tours given to local area high school students, a concert, a day for students to dress in African clothing, and words from a guest speaker.
The BSU at FTU stayed in communication with the other Black Student Unions across the state of Florida. In 1977, under the leadership of President John Stover, they formed the Inter-Campus Committee with the Black Student Union at Rollins College in nearby Winter Park, Florida. To “provide a means of communication between the BSU and minority students at FTU,” on September 28, 1977, the BSU began publication of a monthly newsletter titled “Our Commitment… The Betterment of Life.”
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In the late 1970s, the Black Student Union began to face hard times. During the fall of 1977, they were forced to cancel all events due to the lack of funding from the Student Government. Finally, the administration listened and in 1978, the same year FTU became the University of Central Florida, the BSU was placed under the branch of funding by the UCF Student Government.
In April of 1978, the Black Student Union was accused, by the Student Government President Bob White, of charging money for its annual Spring Fashion Show. This would lead to an audit of the Black Student Union’s accounts ordered by Bob White which was made public via the Central Florida Future. Although the BSU was cleared of any wrong doing, the damage had already been done.
Student Government President Mark Omara, who inherited the dispute from previous president Bob White, attempted to diminish the BSU. Finally by 1979, new faces were in office, time passed and the feud had come to an end. The BSU could finally look towards the future and achieve new heights. The organization went on to establish UCF’s first Gospel and Cultural Choir, originally the Black Student Choir, in 1979.
In 1980, James Blount, former VP of the BSU, went on to become UCF’s first black Student Government President and in 1981 he became the first UCF student to be appointed to Florida’s Board of Regents by the governor. Under the leadership of Richard Sherrod in the late 80s, the BSU reached its greatest success. In the fall of 1988, the Black Student Union would change its name to the African American Student Union.
The BSU's legacy continues to inspire and empower students at UCF, fostering a more inclusive and equitable campus environment.
Evolution of the Physical Space: From Humble Beginnings to Modern Hub
The Student Union's physical presence on campus has also undergone a significant transformation over the years. In the 1970s, FTU/UCF lacked a dedicated space for students to gather and eat. In November 1979, construction began on a proposed student union. The initial location of this structure was considered in a proposed expansion plan of the library but, it was decided to build it between the music rehearsal hall and library. This structure is known today as John T. Washington Center.
John T. Washington, an associate professor of sociology, died of a heart attack March 10, 1983 at 41 years old. The renaming of the structure to Washington was a tribute to the accomplishments he had done not only for the university but for the community as well.
In 1999, the official campus bookstore changed and became what students are familiar with today-Barnes and Noble. In addition to changing over companies, renovations were done to add 25,000 square feet to the bookstore.
The planning for the current Student Union was first written about in the Future’s October 1989 issue. It outlined the location of the Student Union, including the debate between former President Colbourn, the Student Senate, and the marching band. The finalized site resides in the center of Pegasus Circle, where the Student Senate wanted the Student Union to be built. However, President Colbourn wanted to leave the middle undisturbed while the marching band did not want to lose their practice marching field. The proposal and finalized plans of the Student Union provide a natural setting and allow for nature trails in accessing the facility.
The initial construction date for the first phase of completion was in April 1991 while the second phase was to be completed by 1993. The proposed Student Union in the 1990s has the same basic layout that current students are familiar with. However, some retail spaces have since changed in the last decade both with the expansion of the Union and the economic climate.
Currently, the first floor includes dining facilities, fast food restaurants, places to meet with friends, places to study, a game room, retail shops, the Knight Stop for groceries, and College Express Optical. The second floor houses the Student Government Association offices, multipurpose rooms, and computer lab. The third floor has a student lounge and more multipurpose rooms for meetings, lectures, and student organizations. As of 2010, the Student Union is 75,289 square feet; this space is available for activities, computer labs, event halls, restaurants, and various other activities.
During the semester, the Student Union is the central location for friends to meet, print material, grab a bite to eat, or just a good escape from the heat and rain. In the summer months Student Orientation takes place in the ballrooms of the Student Union. The Ballrooms were an expansion that took place in August 1998. Furthermore, as part of the green initiative in 2009, garbage cans have now been divided into different types of garbage and those that are biodegradable are taken off site and fed to worms.
Superstitions and Traditions: The Pegasus Seal
The Pegasus seal in the center of the floor in the Student Union carries with it a superstition, which states that students who walk over the Pegasus seal will not graduate. According to the 2005 Florida Leader magazine’s ranking of universities within the state, UCF ranks #1 for having the best college superstition involving the Pegasus seal in the Student Union.
UCF Today: A Thriving University
The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university with its main campus in unincorporated Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the State University System of Florida. With 69,818 students as of the fall 2024 semester, UCF has the second largest on-campus student body of any public university in the United States.
The campus is designed to be pedestrian-oriented, with a series of concentric circles. The outermost circle is Gemini Blvd, which is also the main road for vehicular traffic on campus. Pegasus Circle contains the student union, with the John C. Hitt Library located directly to the south of it. Student housing is provided along the perimeter of the campus. The south side contains student recreation and wellness facilities, leisure pool, recreation park, and more student housing. Also 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, housing over 116 corporations. Main Campus is one of the safest branches nationally in comparison of all branches in the US. In 2019, a 15-acre (6-hectare) campus was opened in Downtown Orlando in collaboration with Valencia West. It includes the Dr. Phillips Academic Commons. The 50-acre (20-hectare) UCF Health Sciences Campus at Lake Nona includes the UCF College of Medicine and the Burnett Biomedical Sciences Building.
As a part of the State University System of Florida, UCF falls under the purview of the Florida Board of Governors. The president of the University of Central Florida is the university's principal executive officer. The office was formed upon the university's creation in 1963. The president is appointed by the board of trustees with the consent of the Florida Board of Governors and leads the university through its daily business. Today, the president's office is in Millican Hall on the university's main campus, and the president lives in the Burnett House, also on the main campus. Alexander Cartwright is the fifth and current president of UCF.
UCF is in the top 20 percent of universities in the nation for SAT average and the top 25 percent for GPA average. 71% of undergraduates receive financial aid. The University of Central Florida is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. Its academic calendar is based on the semester system, with the typical fall semester running from the end of August until the beginning of December and the typical spring semester running from the beginning of January through the beginning of May.
The UCF College of Medicine was established in 2006 by the Florida Legislature and the Florida Board of Governors to increase opportunities for medical education in Florida. The university aims for the college to become a research-intensive medical school, with the aid of the Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, the UCF Lake Nona Cancer Center, a Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Nemours Children's Hospital, Tavistock Group, and a M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando.
Located near the Orange County Convention Center on Universal Boulevard in Downtown Orlando, the college's 20-acre (8-hectare) campus is designed to imitate a resort-style feel, with various areas of the college named for major donors to the college (e.g. the Barbara Ying Center). The college features an on-site Campus Life Office and Career Services Office that coordinate on-campus activities and career development events in conjunction with the UCF Student Government Association. Among the colleges, a number of undergraduate academic programs are termed "limited access programs" which are programs where student demand exceeds available resources thus making admission to such program competitive.
Most of the print and media collection is housed in the John C. Hitt Library, which is located on UCF's main campus and is open to students, faculty and the public seven days a week. The library is five stories tall, and was the first academic building on campus. Leonardo Nierman's sculpture Flame of Hope is displayed outside the entrance to the building, and Nierman's stained glass Genesis window is exhibited on the third floor of the library building. In 2012, the main campus library was dedicated to honor John C. Hitt, UCF's fourth president, who at the time was celebrating his twentieth anniversary as university president. In addition to the John C. Hitt Library, Rosen College library, Downtown Library, Curriculum Materials Center, and the Harriet F. Ginsburg Health Sciences Library serve the university community. The student newspaper, the Central Florida Future, at one time was housed on the upper floor of the library before moving to the Central Florida Research Park.
The University of Central Florida fosters research among its thirteen academic colleges and schools, partnerships with corporations such as Lockheed Martin, Disney, Boeing, L3Harris, Siemens, SpaceX, and Universal. UCF also houses a satellite campus in Cocoa, FL, near Kennedy Space Center. National Astronomy and Ionosphere Center is also managed by UCF. A 2015 Aviation Week & Space Technology workforce study named UCF the No.
UCF's student body consists of 61,456 undergraduates and 10,002 graduate and professional students and 490 M.D. students. UCF's enrollment has increased by over 60% this century, from 33,453 in 2000 to 64,318 in 2016. Of the more than 60,000 students, 11% are graduate and professional students, while women make up 55% of the student body.
UCF has over 400 registered student organizations, intramural sports, and an active Student Government Association. Spirit Splash is a homecoming tradition at UCF, and is traditionally the only time during the year that students are allowed into the Reflecting Pond.
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