UCF Downtown Celebration

Photo Credit: Constituent Relations

On April 6, the College of Sciences toasted to the downtown project with other excited UCF representatives and partners. Over 200 people including, UCF faculty, staff, donors, alumni and other professionals joined together to celebrate the launch of UCF Downtown.

In Sept. 2014, President John Hitt, Ph.D., officially announced to the Orlando community that UCF will push to build a campus in downtown Orlando. Already home to UCF’s Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy – the nation’s top video-gaming graduate school – the new campus will bring students downtown to study degree programs that align with the emerging industries in the area.

Photo Credit: Constituent Relations

Between UCF and its partner, Valencia College, the campus is expected to bring over 7,700 students to downtown Orlando when it opens.

UCF Senior Associate VP for University Relations and event emcee, Fred Kittinger, kicked-off the celebration. Guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and drinks while socializing and celebrating this accomplishment.

President Hitt spoke and thanked everyone for their support of this project. The project is a game changer he said, “we stand at the cusp of a bold new future for Orlando, a future made possible by the power of partnerships and by perseverance.”

Dean Michael Johnson, Ph.D., and Ray Allen, director of development, represented the College of Sciences at the event. The Human Communication program in The Nicholson School of Communication will be one of the many areas relocating downtown.

Many important community figures such as  Mayor Buddy Dyer, Senator Andy Gardiner, and Sanford Shugart, Ph.D., Valencia College President, attended the event, giving their congratulations to UCF for this great achievement. Falecia Williams, Ph.D., President of Valencia’s west campus, and Dale Whittaker, Ph.D., UCF Provost and Executive Vice President, also attended the event, leading a toast to the future of UCF Downtown.

Photo Credit: Constituent Relations

Julie Stroh, Associate Vice President for Alumni Relations, and Michael Morsberger, Vice President for Alumni Relations and Development, both were in attendance to represent the UCF Foundation Office of Alumni Engagement and Annual Giving, the sponsor of the event.

For more pictures from the event click here.