List of University of Central Florida alumni

A glass-clad and brick exterior of a modern-style, two-story building
The FAIRWINDS Alumni Center at UCF

The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a metropolitan public research and space-grant university located on a 1,415-acre (5.73 km2) main campus in Orlando, Florida, United States.[1] UCF is a member institution of the State University System of Florida and is the largest university in the United States in terms of undergraduate enrollment. It was founded in 1963 as Florida Technological University to provide highly trained personnel to support the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Florida's Space Coast. After the university's academic scope expanded in the mid and late 1970s to encompass a wider variety of disciplines, the school was renamed The University of Central Florida in 1978. Initial enrollment in 1968 was 1,948 students; as of 2014, the university has 59,770 students from more than 140 countries, all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia.[1][2] Since the university's first graduating class in 1970, UCF has awarded more than 250,000 degrees, including 45,000 graduate and professional degrees, to over 200,000 alumni.[1]

UCF alumni have made research contributions to optics, modeling and simulation, digital media, engineering and computer science, business administration, education, and hospitality management. Among the most notable is Gene Frantz ('71), inventor of the Texas Instruments Speak and Spell, and father of digital signal processing. Numerous graduates have gained notoriety in the fields of law, government, and public policy, with alumni including a prime minister, a chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers, a United States assistant secretary of state, a deputy assistant secretary at the Department of the Treasury, a director of the National Reconnaissance Office, and a director of the Secret Service; in addition to numerous members of the Florida Cabinet, Florida House of Representatives and Florida Senate, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronauts, and numerous officers in the armed forces through a unique partnership between the university and the U.S. military.[3][4][5] Alumni have also achieved success as executives in major organizations and Fortune 500 companies, such as Boeing, Busch Entertainment Corporation, Darden Restaurants, Ericsson, Google, NASCAR, the Orlando Magic and Texas Rangers, Sun Sports and Fox Sports Florida, Raymond James Financial, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, and Yahoo!

UCF graduates have also made notable contributions to the entertainment industry, including Cheryl Hines, widely known for her role as Cheryl David on the HBO television series Curb Your Enthusiasm, and Daniel Tosh, host of Tosh.0 on Comedy Central. In addition, The Blair Witch Project, which is considered one of the most successful independent films produced,[6] was filmed by UCF students and directed by alumni Daniel Myrick and Eduardo Sanchez.[7] As a major competitor in college athletics, UCF has had many notable student athletes, coaches, and staff members, such as National Football League (NFL) players Blake Bortles, Daunte Culpepper, Asante Samuel, Latavius Murray, and Brandon Marshall; National Basketball Association (NBA) such as the popular fan favorite Tacko Fall; NASCAR driver Aric Almirola; and woman's soccer player and Olympic gold medalist Michelle Akers. More than 70 UCF alumni currently compete in professional sports, such as basketball, football, baseball, golf, soccer, and auto racing. In just 25 years as a FBS program, as of 2021, 48 players have been drafted into the NFL.[8]

  1. ^ a b c "UCF Current Facts". University of Central Florida Institutional Knowledge Management. Archived from the original on June 30, 2014. Retrieved April 6, 2014.
  2. ^ "UCF Moves Up, Now Nation's 3rd Largest". The University of Central Florida. October 15, 2009. Retrieved July 21, 2010.
  3. ^ "Military research building started". Central Florida Future. July 12, 2007. Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved July 28, 2009.
  4. ^ "ROTC gaining in popularity". Central Florida Future. February 15, 2009. Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved October 5, 2009.
  5. ^ "Student Veterans Embraced by 'Military Friendly' UCF". University of Central Florida. September 10, 2010. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  6. ^ Rovello, Jessica (July 29, 2009). "Still Nauseous After All these Years: Blair Witch Turns 10". The Huffington Post. Retrieved July 31, 2009.
  7. ^ "Student & Alumni Sites". University of Central Florida School of Film. Archived from the original on August 8, 2007. Retrieved October 28, 2007.
  8. ^ "College Football Encyclopedias and NFL Records". Pro Football Reference. December 20, 2021. Retrieved December 21, 2021.