About Opentopia
Opentopia Directory Encyclopedia Tools

University of South Florida

Encyclopedia : U : UN : UNI : University of South Florida

The University of South Florida (USF) is a public university located in Tampa, Florida, USA, with branch campuses in St. Petersburg, Sarasota and Lakeland. The main campus is located in North Tampa, near the city of Temple Terrace. Bordered on the south by Fowler Avenue and on the north by Fletcher Avenue, the university is in close proximity to the Museum of Science and Industry as well as Busch Gardens and the University Mall shopping center.

The university is the third largest in the state of Florida, with a Fall 2005 enrollment of 43,021. [link] USF is currently ranked ninth in the country in terms of enrolled students.

USF is also one of three public universities in the state (after the University of Florida and Florida State University) to have received first-tier research university status by the Carnegie Foundation, a mission first started by former university president Betty Castor in the 1990s. As such, USF takes great pride to advertise its position as a research university in promotional advertisements and brochures.

USF's mascot is the Bull and its colors are green and gold. The university's sports teams participate at the NCAA Division I-A level. In 2005, USF joined the Big East Conference. USF previously belonged to Conference USA, the Metro Conference, and the Sun Belt Conference.

USF is currently the national headquarters for Phi Alpha Theta, a history honor society.

Contents

History

USF's "Iconic Bull" logo was introduced in 2003, replacing the gold-colored "USF" script. Since then, sales of athletic merchandise have skyrocketed.
Enlarge
USF's "Iconic Bull" logo was introduced in 2003, replacing the gold-colored "USF" script. Since then, sales of athletic merchandise have skyrocketed.

USF was founded in 1956, though it was not even named until the next year and classes didn't commence until 1960. Some of the original proposed names included "University of the Western Hemisphere", "Citrus State University", "Sunshine State University" and "The University of Florida at Temple Terrace." [link] Former US Representative Sam Gibbons was instrumental in the school's creation when he was a state representative and is considered by many to essentially be the school's founder. It was built on the site of Henderson Air Field, a World War II airstrip. Although located in west-central Florida, at the time of establishment USF was the southernmost public university in the State of Florida, a geographic situation that lent USF its sometimes confusing name.

The university first grew under the leadership of John Allen, who was the president from 1957 until 1970. During this time, the university expanded rapidly, due in part to the first graduate degree programs commencing in 1964. However, growing student unrest pressured Allen to resign from his post; he had traditionally been very firm in punishing protesters in a time of general unrest throughout the nation. Today, the main administration complex is called The John and Grace Allen Center, named after him and his wife.

USF emerged as a major research institution during the 1990s, under the presidency of Betty Castor. It is currently considered one of the top universities in Florida, being named a first-tier research university in 1998. In addition to a heightened emphasis on to research and academia, the university played its first football game in 1997, with its marching band forming in 1999.

WUSF-TV
Enlarge
WUSF-TV

The school's newspaper is named The Oracle, which was first published on September 6, 1966 as a weekly. Today The Oracle is published five times a week and has a circulation of 12,000. The student radio station, WBUL, is located in the Phyllis P. Marshall Center, the student union named for an administrator who spent 40 years at USF. [link] The school also operates WUSF, an FM station which offers classical and jazz music and NPR programming.

2006 is the fiftieth anniversary of USF's existence, and with it brings special events, plans for a bigger student union, and famous guest lecturers, such as Bishop Desmond Tutu, Fernando Chavez, and Judy Shepard, mother of Matthew Shepard.

Art

USF's [Contemporary Art Museum] features regular exhibitions of contemporary art, including a show of faculty work every three years and an annual juried student show. USF also operates [Graphicstudio], an art studio and printshop which has hosted artists like Roy Lichtenstein, Robert Rauschenberg, and James Rosenquist. Regular exhibitions of student work are featured in the William and Nancy Oliver Gallery and the student-run [Centre Gallery] in the Marshall Center. The art department puts on an event called "art house" that happens the same night as the annual juried student show where all of the studios are open with current work on display for people to walk through.

Athletics

The USF Athletic Facility, opened in May of 2004, totals over 103,000 square feet. The building contains locker areas for nine USF teams, a 10,900 square foot weight room, a sports medicine clinic, and an academic center for studying and tutoring.
Enlarge
The USF Athletic Facility, opened in May of 2004, totals over 103,000 square feet. The building contains locker areas for nine USF teams, a 10,900 square foot weight room, a sports medicine clinic, and an academic center for studying and tutoring.

There has been unprecedented growth in the school's football program. USF began football play as a 1-AA independent in 1997, moved to 1-A in 2001, then to Conference USA in 2003, and now competes in the Big East conference (as of 2005) with its Bowl Championship Series (BCS) tie-ins.

USF's rapid advancement to the Big East Conference and the associated gains in recruiting have been helped greatly by its facilities. The Bulls recently opened a $18 Million athletic facility on campus, and the football team plays its home games in Raymond James Stadium, also the home field of the National Football League's Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Old USF athletic logo
Enlarge
Old USF athletic logo
Coach Jim Leavitt has enjoyed success in the first nine seasons, and the program is seen as a program on the rise, and a model for establishing a football program at other colleges. On September 24, 2005, USF defeated ninth-ranked University of Louisville, for its first victory over a Big East rival as well as a Top Ten opponent. As a result, USF received its first-ever votes in the AP college football poll.
USF, which was passed up for bowls in 2001 and 2002, was extended an invitation to play in the Meineke Car Care Bowl on December 31, 2005 against N.C. State from the ACC. The bowl game was only the 100th football game in school history, a feat unmatched in NCAA Division 1-A history.

Engineering

USF's Society of Automotive Engineers placed first in several categories of the 2004 Midwest Mini Baja competition. The competition was located in Wisconsin at the Aztalan Motocross track. USF's standings:

Chris Chow, 2004 President, wrote an [article] about the competition. Find out more about [USF Racing].

Housing

Beta Hall, which houses first-year "University Experience" students, was built in the early 1960s, and is the largest residence hall on the Tampa campus.
Enlarge
Beta Hall, which houses first-year "University Experience" students, was built in the early 1960s, and is the largest residence hall on the Tampa campus.

Students mostly live off-campus or at home and drive to class. Despite demand for on-campus housing rising for the last five years, thirteen percent of USF's student body (approximately 5,600 students) lives in a university residence hall. Many students find it much more cost effective and desirable to live in one of the many apartment complexes near campus that cater specifically to students. These "resident commuters" make up the majority of the student body.

In recent years, Residence Services acquired the houses of various fraternities and sororities on campus, and let the lease expire on Fontana Hall, located outside campus boundaries.

Most housing on-campus was built rapidly from 1960 to 1965, and each hall was named after a Greek letter. Older residence halls, such as Beta Hall (which houses freshmen only), Betty Castor Hall (formerly Gamma Hall, women-only), and Kosove Apartments (formerly Alpha Hall, upperclassmen) received extensive remodeling in the early 2000s. The other Greek letter residence halls (named in order from Delta to Mu) are built in a confined community area known as the Andros Complex.

Betty Castor's contributions to the University, and A. Harrison and Ruth Kosove's donations have caused two of the "Greek letter" halls to be renamed. Newer housing subdivisions, such as the Cypress Suites and Apartments, Maple Hall, Holly Apartments, and the Magnolia Apartments, were built starting in the late 1990s, with the Cypress complex last to be completed, in the summer of 2004.

In 2006, construction will begin on a project tentatively titled "Magnolia Towers." The new 1,000-bed endeavor will be built near the existing Magnolia Apartments complex, and will be taller than any current housing structure at USF, possibly reaching as high as eight or nine stories. Magnolia Towers will also bring with it a parking garage structure, a gym annex, and another dining hall. After Magnolia Towers is completed, the president and the Board of Trustees will decide whether or not any of the Andros Complex buildings will be demolished. With the addition of Magnolia Towers, the Board of Trustees will also decide whether or not to make on-campus housing mandatory for first-year students.

As is the case with other major universities located in urban areas, criminal activity can occasionally become a prominent issue. On February 9, 2006, a fatal shooting occurred outside the Magnolia Apartments complex. This was the first homicide on school grounds since 1994. The victim was not a student, although he had previously attended the school before, and was visiting his girlfriend who lived in the complex. On April 5, Tampa police apprehended two suspects in the case. Both were minors with a motive of robbery. [link] A third suspect was charged on June 1.

Fraternities and sororities

USF has a very large community centered around Greek life, comprising of a number of fraternities and sororities. Listed below are the fraternities and sororities sponsored by USF, and the years in which they were founded on the campus.

Fraternities

Sororities

Points of interest

The USF Sun Dome, where many sporting and live entertainment events are held.
Enlarge
The USF Sun Dome, where many sporting and live entertainment events are held.

Palm Ave. and the water tower, the tallest structure on campus. In 2005, the logo on the water tower was changed from the older version (seen here) to the "iconic bull" font (seen below).
Enlarge
Palm Ave. and the water tower, the tallest structure on campus. In 2005, the logo on the water tower was changed from the older version (seen here) to the "iconic bull" font (seen below).

The new water tower design.
Enlarge
The new water tower design.

School Songs

Golden Brahman March (Fight Song)

USF Bulls are we,
We hold our standard upright and free.
For Green and Gold we stand united.
Our beacon lighted and noble to see.
USF Bulls are we,
For USF will always be.
With all our might we fight the battle
here and now, and we will win the victory!
(shout!) S-O-U-T-H F-L-O-R-I-D-A
South Florida, South Florida
Go Bulls!
USF Bulls are we,
We hold our standard upright and free.
For Green and Gold we stand united.
Our beacon lighted and noble to see.
USF Bulls are we,
For USF will always be.
With all our might we fight the battle
here and now, and we will win the victory!
Alma Mater

Hail to Thee, our Alma Mater
May thy name be told,
Where above thy gleaming splendor,
Waves the green and gold.
Thou our guide in quest for knowledge.
Where we all are free
University of South Florida,
Alma Mater, Hail to thee!
Be our guide in truth and wisdom
As we onward go,
May thy glory, fame and honor
Never cease to grow;
May our thoughts and prayers
be with thee through eternity,
University of South Florida,
Alma Mater, Hail to thee!

Famous students

Graduates

Bust of Martin Luther King, Jr. in MLK Plaza at USF
Enlarge
Bust of Martin Luther King, Jr. in MLK Plaza at USF

Former students

External links

 

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.

Search Titles
0123456789
ABCDEFGHIJ
KLMNOPQRST
UVWXYZ?

E-mail this article to:

Personal Message: