I used to be a professor in UCF Engineering, I quit last year, and now I’m moving out of Florida. I was back on campus this week visiting some of the other faculty, and it made me sad. Also, I wonder if the students know how bad things are, or are just focused on the Knights.
Don’t get me wrong, we all love our Knights, but lately, our football performance, while still good, hasn’t been as dazzling as before. And you know what? That’s kind of a metaphor for what’s happening to our university as a whole.
The political climate in Florida is making it tough for us to attract the talent we need. Good people have. options, and Florida, and especially UCF, don’t sound line good options. It’s a real issue, and you can read more about it here.
Internally, things aren’t much better. The Workday system has been a knightmare, and it’s taking away from our focus on education and research. This is literally taking my friends away from their classes and grad students, and forcing them to close their labs. That means a lot fewer options for students. A fellow faculty member shared their thoughts on Reddit, and it’s worth a look.
I’m not writing this to complain or be a downer. I’m writing this because I care about UCF, and I care about you, the students. You need to be aware of what’s happening, and you need to work together to make things better. UCF has so much potential, but we can’t ignore the signs that things are falling apart. We can’t just focus on football and ignore the bigger picture. Our education, our future, and our standing as a university are at stake.
I’m out, but I’ll be watching. I think any student at UCF should be looking to start a conversation. Ask questions. You’re paying your money and time for this degree: demand better. UCF is your home, in some ways it will always be my home, and we all deserve the best it can be.
But the question me and my old drinking buddies were asking today:
Do students even see the problems? Do they care?