Town hall addresses parking, growth

Administrators answered a variety of questions for over an hour. Some important updates included:

Parking

• Parking on campus is paid for by parking fees, and UWF’s fees are the lowest in the state university system. No state dollars or tuition go toward parking.
• The campus added one trolley to the rotation and will add more over time. The interval between trolley pickup has also been shortened.

Smart classrooms

• UWF is planning to upgrade every classroom on campus to a “smart classroom” over the next 12 months.
• A secondary plan is to upgrade existing smart classrooms to the latest technological standards.

Potential addition of football

• A common myth is that parking fees and increased tuition are being used to pay for football. No funds—tuition, parking or otherwise—currently go towards adding football.
• Another common myth is that UWF will lose its small, intimate class settings and become the size of Florida State University or the University of Florida. UWF is committed to a focus on academics and its niche of personal attention and small class size.
• The campus must overcome several hurdles before a definitive date can be set.
  

Career Services

• Career Services offers an array of support, including resume workshops, career fairs and internships. It is a comprehensive service that starts when students are freshmen, continues through their senior year and ends when they find a job.

• “Backpacks 2 Briefcases,” a joint program by Career Services and the College of Business, is a job-shadowing/mentoring program that has helped students refine their career goals by finding a mentor and/or participating in a job shadow experience. This helps hone leadership skills and expand their portfolio.