Latest News
College of Arts and Humanities
Faculty members, students win Founders’ Day awards
The Founders’ Day ceremony recognized faculty members and students for excellence in teaching, research and service.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Faculty Author Series
The John C. Hitt Library, Office of Research, and Faculty Excellence are pleased to announce two panel sessions that highlight the diverse research interests and publishing activities of scholars in the College of Arts & Humanities.
College of Arts and Humanities
Couple’s $6.6M Gift Supports Modern Language Program
A gift from Jim and Julia Rosengren will support foreign language programs at UCF, as well as other programs from around UCF.
College of Arts and Humanities
2018 CAH Staff Awardees Announced
Congratulations to the nominees and winners of the 2018 College of Arts & Humanities Staff Awards.
Modern Languages and Literatures
Documentary sheds light on Black Italian actor experiences at 9th Euliano Lecture
College of Arts and Humanities
Player Two Ready: For 2nd Straight Year FIEA Student Game Wins Two Awards at Intel University Games Showcase
FIEA student game “Hollowed” won the “Best Visual Quality” award and the second place award for “Best Gameplay” at the 2018 Intel University Games Showcase.
College of Arts and Humanities
SVAD grads’ Omnimodal wins local investment in pitch competition
David Moran ’14 and Nathan Selikoff ’04 have won a local startup competition and $25,000 investment for their company, Omnimodal.
College of Arts and Humanities
‘Bernarda Alba’ Actress Combines Love for Arts, Humanities at UCF
Innovative and interdisciplinary, Ibis Enid Rodríguez makes the most of her UCF experience as both a theatre and modern languages and literature student.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Game to be Featured at Nation’s Biggest Video Game Conference
A team from UCF’s School of Visual Arts and Design is headed to one of the biggest video game conferences in the nation, by special invitation.
College of Arts and Humanities
CAH 2018 Staff Recognition Awards
On March 28, the College of Arts & Humanities will honor USPS and A&P staff with awards for their outstanding work and contribution to their school, department or program, and to the college. The deadline to nominate colleagues is March 15, 2018.
College of Arts and Humanities
STARTALK – Intensive Russian Program
Do you want to expand your language and cultural fluencies, enhance your academic resume, and gain a competitive edge in the global workforce? UCF STARTALK Russian Language and Culture Immersion Program may be for you! In 2018, STARTALK is welcoming high school students, community members, and UCF students.
College of Arts and Humanities
Alumna fuels the future for leaders in the arts and sciences
Kate Kinsley ’83, the first female to earn a Ph.D. from UCF, on how she’s helping future trailblazers in nursing and digital media.
College of Arts and Humanities
2017-2018 Research Incentive Award Winners
The UCF Research Incentive Awards (RIA) program supports outstanding research, scholarly, and creative activity that advances the body of knowledge in a particular field, including interdisciplinary research and collaborations. This award recognizes employee contributions to UCF’s key goal of achieving international prominence in research and creative activities. The College of Arts and Humanities is pleased […]
College of Arts and Humanities
Student research showcased at 18th Annual Spanish Graduate Colloquium
UCF will celebrate Spanish language and culture at the 18th Annual Spanish Graduate Association (SaGA) Colloquium. The colloquium, coordinated by the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures, is a conference that gives students the opportunity to disseminate their research on topics concerning the Spanish-speaking world.
College of Arts and Humanities
“Not in Our House” and BOY GETS GIRL at Theatre UCF this weekend
Workshop with Laura T. Fisher and talkback after the sold-out performance Saturday on sexual misconduct in theatre community
College of Arts and Humanities
3rd International Women’s Issues Conference brings women in tech to the next generation
The Women’s and Gender Studies Program will host the third International Women’s Issues Conference with the theme of Women in TECH: The Next Generation of Activists. Keynote speaker Dr. Josephine Kulea will speak on Friday, February 16.
College of Arts and Humanities
SVAD student wins Arts Advocacy Award
School of Visual Arts and Design student Ana Beltran received a certificate for advocacy in the arts from the Florida Higher Education Arts Network council in Tallahassee as part of Florida Arts Advocacy Day.
College of Arts and Humanities
SVAD’s Games for Change to exhibit at GDC 2018 with Limbitless Solutions
The annual Game Developers Conference organizers have donated exhibition space for SVAD students, faculty at the event in March.
College of Arts and Humanities
4th UCF Celebrates the Arts to Feature Tributes to Bernstein, President Hitt
UCF Celebrates the Arts is an annual eight-day showcase featuring interactive exhibitions of student artwork and performances in Visual and Performing Arts. Tickets will be available starting March 1. For a complete schedule, ticket reservations and other information, visit the festival’s website at www.arts.ucf.edu.
College of Arts and Humanities
History Department coordinates exhibits, events for Black History Month
In partnerships with the UCF Library, Buffalo Soldiers Historical Society, and UCF Africana Studies program, the department adds a historical education to the events at UCF.
College of Arts and Humanities
The 8th Annual Knights Write Showcase serves to celebrate, motivate writing
In its 8th year at UCF, the Knights Write Showcase offers the opportunity to first- and second-year students in ENC 1101 and ENC 1102 to submit their writing for panels, awards, and discussions.
College of Arts and Humanities
Message from Dean Moore about UCF Downtown
The Office of the Provost is continuously updating a list of frequently asked questions at https://provost.ucf.edu/bold-academic-vision/. I recommend referencing that site for the most current information. If you have questions or concerns that are not addressed on that site, please feel free to reach out to your chair, director or the Dean’s Office.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF SVAD, CREATE, FIEA spark at Otronicon 2018
With the theme of “Igniting a Passion for STEM through Technology Experiences”, the annual convention will be held at the Orlando Science Center this weekend.
College of Arts and Humanities
In memoriam: Professor Simon Barton
With great sadness, we announce the passing of Simon Fraser Barton, Professor of History. A memorial service will be held at 4:00 pm on Thursday, February 1, in the UCF Cypress Room.
College of Arts and Humanities
SVAD students’ short films win accolades
SVAD character animation students’ short films are winning multiple awards in film festivals nationwide
College of Arts and Humanities
The NEA Big Read at UCF – Dinaw Mengestu’s The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears
This January, UCF will celebrate The Beautiful Things That Heaven Bears, the debut novel of African journalist and MacArthur Foundation Fellow Dinaw Mengestu. Events include an art exhibition, play, book clubs, lectures, artist talks and book signing. Woven throughout these events is the goal of revitalizing reading as a shared community initiative.
College of Arts and Humanities
Creative Writing alumnus named 2018 NEA Literature Creative Writing Fellow
Jaroslav Kalfař ‘11 was recently awarded a highly competitive and prestigious National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship for $25,000. Kalfař majored in Creative Writing at UCF before completing his MFA at New York University, and published his first book, Spaceman of Bohemia, with Little, Brown this past year.
Modern Languages and Literatures
STARTALK intensive Russian language summer program recap
College of Arts and Humanities
Theatre UCF Replaces Play by Writer Accused of Sexual Misconduct
Theatre UCF is replacing the previously scheduled play The Day Before Yesterday with Rebecca Gilman’s Boy Gets Girl to run Feb. 22 through March 4. “As an educational institution, it is our job to instruct students how to produce and participate in theatre. However, it is also our duty to teach them to do so with integrity and respect. […]
College of Arts and Humanities
FIEA Alumnus, Author Aims To Inspire ACE Book Club Students
At the brand-new Academic Center for Excellence adjacent to UCF Downtown’s Center for Emerging Media, FIEA alumnus Matthew Laurence ‘07 read his book with students in the ACE book club. Looking for ways to connect with the PreK–8 school, FIEA had reached out to donate several dozen copies of Laurence’s book and offered to have the author speak at the school.
College of Arts and Humanities
Philosophy students win Mid-Atlantic Ethics Bowl, head to Nationals in Chicago
The UCF student team from the Department of Philosophy won the Mid-Atlantic Regional Ethics Bowl held at the University of North Georgia. The team now moves on to the National Ethics Bowl in Chicago in March.
College of Arts and Humanities
CAH Faculty Inducted into UCF’s Prestigious Scroll & Quill Society
Four CAH faculty members were selected for induction in the 2017-2018 class of the Scroll & Quill Society.
College of Arts and Humanities
Veterans Legacy Program Launches Website and App
The University of Central Florida launched a new program Wednesday, November 8, to honor veterans. Using a smartphone or tablet, visitors to Florida National Cemetery in Bushnell now can learn more about some of the veterans interred there.
College of Arts and Humanities
The Sky’s the Limit: FIEA Students Win 2nd Place in Space-Themed Game Jam
FIEA students Rafael Brochado and Denis Savosin love games. And they love space. And those two passions came together on October 1, 2017 as they created a game that took second place in the “2017 Indie Galactic Space Jam.”
They had help from five other participants who chipped in on audio and other tasks. The team won $666 for the 2nd place finish and beat out 19 other games.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF to Honor, Remember Veterans in November
The History Department has coordinated events and activities honoring veterans throughout November. The events will recognize veterans for their service and provide the public opportunities to attend workshops and access veteran resources.
College of Arts and Humanities
SVAD Alumni Finalists in Startup Competition
Omnimodal, a transportation tech startup co-founded by SVAD alumni David Thomas Moran ‘14 and Nathan Selikoff ‘04, was one of nine finalists admitted into the Central Florida Social Enterprise Accelerator (CFL SEA) program committed to creating positive social change through entrepreneurship.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF to Host HASTAC Conference
The conference for the annual Humanities, Arts, Science and Technology Alliance and Collaboratory (HASTAC) will be hosted in Orlando for the first time by UCF and the Florida Digital Humanities Consortium November 3-4.
College of Arts and Humanities
Fall Showcase Features Film Student Work
Fifteen short films by students in the School of Visual Arts & Design will be screened Nov. 3 in the eighth annual Fall Showcase.
College of Arts and Humanities
A Dream Come True Through TESOL
From being the director of a computer programming company in Brazil to a UCF TESOL graduate student, Sandra Pauleti has come a long way to follow her dream of becoming an English teacher.
College of Arts and Humanities
Faculty Recognized with Inaugural Luminary Awards
Six College of Arts & Humanities faculty members were among those honored with the inaugural UCF Luminary Award on October 18.
College of Arts and Humanities
Bellissimo! UCF’s Graduate Programs Partner with University of Foggia in Italy
A newly formed partnership between UCF and the University of Foggia opens opportunities for UCF students and faculty to work in Italy. There are numerous opportunities for collaboration between our institutions, particularly in the areas of e-learning, cultural heritage, media education, and research into emergent problems (such as the migration crisis).
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Film Well-Represented at Orlando Film Festival
The 2017 Orlando Film Festival opens this week, and UCF film faculty and alumni have a strong presence at the event.
College of Arts and Humanities
Paving a Unique Path Through Texts and Technology
While completing his master’s degree, David Morton found himself at a crossroads. He knew he wanted to continue his education and pursue a doctoral degree, but wasn’t sure which of his many passions he most wanted to pursue. The inevitable question, “What am I going to do with my life,” lingered over his head and choosing among his interests – film, history and teaching – became daunting.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Art Gallery’s New Director Seeks to Experiment, Inspire
Shannon Lindsey, new director of the UCF Art Gallery, views the university venue as a place to experiment – where process, content and form come together to educate and inspire viewers from all backgrounds.
College of Arts and Humanities
Dr. Martha Brenckle’s “Nesting Dolls”: Machigonne Fiction Contest Finalist
Congratulations to Dr. Martha Brenckle, whose short story, “Nesting Dolls,” was accepted as a Machigonne Fiction Contest Finalist for the independent literary review The New Guard.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Will Host Events Featuring Acclaimed Performing Artist
UCF will host two events featuring acclaimed performing artist Shaun El C. Leonardo .
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF and the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra Partner with the National Young Composers Challenge for 2017 Composium
This November 12, the University of Central Florida, the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra and the National Young Composers Challenge [NYCC] will join forces to present the 2017 Composium at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Alumnus partners with Theatre UCF to bring play about Sandy Hook to Orlando
On Oct. 5 – Oct. 8, the University of Central Florida will bring 26 Pebbles – a play written by BFA musical theatre alumnus Eric Ulloa ’04 – to the Orlando Repertory Theatre.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Community Veterans History Project receives The Anne J. Caudal Foundation Grant
The UCF Community Veterans History Project, coordinated by the History Department’s Dr. Barbara Gannon, has been awarded the Anne J. Caudal Foundation Grant.
College of Arts and Humanities
CAH Events: Cancellations and Postponements Due to Irma
Due to Hurricane Irma, some College of Arts and Humanities events have been cancelled or rescheduled to a later date.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Celebrates the Arts Proposal deadline extended
The Steering Committee for UCF Celebrates the Arts is now accepting event and exhibit proposals for the 2018 and 2019 festivals.
College of Arts and Humanities
That First Labor Day
Associate professor of History Robert Cassanello discusses the origins of Labor Day and how the holiday has evolved over the last 135 years.
College of Arts and Humanities
Imagineering The Future
Disney Imagineer, James Moore, uses his experience as a Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy (FIEA) alumnus to create amazing, immersive places for Disney guests.
College of Arts and Humanities
Faculty Wanted as Guests on Radio Show
Reagan Smith, a history adjunct professor, is offering College of Arts and Humanities faculty members an opportunity to be on his radio show, “Florida Roundtable.”
College of Arts and Humanities
English Professor’s Prize Winning Book of ‘Harrowing’ Poems
Terry Ann Thaxton, a professor in the Department of English, won Truman State University Press’ 2017 T.S. Eliot Prize for Poetry for her third book of poems, Mud Song.
College of Arts and Humanities
GPA Awards New Grant to University of Central Florida’s College of Arts and Humanities for Building Bridges with Language and Culture in Russia
The Fulbright-Hays Group Projects Abroad (GPA) Program in the U.S. Department of Education has awarded an amount of $91,795 grant to the University of Central Florida’s College of Arts and Humanities.
College of Arts and Humanities
Silk Road Adventure Leads to Integrative Learning Scholarship
Laurel Schafer sees integrative learning as a path to career success and so far, it is paying off for her. The senior history major was recently awarded a Quality Enhancement Plan’s What’s Next: Integrative Learning Scholarship.
College of Arts and Humanities
CFE Federal Credit Union and FAIRWINDS Credit Union Support Theatre UCF
CFE Federal Credit Union and FAIRWINDS Credit Union are supporting Theatre UCF as joint sponsors of the 2017-18 season.
College of Arts and Humanities
SVAD Professor Develops Fabric-Gaming Interface
SVAD assistant professor Anne Sullivan’s project Loominary is featured in Slate Magazine.
College of Arts and Humanities
A Student’s Comic Book Dream Becomes Reality
UCF senior Branden Hall hopes that one day Zeek St. Cloud finds his true purpose in life – but he knows that’s going to take thousands of years.
Hall, who is majoring in creative writing and advertising/public relations, and his brother Horacio are enabling Zeek on his journey, and recently received an offer of help from Charlotte Hornets basketball player Johnny O’Bryant III.
College of Arts and Humanities
New UCF Music Professor to Rock the Classroom – and Stage
New School of Performing Arts professor Tommy Harrison – who started playing guitar in his early teens, wrote his doctoral thesis on Van Halen, and signed with Atlantic Records last year – hopes to teach his students “to be champions of good music, not music that can simply make money.”
College of Arts and Humanities
Stella Sung Honored as Trustee Chair
On July 20, the UCF Board of Trustees honored Pegasus Professor of Visual Arts and Design Stella Sung as one of the three new Trustee Chairs.
College of Arts and Humanities
A Generous Gift to Languages at UCF
Russian immersion student Julia Rosengren is looking forward to the growth of languages and fluency at UCF through fellow student participation and her recent generous gift to the College of Arts and Humanities.
“I really hope Modern Languages continues to grow and teach many different languages,” she said. “If the department can expand and bring in more students into the classes, they will realize learning a language is not boring and can bring many valuable experiences.”
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Game Designers to Showcase Work at Smithsonian, Meet White House Staff
A team of video game designers from UCF’s School of Visual Arts & Design will visit Washington, D.C., this week to showcase its accessibility-friendly video game at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Team members also will meet with the secretary of the Smithsonian to demonstrate the power of video games to help children and squeeze in a visit with White House staff interested in accessibility technology.
College of Arts and Humanities
Remembering Douglas Rudy
UCF student Douglas Rudy’s legacy lives on nearly 35 years later with the Douglas Rudy study abroad scholarship for UCF students. Rudy’s passion for learning and studying French gave him hope in his final days with his “Learning is Living” attitude.
College of Arts and Humanities
Flying Horse Big Band Hits Milestone on Jazz Charts
The Flying Horse Big Band, composed of students in UCF’s jazz studies program, reached a milestone this week – placing its third album on the top three national jazz charts.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Students Gain Insight Through Service-Learning
In June, a group of University of Central Florida students and faculty members traveled to San Cristóbal de las Casas, Mexico for a service-learning program at a Tzotzil school in Corazón de María.
College of Arts and Humanities
Screenwriter Barry Sandler talks about film ‘Making Love’
School of Visual Arts and Design associate professor Barry Sandler sat for an interview with David Reddish, UCF alumnus (B.F.A. Film) and film editor of Queerty magazine, to discuss his groundbreaking screenplay, Making Love.
College of Arts and Humanities
Lanlan Kuang Builds Bridge to Silk Road’s Cultural Heritage
Assistant Professor of Philosophy Lanlan Kuang is conducting fieldwork at the Dunhuang Mogao Caves along China’s Silk Road this summer. The nearly 500 caves are the largest and most complete treasure repository of Buddhist art, murals and more than 2,000 painted sculptures.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF is One of 75 Organizations Nationwide to Receive Big Read Grant
UCF, in collaboration with the Seminole Public Library, is a recipient of a grant of $14,000 to host the NEA Big Read in Orlando. The NEA Big Read in Orlando will focus on The Beautiful Things that Heaven Bears by Dinaw Mengestu. Activities will take place January 8-February 4, 2018.
College of Arts and Humanities
Theatre UCF’s 2017-18 Season Features New and Provocative Works
Theatre UCF, part of the UCF School of Performing Arts, examines current social issues and focuses on new and contemporary plays in its 2017-18 season. This is the first season planned by artistic director Julia Listengarten and includes plays and musicals that are rarely produced in Central Florida.
College of Arts and Humanities
“The Committee” Documentary Now Online
Watch CAH’s award-winning documentary “The Committee” online at WUCF TV.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Students’ Solar-Powered Art Sculpture to be Installed in Lake Nona
A team of University of Central Florida students who designed a solar-powered art sculpture celebrated this week after the Orlando Utilities Commission and Tavistock Development selected its project to be built in the innovative, master-designed Lake Nona community later this year. Four teams of senior-level undergraduate students in mechanical engineering, electrical and computer engineering, and […]
College of Arts and Humanities
Remembering Pulse
UCF invites the community to campus on June 8 to honor and remember the 49 lives taken at Pulse.
College of Arts and Humanities
‘Hamilton’ Calls UCF Alumnus for Role in National Tour
“Perform as if your last meal depended on it,” Desmond Newson said. That piece of advice from his wise brother was a driving force that landed Newson a coveted spot in the national tour of the Tony-award winning Broadway musical, Hamilton.
College of Arts and Humanities
Arts & Humanities 2017 Founder’s Day Awardee
Dean Jeff Moore introduces the UCF College of Arts & Humanities 2017 Founder’s Day winner: History major Kayla Davis.
College of Arts and Humanities
Gerstein to Show in Orlando Museum of Art Florida Prize in Contemporary Art
Mark Gerstein, associate professor of UCF’s School of Visual Arts & Design, has been chosen to exhibit in the 2017 Orlando Museum of Art Florida Prize in Contemporary Art. This annual event celebrates the achievements and innovation of Florida artists and the vision and talent inherent in their work.
College of Arts and Humanities
VA Selects UCF Historians to Archive Stories of Deceased Veterans
A University of Central Florida team of scholars has been awarded a $290,000 contract from the National Cemetery Administration, an agency of the Department of Veterans Affairs, to archive the stories of veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery for a new generation of students. UCF is one of three universities selected to launch the NCA’s Veterans Legacy Program.
College of Arts and Humanities
To Theatre Graduate, Acting Can Help Change the World
Jarrett Poore sees the time honing his acting skills at UCF as more than just performing on stage. He sees it as a way to change the world.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Ranked No. 2 Video Game School in North America by Princeton Review
The University of Central Florida’s video game graduate school ranks No. 2 in North America, according to The Princeton Review and PC Gamer magazine.
College of Arts and Humanities
1st Generation Student Encourages Classmates to Give Back
Josh Goodridge, the first in his family to attend college, believes in the power of education so much that the senior already donates his time and money to UCF’s giving drive to financially help other students.
College of Arts and Humanities
UCF Art Professor, Performance Artist Lands Spot in Smithsonian Exhibit
A University of Central Florida artist will perform her powerful and poignant portrayal of the fear of losing a child to violence and intolerance at the Smithsonian IDENTIFY: Performance Art as Portraiture series May 6 in Washington, D.C.