UCF in the News

For years, schools nationwide have struggled with hiring and retaining special educators. In the 2024-25 school year, 45 states reported special education teacher shortages, and staff turnover is worse in schools that largely serve low-income students. According to a recent survey by the nonpartisan Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), 57% of special education teachers polled nationwide said they used AI to help develop individualized plans for their students in the 2024-25 school year. That's up from 39% the previous school year. Along with the survey results, the CDT warned of privacy, legal and ethical risks around using AI. Other research, however, including from the University of Virginia (UVA) and the University of Central Florida (UCF), has shown that when used appropriately, AI can help special education teachers craft IEPs of equal or higher quality than when teachers produce them alone. And the time saved can benefit students, too. "The more face time a student with a disability has with a teacher, that often yields better outcomes for them, both educationally, functionally — just across the board," says Olivia Coleman, a researcher and professor at UCF who has been studying the role of AI in special education.

As graduation ceremonies wrapped up at the University of Central Florida, many students celebrated the end of one chapter and the start of another. For Diana Manson, that next chapter is already taking shape. Manson recently graduated from UCF with her master’s degree in event leadership and already secured a job with Omni Hotels and Resorts in Atlanta before walking across the stage. While some graduates continue searching for jobs after commencement, UCF career advisors say more students are becoming intentional about gaining hands-on experience before graduation. According to Mirtha Bailey with UCF Dixon Career Development Center, employers are looking for more than just degrees when hiring graduates. “Employers that we met with just this week mentioned that they’re looking for students who are AI literate,” Bailey said. “They want them to understand how to use that more efficiently and resourcefully.”

New evidence in a study by researchers at Florida Atlantic University and the University of Central Florida found that changes in driving behavior can act as biomarkers indicating a decline in mental clarity that pre-dates major signs of dementia. The three-year FAU/UCF study of 450 seniors in South and Central Florida found that drivers with mild cognitive decline exhibited less control of the gas pedal, took shorter or more fragmented trips, engaged in frequent hard braking, and drove lower average speeds. Overall, drivers with mild cognitive decline were less confident and less responsive on the road than those without it.

Universal Destinations & Experiences is expanding its work with the University of Central Florida as a part of a $10 million Pegasus Partnership. The board of trustees for the Orlando public university approved the agreement with the themed resort company — part of Comcast Corp. (Nasdaq: CMCSA) — on May 8. The deal was fully unveiled at the International Drive campus on May 11, where the company announced the Universal School of Experience Leadership & Innovation, which is part of Rosen College of Hospitality Management. UCF and Universal also will create a new Hospitality Technology Lab to focus on collaborative research. Alexander Cartwright, president of UCF, told Orlando Business Journal that when the Rosen College's campus was completed in 2004, it was intentionally placed in the center of the hospitality and entertainment center of Orlando. The college already has partnerships with local hotels and attractions, which have helped it become one of the top hospitality colleges in the country, and this builds on them.

For many students at the University of Central Florida, graduation marks the start of a new chapter. For Preston Strenth, it is the culmination of a journey shaped by military service, personal loss, and a determination to completely reimagine his future. Just a few years ago, Strenth was stationed in Kuwait serving in the National Guard. At the time, earning a computer science degree and landing a job in the tech industry felt far out of reach. That changed after a tragedy involving a fellow service member. After returning home, Strenth enrolled at UCF, making the difficult transition from active duty to student life. He left military service in September 2023 and found himself sitting in classrooms with teenagers just four months later, and all while tackling one of the university’s most demanding majors: computer science. Now, as he prepares to walk across the graduation stage, Strenth already has a job lined up in the tech industry with BNY, an opportunity he says came through connections he made while attending UCF. He says the years of pressure and sacrifices ultimately paid off.

Two decades ago, the International Astronomical Union—which defines and names celestial bodies—redefined the criteria for being a planet, putting Pluto into the new category of dwarf planet For decades, scientists and the general public have argued over the astronomical status of beloved dwarf planet Pluto. In the latest salvo, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said that he was “very much in the camp of ‘make Pluto a planet again,’” during a Senate hearing on April 28. “It’s a sloppy definition,” said Philip Metzger, a planetary scientist at the University of Central Florida, in a 2018 statement. “They didn’t say what they meant by clearing their orbit. If you take that literally, then there are no planets, because no planet clears its orbit.” Metzger led a review of scientific literature published over the past 200 years and found just one publication that included the orbit-clearing requirement when categorizing planets. He and his co-authors argue that the new definition is not supported by past research.

A professor at the University of Central Florida’s Rosen College of Hospitality Management is taking fine dining to space by experimenting with microgravity-friendly dishes.The college is studying tofu formation in microgravity and producing delicious dishes to send beyond our planet. This includes the fan favorite sticky rice pudding with freeze dried mangos, according to Cesar Rivera Cruzado, Director of Food and Beverage Operations at Rosen College. Food on Earth is more than subsistence. Cruzado wants to bring that same dining experience to each space voyager. "I see [space food] from a hedonistic perspective,” Cruzado said. “We want to enjoy the food. Food scientists are really good taking care of the nutrition and the nutrients in the food, right? They know about that, but in our case, our expertise and what we can bring is the enjoyable part.” Rosen College is exploring what Cruzado called “closed loop food systems” -- or producing food from seed to stomach entirely in space. This will help mitigate the costs associated with transport of food from Earth.