Snakes, Knightro and yoga \u2014 just a few of the \u00a0animals, mascots and activities one can enjoy during Faculty and Family Fun Sundays, a monthly fall get-together for the UCF faculty in the Arboretum Park.<\/p>\n
This free event was the idea of Linda Walters, director of the Center for Success of Women Faculty and a 2012 Pegasus Professor in the College of Sciences, and Fran Ragsdale, administrative assistant at the center. The first event, Sept. 11, drew about 75 people. The next event is scheduled from 12:30 to 3 p.m. \u00a0Nov. 13 in the Arboretum.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe spend a lot of time in meetings together or passing each other on our way back and forth to classes, but I don\u2019t think a lot of faculty feel like they are part of something bigger,\u201d Walters said. \u201cOur goal was to help build a community of UCF faculty beyond our workday commitments.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walters\u2019 vision was to provide an experience that blended both the professional and personal lives of the school\u2019s faculty. She said too often professors and staff are forced by the time-intensive nature of university life to choose between their scholarship, family and friendships, often leading to a sense of disconnection with the larger UCF community.<\/p>\n
At the first event, themed \u201cEverything UCF,\u201d several faculty and staff members shared talents that don\u2019t necessarily come into play at work. One College of Sciences administrator played guitar and sang, a College of Education & Human Performance professor taught yoga, and an assistant vice provost spent the day painting faces, which Walters said was a hit with children.<\/p>\n
Three members of the men\u2019s basketball team dropped by to teach kids how to dribble basketballs, and the UCF Police Department demonstrated its canine unit.<\/p>\n
Knightro also made an appearance and was quickly bedecked with snakes, courtesy of the biology department.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne of the researchers, Christopher Parkinson in biology, works on venomous snakes, so there were live venomous snakes in cages,\u201d Walters said. \u201cBut there were a number of very large, nonvenomous snakes, and anybody and everybody who wanted to learn about these animals and to hold them were able to.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the kind of thing we were going for. You\u2019re sharing your research at whatever level is appropriate. The kids played and took selfies with the snakes, and the faculty had the opportunity to talk with Chris about the genetics of snake venom.\u201d<\/p>\n
Walters had planned a second event for October, but Hurricane Matthew delayed those plans until November. This month\u2019s event is a \u201cSalute to our Oceans\u201d and “UCF Innovations” and will feature marine touch tanks, oyster-mat making, a fishing-skills workshop for all ages and a sea turtle biology display, courtesy of Professor Kate Mansfield.\u00a0 Innovations displays will include Limbitless Solutions and their bionic arms and a theatre workshop for children among many other opportunities. Food will also be available for purchase.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had a really, really good day,\u201d Walters said. \u201cI think everyone who came left with a better appreciation for UCF. Faculty met and shared experiences with colleagues, , their kids had fun while seeing a little bit of what mom or dad did at work, and everybody had a good time.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Snakes, Knightro and yoga \u2014 just a few of the \u00a0animals, mascots and activities one can enjoy during Faculty and Family Fun Sundays, a monthly fall get-together for the UCF faculty in the Arboretum Park. This free event was the idea of Linda Walters, director of the Center for Success of Women Faculty and a 2012 Pegasus Professor in the…","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":74596,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"template-twocol.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"lazy_load_responsive_images_disabled":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":"","_wp_rev_ctl_limit":""},"categories":[5,6,24],"tags":[305,982],"tu_author":[],"class_list":["post-74595","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-colleges","category-community","category-science-technology","tag-arboretum","tag-college-of-sciences"],"yoast_head":"\n