When John Hitt signed on for the job as president of UCF in 1992, he probably didn't expect to become the leader of the third-largest university in the nation in terms of enrollment.
Striving toward becoming "a new kind of university that provides leadership and service to the Central Florida Strategic Plan," Hitt implemented a set of five goals he wished to accomplish during his time served.
And the ideas behind those goals have sparked UCF's growth the past 18 years.
In January, Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine ranked UCF as the 36th-best value public college for in-state students, moving up six spots from the 2009 rank. UCF also ranked 68th for out-of-state students, increasing from last year's 87th spot.
As part of Hitt's five goals, his No. 1 concern is to "offer the best undergraduate education available in Florida." According to Alison Morrison-Shetlar, the vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Studies at UCF, "President Hitt has really put an emphasis on high quality of education and curriculum."
Hitt has put two initiatives in place to ensure the success of the English composition and math programs.
The English composition initiative has changed the curriculum to help students meet high standards, as well as reduce class sizes from 27 students per teacher to 25, Morrison-Shetlar said.
The math initiative offers students one hour of class time and three hours of a mandatory lab. According to Morrison-Shetlar, the university is seeing tremendous results from both efforts.
Hitt's second goal was to "achieve international prominence in key programs of graduate study and research."
The College of Engineering and Computer Science now offers an international engineering minor that prepares students for an engineering world filled with more global companies than ever, according to the CECS website.
This minor allows for a strong focus on international issues, requiring students to experience studying abroad while earning a total of nine credit hours.
According to Patricia Bishop, the dean of the College of Graduate Studies, UCF had fewer than 3,000 graduate students in 1992; in 2010, there are more than 8,000.
Not only has the population grown, but new opportunities have also risen. UCF now has more than 25 doctoral programs, doubling the amount from 1992, Bishop said.
Bishop said their major initiatives are to "promote quality in our graduate programs, provide access to master's level education by developing and delivering programs of interest to our community and foster a graduate community at UCF by providing more and better career and professional development."
Part of the drive for international prominence also involves striving for a strong international focus on UCF's curricula and research programs, which is Hitt's third goal.
His fourth goal — to become more inclusive and diverse — has been strongly represented by the student body.
The final goal is to be America's leading partnership university. UCF has numerous partnerships around Central Florida and the world, each playing a part in the community.
In February, NASA awarded UCF a contract for students to help speed up shuttle preparation times.
According to the College of Optics and Photonics' website, UCF also has partnerships with 65 major industrial companies spanning all over the globe as far as Japan and the U.K.
One of the most common partnerships has been with the Harris Corporation. Harris Corp. has partnered with UCF for more than three decades and has become part of many different programs.
Some of these programs include the Nicholson School of Communication Radio and TV facilities, the Burnett Honors College and the $3 million pledge to help fund the engineering center named the Harris Corporation Engineering Building.
"Since Dr. Hitt created his five goals for the university in 1992, UCF has strived to be America's leading partnership university," said Grant Heston, the assistant vice president of UCF News & Information. "Partnerships have been a powerful ingredient for UCF's success in the past and continue to be an integral part of our university today."
is a member of the 
1 comments