University of North Florida

In 1965 the Florida Legislature authorized the establishment of a state university in Jacksonville. State Senator John E. Mathews, Jr. introduced a higher education bill calling for a feasibility study for a Duval County "senior" college. The study, with a positive recommendation for an upper and graduate level Duval County institution, was published by the Board of Regents in May 1967.

The first phase in UNF's development was the selection of a permanent location. In April 1968, a Site Selection Committee was appointed, and Jacksonville businessman Gert Schmidt was named chairman. Other members of the Site Selection Committee were Hugh Abernathy, Charles Brooks, Kenneth Craig, Justin Montgomery, Jack Quaritius and John Trekell. On September 4, 1969, after extensive studies and rigorous debate between urban and suburban site supporters, the Board of Regents accepted a 1,000 acre site in south Jacksonville from the City of Jacksonville for the permanent campus.

On July 11, 1969, the Board of Regents announced that the new institution would be called the University of North Florida and appointed Dr. Thomas G. Carpenter as its first President. As the founding UNF administrator, he personally directed the physical development and initial administrative organization of the University and assembled a team of faculty, administrators, and support staff.

On September 1, 1969, the skeleton University staff occupied its first home: one large room on the sixth floor of the Florida National Bank Building in downtown Jacksonville. In August 1970, after the recruitment and the continuing addition of personnel, the University moved to its second (and last) interim location, the former Florida Chamber of Commerce building on Arlington Expressway.

The official Groundbreaking ceremony for the new campus was held on September 18, 1971. President Carpenter welcomed over 600 guests, among them keynote speaker Governor Reubin Askew, state and local dignitaries, faculty and staff, and the general public, including prospective students. After a fast track construction program, the University opened on October 2, 1972, as an upper division and graduate institution with a 2,027-member student body. UNF consisted of only four major buildings and three colleges: Arts and Sciences, Education, and Business Administration.

In 1984 the University admitted freshmen and sophomores for the first time. Three doctoral programs were added in later years: educational leadership (1990); nursing practice, and physical therapy (2007). In 2005, the School of Nursing was named as the University's first Flagship Program, which focuses resources to help transform existing excellence into academic programs with national prominence. Two Coggin College of Business programs – International Business and Transportation and Logistics – and Coastal Biology were awarded flagship status in 2006.

The University has developed into a comprehensive urban institution of higher education, one of eleven public colleges and universities in Florida. It is accredited by the Commission of Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate and masters, and doctorate degrees. Its programs are offered through five colleges: Brooks College of Health; Coggin College of Business; College of Arts and Sciences; College of Computing, Engineering and Construction; and College of Education and Human Services.

From the guide to the University of North Florida. Historical Files, 1969-1973, (UNF Library Special Collections and University Archives)