Florida Polytechnic University (Florida Poly) is a
public university
A public university or public college is a university or college that is in owned by the state or receives significant public funds through a national or subnational government, as opposed to a private university. Whether a national universit ...
in
Lakeland, Florida
Lakeland is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay Area, located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa. According to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,641. Lakeland is a principal c ...
. Created as an independent university in 2012, it is the newest of the 12 institutions in the
State University System of Florida
The State University System of Florida (SUSF or SUS) is a system of twelve public universities in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2018, over 341,000 students were enrolled in Florida's state universities. Together with the Florida College Syst ...
. It is the state's only public
polytechnic
Polytechnic is most commonly used to refer to schools, colleges, or universities that qualify as an institute of technology or vocational university also sometimes called universities of applied sciences.
Polytechnic may also refer to:
Educatio ...
university, and focuses solely on
STEM
Stem or STEM may refer to:
Plant structures
* Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang
* Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure
* Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...
education.
The institution originated as a
branch campus
A satellite campus or branch campus or regional campus is a campus of a university or college that is physically at a distance from the original university or college area. This branch campus may be located in a different city, state, or countr ...
of the
University of South Florida
The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is ...
, which opened in 1988. The State of Florida authorized a new campus in 2008, and renamed the school University of South Florida Polytechnic. In 2012, the Florida Legislature initiated plans to dissolve the USF branch campus and reform the Lakeland institution into an independent school. Florida Poly opened for classes on August 25, 2014 with an inaugural class of 554 students.
Florida Poly resides on a 170-acre campus. The university's Innovation, Science and Technology (IST) Building, designed by architect
Santiago Calatrava
Santiago Calatrava Valls (born 28 July 1951) is a Spanish architect, structural engineer, sculptor and painter, particularly known for his bridges supported by single leaning pylons, and his railway stations, stadiums, and museums, whose sculpt ...
, is home to a 3-D printing lab, cyber gaming and media lab, cyber security lab, robotics lab, and a big data lab. In addition, Florida Poly is the first university whose campus library is completely digital.
History
![Florida Polytechnic University (25811685378)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Florida_Polytechnic_University_%2825811685378%29.jpg)
The
University of South Florida
The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa, Florida, and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is ...
opened a satellite campus in
Lakeland – University of South Florida Lakeland – in 1988.
The branch shared its grounds with the Lakeland campus of
Polk Community College
Polk State College, formerly Polk Community College, is a public college in Winter Haven, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System.
The college changed its name from Polk Community College in 2009 to reflect its first Bachelor's degre ...
(now Polk State College). By the 2000s it had grown to enroll around 4,000 students, and the local business owners secured state funding for a separate campus in 2008. The same year, USF's trustees renamed the campus University of South Florida Polytechnic, reflecting a new focus on
STEM
Stem or STEM may refer to:
Plant structures
* Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang
* Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure
* Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...
education.
A site near Interstate 4
Interstate 4 (I-4) is an Interstate Highway located entirely within the U.S. state of Florida, maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT). Spanning along a generally southwest–northeast axis, I-4 is entirely concurrent wi ...
was chosen for the new campus. In 2009 Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava
Santiago Calatrava Valls (born 28 July 1951) is a Spanish architect, structural engineer, sculptor and painter, particularly known for his bridges supported by single leaning pylons, and his railway stations, stadiums, and museums, whose sculpt ...
was selected to design the campus' first building.[
Meanwhile, the institution's backers, most prominently ]Florida State Senator
The Florida Senate is the upper house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida House of Representatives being the lower house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopte ...
J. D. Alexander, initiated a campaign to break USF Polytechnic away from USF and form an independent university, Florida Polytechnic University. In 2011 Alexander proposed a 2012-13 state budget that provided $33 million for the move. Like the acquisition of the new campus, the proposed split was controversial in some quarters, as it came during a tight budget year and was unpopular with USF students and faculty. In response to Alexander's proposal, the Florida Board of Governors
The Florida Board of Governors is a 17-member governing board that serves as the governing body for the State University System of Florida, which includes all public universities in the state of Florida.
After its predecessor, the Florida Board ...
approved a multi-year plan to allow Florida Polytechnic to gain independence gradually once it met certain criteria, including accreditation, the construction of residence halls, and the development of a STEM
Stem or STEM may refer to:
Plant structures
* Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang
* Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure
* Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...
curriculum. Displeased with the board's compromise, Alexander introduced a new budget for the state universities that included immediate independence from USF Polytechnic, effectively bypassing the Board of Governors.
On April 20, 2012, Governor Rick Scott
Richard Lynn Scott ( Myers, born December 1, 1952) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 45th governor of Florida from 2011 to 2019.
Scott ...
signed into law Alexander's budget for the State University System, including the provision that created Florida Polytechnic University as an independent institution, and closed down USF Polytechnic. The law took effect on July 1, 2012. In a letter that accompanied the signed legislation (SB 1994) creating Florida Poly, Scott noted that Florida Poly, with its strong focus on STEM programs, will be a key component of the State University System of Florida meeting the goals outlined in its 2012-2015 Strategic Plan. The strategic plan requires the State University System to increase STEM degree production from 9,605 to 22,500 per year by 2025.
The university submitted its initial application for regional accreditation in December 2014. In March 2016, the Florida Poly administration announced that the university would not meet its original accreditation deadline of December 31, 2016. A budget bill sent to the office of Gov. Rick Scott would extend the school's accreditation deadline until December 2017. The university finally received accreditation from the in June 2017.
The university had its inaugural commencement ceremony on Jan 3, 2017. Fourteen students graduated with the Master of Science and four students were awarded the Bachelor of Science. The commencement speaker was JD Alexander, the former State Senator known for his advocacy of a STEM university in Lakeland. The campus was thus named after him.
Academics
The university offers nine baccalaureate programs, two master's programs and 31 areas of concentration. Curricula and classroom facilities are designed to facilitate hands-on, applied learning, and degree programs are focused on preparing students for STEM-related careers. Four Florida Poly bachelor's degrees received ABET accreditation on August 28, 2019: computer engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, and mechanical engineering.
Demographics
The inaugural class of students at Florida Poly had an average incoming GPA of 3.9 and test scores of 1350 on the SAT and 25 on the ACT. The average weighted high school GPA was 4.0, with average SAT and ACT scores for admitted freshman in fall 2017 at 1280 (SAT) and 28 (ACT).
Industry partnerships
Florida Poly collaborates with more than 100 corporate, government and non-government organizations that provide guidance on curriculum development, assist with research and offer internship opportunities. Industry partners include Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
, Lockheed Martin
The Lockheed Martin Corporation is an American aerospace, arms, defense, information security, and technology corporation with worldwide interests. It was formed by the merger of Lockheed Corporation with Martin Marietta in March 1995. It ...
, Mosaic
A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...
, Cisco
Cisco Systems, Inc., commonly known as Cisco, is an American-based multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, ...
and Harris Corporation
Harris Corporation was an American technology company, defense contractor, and information technology services provider that produced wireless equipment, tactical radios, electronic systems, night vision equipment and both terrestrial and spaceb ...
. In Sept 2016, the University announced a long-term partnership with the Florida Department of Transportation
The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is a decentralized agency charged with the establishment, maintenance, and regulation of public transportation in the state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the powers of t ...
(FDOT). The FDOT will build a 400-acre technology test facility, which will include a 2.25-mile test track.
Research
The Florida Industrial and Phosphate Research (FIPR) Institute is a Florida Poly research institution. The FIPR institute supports phosphate-related studies to improve the environment, protect public health and increase mining and processing efficiency. FIPR Institute's staff biologists, engineers and chemists also conduct in-house research, and the institute supports some non-phosphate topics such as energy and the mining and processing of other minerals.
Florida Poly's Advanced Mobility Institute (AMI) is a university-affiliated technology research center focused on the development and testing of autonomous vehicle (AV) related technology. AMI is not only unique to the state, but also one of the largest university centers specialized on the narrow area of testing and verification of AV technology in the country.
Campus
Florida Poly's 170-acre campus includes the Innovation, Science and Technology (IST) Building, two residence halls, Student Development Center, Wellness Center, and Admissions Center. The University Trail is a multiuse trail connected to the campus.
Innovation, Science, and Technology (IST) Building
thumbnail, Inside the main facility, 240x240px
The 162,000-square-foot Innovation, Science, and Technology (IST) Building is the university's main facility. It houses 26 classrooms, faculty and administrative offices, 11,000-square-foot Saddle Creek Logistics Commons, seven labs–including a 3D printing lab, cybersecurity lab, and health informatics lab. The building is also home to the school's digital library. Designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, the building includes 94 robotic louvers on the roof that move to accommodate changing sunlight patterns.
Digital library
Florida Poly's IST Building includes a bookless library where students can access more than 135,000 digital titles on their choice of reader, tablet or laptop. Students still have access to librarians and a reference desk to receive tutoring, resources and training to manage digital materials. Hard copy books can be requested on loan from libraries at Florida's 11 other public universities.
Applied Research Center
The Applied Research Center (ARC) is under construction with an anticipated opening in spring 2022. The new 85,000 square foot Applied Research Center (ARC) will house research and teaching laboratories, student design spaces, conference rooms, and faculty offices. The building will also provide study areas for graduate students and a small amount of administrative space. A dedicated section of the center will assist with commercialization of innovation and applied research and send new inventions into the marketplace.
Residence halls
Florida Polytechnic University has two residence halls, starting with Residence Hall I, with Residence Hall II being built in 2015. Residence Hall I consists of three- and four-bedroom suites, while Residence Hall II is mostly two-bedroom "semi-suites". The buildings themselves were originally owned by an outside company, but as of November 2022 the school now owns both buildings.
FLPolyCon
Since April 2015, Florida Polytechnic University has hosted an annual convention called FLPolyCon. According to the website for the 2018 FLPolyCon, "FLPolyCon is a diverse, all-inclusive geek culture celebration hosted by the students at Florida Polytechnic University." Historically, the convention has catered to the self-professed "geek" culture by including aspects of video games and comics, often of the science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
genre. More recently, FLPolyCon has been adding elements of anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
and cosplay
Cosplay, a portmanteau of "costume play", is an activity and performance art in which participants called cosplayers wear costumes and fashion accessories to represent a specific character. Cosplayers often interact to create a subculture, ...
.
Notes
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polytechnic University, Florida
State University System of Florida
Educational institutions established in 1988
Technological universities in the United States
Universities and colleges in Lakeland, Florida
Universities and colleges in Polk County, Florida
Educational institutions established in 2012
2012 establishments in Florida