Jax Company partners with Athletics for Arena renovations Jacksonville-based CSI Companies and UNF Athletics announced a partnership in June that will lead to major renovations at the Arena on campus. This seven-year, $2.1 million agreement will fund the replacement of the UNF Arena floor – soon to be known as the CSI Companies Court – as well as other upgrades such as a new weight room facility, new office space, updated seating and more. CSI currently employs 37 UNF graduates, 16 of whom are former college athletes. Learn more about this partnership with the University.
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Archaeology Students find more at Talbot IslandUNF’s Archaeology Lab has continued to make headlines for its work in unveiling a lost Indigenous town at Big Talbot Island State Park. Led by UNF’s Dr. Keith Ashley, students have found a substantial amount of evidence pointing to the location being home to the native Mocama village of Sarabay. After originally confirming their discovery in 2020, the students have identified four more building posts and found a slew of Indigenous pottery pieces. Learn more about the work our Archaeology Lab is doing to uncover this lost city off the Atlantic coast.
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Surf Team member places 1st in national championshipUNF’s Surf Team earned fourth place in the 2022 National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) Championship, but one Osprey placed first for college men’s shortboarders. Blake Speir brought his A-game at this year’s competition, one he’s been participating in since he was 10 years old. The team arrived a few days before the competition to prepare in California’s surf conditions, with members noting the difference in location offered unique challenges. Read more about the team’s journey to the championship.
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UNF honored for work with military students, veterans The Colleges of Distinction honored UNF for its support of students connected to the military and for helping veterans achieve their greatest potential. UNF’s Military and Veterans Resource Center works alongside active-duty military, veterans and their family members to achieve academic success, overcome obstacles, offer coaching and mentoring, and offer campus support. Learn more about the work UNF does with its military-connected students.
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Jacksonville Sports Medicine Conference
Date: Wednesday, July 27
Location: University of North Florida, Adam W. Herbert University Center.
Cost: All Sessions (1-8 p.m.) - $50, Afternoon Sessions (1-6 p.m.) - $40, Evening Session (6-8 p.m.) - $20
The Brooks College of Health is inviting all alumni who work in the Sports Medicine field to join them for a day of Holistic Athletic Education and Training.
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UNF Night at the Jumbo Shrimp Date: Friday, Aug. 19, 5 p.m.
Location: 121 Financial Ballpark (301 A Philip Randolph Blvd., Jacksonville, 32202)
Cost: $13 per ticket
Save the date for UNF Night at the Jumbo Shrimp, a 50th Anniversary celebration. For this family-friendly evening, we’ll be celebrating the 50th with a double header! Expect fireworks, UNF Military students presenting the colors, and the UNF Chamber Singers and ASL interpreters performing the national anthem. In addition, UNF's new president, Dr. Moez Limayem, will deliver the first pitch! Not to mention some awesome UNF and Jumbo Shrimp merch! The ticket site will be live in the next week.
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Special Engagement Lecture - Malcolm Turnbull on "China: The Asia-Pacific Struggle for Control"Date and Time: Wednesday, Sept. 14, 7 p.m.
Location: UNF Fine Arts Center, Lazzara Performance Hall
Cost: Free, but e-tickets required. Tickets available Thursday, Sept. 1
Former Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Turnbull will speak as part of the World Affairs Council's lecture series tackling global issues. More details coming soon. Learn more about the upcoming speaker.
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Public Health Soiree
Date and Time: Saturday, Sept. 17, 6:30 p.m.
Location: UNF Student Union Ballroom and Boathouse
Cost: $100 ticket
To celebrate 50 years of UNF and 20 years of the UNF Master of Public Health program, the Brooks College of Health invites its alumni to have some fun at our upcoming event, and also to help establish an endowment fund for public health student scholarships. Alumni participation will help support PHAN’s vision to foster a dynamic community of professionals who support each other through networking and giving through public service. This event will include heavy hors d'oeuvres and libations, live music and dancing.
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Healthcare Symposium and Alumni Reunion
Date: Friday-Sunday, Sept. 23-25
Location: Adam W. Herbert University Center
Cost: Symposium - $99, Alumni Reunion - free to all Health Administration alumni, however, registration is required
The Brooks College of Health invites its alumni to participate in a multidisciplinary conference aimed at educating, engaging, and connecting students and professionals through relevant sessions about challenges in the healthcare industry. The official symposium will take place on Sept. 23-24. The Alumni Reunion will take place on Sept. 24-25, and will include golf, VIP Reception and dinner at the beach, brunch and other activities.
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"Fore" Scholarships Golf Classic
Date: Monday, Sept. 26
Location: TBA
Foursome Packages: TBA
Join UNF Athletics at the annual "Fore" Scholarships Golf Classic for a day of golfing, networking, and more to help raise money for student-athlete scholarships.
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13th Annual Roar and Soar Jaguars Alumni Tailgate
Date and Time: Sunday, Oct. 23, 10 a.m.
Location: TIAA Bank Field 1 TIAA Bank Field Drive, Jacksonville, 32202
Cost: $55-$65
Join the Alumni Association for the 14th Annual Roar and Soar Tailgate as the Jags take on the New York Giants. The tailgate will be back at the grassy Flex Field lawn next to the stadium with an elevated brunch menu, classic tailgate yard games, vendors, giveaways and more. Ticket and tailgate packages are available as well as tailgate add-ons for season ticket holders.
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Walter Proper, '77Walter Proper has worked in over 50 countries and visited over 60 in total.
The UNF alum’s affinity for travel began when he graduated from UNF with a history degree and joined the Peace Corps to live in Morocco for three years.
“I was a teacher in a high school in a tiny rural town for two years, and then I was a professor of English and Methodology at the Teacher’s College for a year in the capital, Rabat,” Proper said. “I lived in the Kasbah, that was built in 1100 A.D., so that was pretty interesting for a history major.”
After Morocco, Proper continued to pursue his passion for service by working for a homeless program when he arrived back in the United States. He later started working on his graduate degree from the school of International Training in Vermont, with a concentration in adult learning theory and training design.
His graduate studies led him to get a consultancy with the Peace Corps as part of his coursework, which landed him another three and a half years of traveling with the organization as a training program designer and director. During this time, Proper worked in Yemen (then North Yemen), Mauritania, West Africa, Micronesia and the Gilbert Islands.
Proper recalls “falling into” the healthcare field after his time with the Peace Corps and has stayed with it ever since. A lot of the work he’s done has involved health supply chain and family planning work. “They were looking for someone to run a health center in Morocco, and they needed someone who knew the language and had a background in training,” he said.
Proper continued to hover between working overseas and in the US in his role with John Snow Inc. Through this company, he spent two years each in Jordan and Romania, as well as over seven years in Zambia. While in Romania, his work on a women’s reproductive health project was very rewarding, as he and others helped save lives during the onset of the HIV/AIDS epidemic and worked alongside dedicated teams to allocate life-saving drugs those in need. Although he never saw himself ending up in the healthcare field, Proper admits that he is grateful for all the experiences he has gotten after 33 years with the company.
“I could have never imagined this job while I was at UNF, but there it is,” he said. “It’s been a long time with this same company because it’s been an excellent company. I’ve done enough different jobs and different positions to keep it interesting, especially with moving overseas and back and forth.”
In his time at UNF, Proper was active in several on-campus groups. He was involved in the interclub organization, helped found the history club and served as its president. He also helped bring Phi Alpha Theta -- the historical honors society -- to campus and is considered a chartered member. Proper also worked in the library at UNF and was eventually promoted to a senior supervisor at the circulation desk. “We’d often have an alligator in front of the library before I’d open it up on the weekends, or you could see the trail he left,” Proper said. “A big 13-footer, he liked to come when it rained especially, so I could see a print from where he was when I’d come in on Sunday morning when I opened the library.”
Proper’s favorite memories at UNF include the afternoons he spent at the old Boathouse, sharing an engaging conversation with his fellow students and professors. “I think in those days because we were smaller, being there with other students and faculty, and having a beer — because in those days you could drink at 18 — and sitting there and having a real conversation about history, people being engaged, and just having a real interaction with the faculty and students,” Proper said. “People tended to know each other when UNF was that small.”
Proper’s experience also prepared him to teach at the graduate school of George Washington University of Public Health. “I like to tell the doctors in the class that all I have is a history degree, and you can just see their eyes roll, like ‘why are you here?’” he said. “But they know that I know my stuff and that’s why I’m teaching there.”
Proper also admits that his degree in history has helped him throughout his career as he has continued to develop an interest for different places and cultures. He has been back in his home state of Virginia for the last nine years with his son, who also shares his love of travel. In addition, he has plans to retire next year, and hopes to take his son back to Zambia for a safari in the near future.
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