Archival Collections

The Records consist of the official minutes, with attachments, of the meetings of the Academic Council from 1970-1978. Attachments include correspondence, memoranda, plans, statistical charts, and reports. Topics covered in the meetings are: academic programs, policies and procedures; major unit philosophies and objectives; responsibilities of academic officers; accreditation plans; admissions policies; enrollment projections and statistics; faculty and staffing plans; fiscal concerns and budgets; and library development. The Records are significant for researchers because they provide documentation of the initial organization and development of the academic structure of the University from its inception during its formative decade, and show early decisions and input made by charter university leaders.

The Records consist of administrative, general and subject files documenting the academic programs, operations and activities of the College of Arts and Sciences (COAS), which is one of five colleges under the Division of Academic Affairs. The collection includes accreditation and annual reports, college newsletters, committee meeting minutes and attachments, memoranda, newsclippings, program brochures, publications and reports. The records also contain material related to faculty issues and hiring, policy development, and the retention of students. The Venture Studies program, an innovative component of interdisciplinary studies offered by the COAS during the University's first decade, is particularly well represented. Venture Studies courses were designed to provide the student with a broader perspective and background in both the humanities and sciences than ordinarily available through traditional coursework in one major.

The Commencement Records consist of printed materials, memorabilia, and regalia dating from the University's first commencement (June 10, 1973) to the most recent commencement. The files include the addresses and remarks of commencement speakers, commencement announcements and invitations, memoranda relating to commencement planning and organization, programs, and scripts of ceremonies. At least two copies of each commencement program is held in each file. Memorabilia and regalia include the first ceremonial mace, caps and tassels from early commencements, and a graduation gown worn by a student at the charter class commencement ceremony on June 12, 1974.

The Records of the University of North Florida Faculty Association consist of meeting minutes and agendas with attachments, correspondence, subject files, committee documents, and other related materials from April 15, 1975 to date. Meeting agenda attachments include academic policies, award announcements, budgetary information, committee reports, correspondence, curriculum changes, election nominations and tallies, invitations, legislative calendars, lists, memoranda, questions and answers, recommendations for new departments and programs, reports, resolutions, special papers, and surveys and questionnaires.

The Records contain the official minutes, with attachments, of the meetings of the General Assembly, a unique temporary governing structure for the University in its initial years, from 1972-1975. Attachments include academic plan drafts, correspondence, memoranda, committee nomination lists and tallies, plans and reports, and working papers. Topics discussed in the General Assembly included a broad spectrum of issues, among others, academic programs, policies and procedures, grading policies, faculty evaluation and tenure, smoking in the classrooms, traffic control, and establishment of governance committees and boards. The Records are significant for researchers because they provide documentation of the organization and shared governance of the University during its formative years, and show early decisions and input by charter university leaders.

The Historical Files Collection consists of the enabling legislation, initial site selection and planning documents for the University of North Florida. Documents include correspondence, committee reports, feasibility studies, personnel directories, publicity and press releases, transcripts of interviews, minutes of meetings, and ephemera. The majority of the materials were created by the University; also included are documents published by external organizations, such as the Florida Board of Regents, Florida Dept. of Education, and local media sources.

The collection contains printed and photographic materials, and realia documenting the University of North Florida Irish Studies Program and activities from 1986 to 2008. A broad range of subject files shows the development of the Program and includes administrative materials, announcements and flyers, brochures and programs, committee documents, correspondence, invitations, newsletters, photographs and slides, posters, promotional and publicity items, realia, and a CD archive containing the files of the Program's former website. The core of the collection are working files containing correspondence between Program Coordinator Professor Richard Bizot and Irish Studies writers, scholars and entertainers.

The collection documents the establishment, activities and functions of the University of North Florida Press (UNF Press), a member of the University Presses of Florida from 1973-1991. The Records contain the official files of the Press, including administrative materials, book reviews, Editorial Board correspondence and minutes of Board meetings, financial statements and sales reports, manuscripts drafts and editorial comments, marketing and publicity, press catalogs, reports, and letterhead stationery.

This collection consists of personal name files which document the activities of the university administration, faculty, staff, students, alumni, honorary degree recipients and other individuals who have been important to the history of the University. Files vary considerably in size, from one sheet to several folders, and may include articles, biographical sketches, correspondence, curriculum vitae / resumes, media clippings, obituaries and memorials, press releases, and miscellaneous publications. The presidents of the university are particularly well-represented, with extensive biographical files on Thomas G. Carpenter (1969-1980), Andrew A. Robinson, Jr. (Interim President, 1980-1982), Curtis L. McCray (1982-1988), Adam W. Herbert (1989-1998), Anne H. Hopkins (1999-2002), and John A. Delaney (2003-).