UCF hosted about 1,200 K-12 students for STEM Day, providing hands-on activities with university faculty for students Friday.The event took place in the Student Union, just one day before the Space Game, giving students the opportunity to learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Events began at 10:30 a.m. and ran through 2:30 p.m. allowing students to go from room-to-room learning about different areas of STEM. 
Across the Student Union and much of the campus, there...

Students have begun to use UCF's new app for shuttle services unveiled earlier this month, helping some students get to their classes on time when taking the shuttles.UCF Student Government announced Oct. 3 that information for UCF shuttles is now available on the TransLoc app.
The TransLoc app allows students to track UCF shuttles live and check game-day, grocery, Pegasus Express and off-campus routes. If students click on "Shuttles" in the UCF Mobile app, they will be redirected to a p...

Orange County installed fencing along Alafaya Trail and University Boulevard for pedestrian safety over the past year.Orange County Government, the Florida Department of Transportation and UCF collaborated to improve safety measures for pedestrians traveling near the main campus, according to a press release for the project. This project officially began on Oct. 16, 2023, and is still ongoing today, almost exactly a year later, the press release stated.
Cathy Evangelo, senior engineer at...

A new beauty lounge offering a hair and nail salon, spa, makeup services and hair removal will soon open in Knights Plaza.Kristen Heath, director of operations at KC Beauty Lounge, and Cindy Grossman, CEO of KC Beauty Lounge, are the brains behind the business's creation. They said that the name KC Beauty Lounge originated from combining the first letters of each of their names.
The beauty lounge will be located in the former space of The Princeton Review, between Subway and Domino's Piz...

A major expansion is coming to the Roth Tower at the FBC Mortgage Stadium by fall 2026.  UCF announced that many changes are coming to the home of the UCF football team, along with updates for students, season ticket holders and the Orlando community. 
Adam Haukap, senior executive associate athletics director and chief revenue officer for UCF Athletics, said the club's area will grow from 4,500 square feet to over 16,000 square feet. He said that expansions to suites will cast a pretty...

Two new apartment complexes are expected to begin construction over the next couple of years near UCF, with one scheduled to replace a church and another to take the place of a Fairwinds bank location.With UCF being one of the largest universities in the nation and currently having an enrollment of over 70,000 students, it is not unusual to see new student housing complexes popping up near campus.
However, when a new complex is built, sometimes a business must move or close to allow anot...

One of a few healthy fast-food options near the UCF campus, Chop5 Salad Kitchen, recently shut down due to low marginal sales.Chop5 Salad Kitchen, known for its salads, warm rice bowls and promotion of healthy eating among UCF students, closed its doors permanently at the beginning of August, according to the restaurant's Facebook page.
Brian Mills, co-founder of the Chop5 franchise, said that the restaurant's closure after more than three years in business was primarily due to marginal...

In anticipation of the fall football season, Alumni Hall opened the first off-campus UCF merchandise store at the corner of Alafaya and University, providing families, faculty and students with an alternative to shopping for UCF gear.Jason Devenbaugh, the store's manager, said that items have been flying off the shelves since the store opened on Aug. 15.
"It has just been a constant, steady flow of customers," Devenbaugh said. "Sales have been really good."Devenbaugh said he moved to Flo...

A UCF student was fatally shot in a shooting in downtown Orlando during Halloween festivities where at least one other person was killed and another seven injured.At around 1:07 a.m. Friday officers made a report of shots fired at Central Boulevard and Orange Avenue, according to a press conference from the Orlando Police Department. It was also stated that within minutes, officers witnessed a second shooting south of Washington Street on Orange Avenue.
Eric Smith, chief of the Orlando P...

From 2015-2024, there have been 66 mass shootings in Central Florida, and seven of those shootings have taken place in 2024 and 12 in 2023, according to WKMG News 6.

One cause of these shootings may be attributed to the permitless carry law that was passed April 3, 2023 by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. The law is defined as authorizing a person to carry a concealed weapon or firearm with a valid concealed-weapons license or without a concealed-weapons license provided that the criteria for obtaining a license is met and went into effect July 1, 2023.

Most recently, 17-year-old Jaylen Edgar opened fire in downtown Orlando Nov. 1, taking the lives of two people and injuring eight others during Halloween festivities.

The Orlando Police Department estimated there were approximately 75,000 people out celebrating Halloween that night in downtown Orlando, according to Eric Smith, the Orlando Police Chief. He said in a press conference that due to the new Florida gun laws, there was no way of evaluating who may have posed a threat to the community that night.

"When referring to the police dogs and closures and checkpoints we used to do downtown, that all went away when the Florida law changed," Smith said in the press conference. "Meaning you can carry a weapon in public on an open street, meeting certain criteria of course, which means we can no longer do the things we used to be able to do downtown."

Tucked into the bustling city area of downtown St. Petersburg, Florida, one boutique is the reality of what was once only a dream for a UCF graduate.Mary Clark opened Shoreline Sugars, a boutique selling women's clothing, accessories and gifts, with her mom and sister in 2016, right after she graduated from UCF with a psychology degree. 
The shop, located at 649 Central Ave., St. Petersburg, Florida, has just celebrated its eighth year of business."My mom and I always talked about starti...