On Sept. 22, Valencia College’s Direct to Connect UCF program hosted an event in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month at the Osceola campus.
Kailee Serrano, Team Coordinator for Knights of the Connection at Osceola Campus, and Adam Conidis, one of the Team Assistants for Knights of the Connection at Osceola Campus, represented the University of Central Florida as the hosts of this event. The overall goal was to bring the UCF experience closer to the Osceola campus students, located in a community where the population is reaching two-thirds Hispanics.
“We have a couple activities for our students, such as our flag decorating. We wanted to give them an empty flag to write whatever they want on it. Whatever they feel that’s important,” Serrano said. “If it’s about their selves or their culture. Some students drew their country’s flag, such as Cuba, Ecuador or Puerto Rico. Then there is our culture poster. We wanted to ask students what is important to them for their culture, like which culture they identify with, their favorite foods, and traditions.”
UCF is one of the largest universities in Central Florida. Some students find it overwhelming to get involved on campus, or some students are long distanced, and are unable to travel to go to events. However, organizations such as KOTC at Osceola Campus find ways to bring the UCF experience closer to home.
“Even though we work for KOTC, we work for an organization called the Office of Student involvement. It’s on our main campus at Student Union,” Condis said. “Our job is to make sure that everybody from every background is included, and making sure that they feel connected to their campus. Whether its events like this, or services we provide, our job is help them feel comfortable wherever they are. Events like this, talking about culture, is some of our best ways to help students feel connected. Especially since Osceola and Kissimmee has such a high Hispanic demographic.”
Serrano said the group’s goal is to maintain that connection from Valencia’s Osceola campuses to a UCF main campus that’s a county away.
“I am also with UCF, and when I see big things happening on the main campus, it makes me think, ‘I’m an hour away,’ or, ‘If I was just closer to UCF,” she said. “We want to bring that same energy here at smaller universities.”
