College of Central Florida

Public college in Florida, United States

The college is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award baccalaureate, Associate in Arts, and Associate in Science degrees as well as certificates. The college started offering bachelor degree programs in Business and Organizational Management in 2010, followed by Early Childhood Education in 2011, and Nursing in 2014.

College of Central Florida was established in 1957 under the name Central Florida Junior College, serving Citrus, Levy and Marion counties in Florida. In 1958, instruction began, with only 320 students using temporary facilities at the Marion County Vocational School. In 1966, the school merged with Hampton Junior College. Hampton Junior College was originally opened in 1958 as well, as one of the first black, two year colleges in the state. In 1971, the school changed its name to Central Florida Community College. On May 25, 2010, CFCC officially changed its name to College of Central Florida. The Ocala campus was originally established on of land donated by Atlantic Realty and Investment Company and the city of Ocala. Ranked No. 20 in affordability in the United States by the U. S. Department of Education.

Tuition at the College of Central Florida has not been raised for five years. For Florida residents, the cost per credit hour is $107.10 for students pursuing an associate degree and $122.89 for students pursuing a bachelor's degree. The average cost of tuition for a 12 credit course load for two semesters is $2,522 for associate level courses and $2,906 for bachelor's level courses.

Female: 62.4%
Male: 37.5%
Undeclared: 0.1%

Under 18: 11.5%
18 24: 49.0%
25 34: 20.8%
35 44: 9.3%
45 and Older: 9.4%

White (not of Hispanic origin): 54.7%
Black (not of Hispanic origin): 14.1%
Hispanic: 15.6%
Undeclared: 10.9%
Asian: 3.1%
American Indian/Pacific Islanders: 1.6%

College of Central Florida fields intercollegiate athletics teams in men's and women's basketball, baseball, fast pitch softball and women's volleyball. The Patriots compete in the Mid Florida Conference of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Region VIII and the Florida State College Activities Association. CF's tennis programs produced three of the program's NJCAA national championships. The men's program won national titles in 1963 and 1981; the women's team won the NJCAA Division II championship in 2001. The men's basketball team won the NJCAA championship in 2013. The Patriots won five state championships across three sports in the 1990s, including women's basketball titles in 1992 and in 1997, a men's basketball title in 1996, and consecutive baseball championships in 1997 and 1998. The CF athletics program annually produces NCAA student athletes and has started the careers of several professional athletes. Its prominent athletic alumni include former Major League Baseball players Brian Buscher, Mike Figga, and Bill Hurst. Clinton Hart, a seven year veteran of the National Football League, began his collegiate athletic career as an outfielder for the Patriots baseball team. Since 2006, three CF alumni have celebrated national championships at the NCAA level. Alberta Auguste won consecutive NCAA women's basketball titles at the University of Tennessee in 2006 and 2007; Nick Ebert won a College World Series title at the University of South Carolina in 2010; and Breanna Fort won an NCAA Division II national championship at Clayton State University in 2011. In the spring of 2010, men's basketball standout Ricardo Ratliffe capped an historic two year career at CF by winning the 2010 NJCAA Male Student Athlete of the Year Award. The honor, selected from among all male student athletes in all sports across the NJCAA's 525 member schools, marked the first national player of the year award won by a CF student athlete. In June 2010, the CF District Board of Trustees voted to add women's volleyball to the school's athletics program, with its inaugural season scheduled for the fall of 2011. The College of Central Florida announced in 2019 that the volleyball and basketball programs would be cancelled following the 2019–2020 seasons.