Schultz Hall namesake loses battle with cancer
When walking by Building 9, most students don’t notice the name on the side of the building: Frederick Schultz, a long-time Jacksonville public servant and a hero for public education.
He died Nov. 23 at the age of 80 after losing a long fight with prostate cancer.
Schultz played a key role in setting aside funding to build UNF, what more than 30 years later has turned into a campus of more than 16,000 students, with over 1,000 residents.
President John Delaney described Schultz as a founding father of UNF, because as a state legislator, he pushed the bill that created UNF.
Delaney also noted that Schultz was a big benefactor and a continuous supporter of UNF.
“He was a giver and not a taker,” Delaney said in a statement. “He always wanted to help and never asked for anything in return. A good man.”
In 1992, UNF named the College of Education after Schultz, after Schultz donated about $1 million to the university.
The $1 million he donated in 1987 is now worth approximately $1.9 million, according to the Consumer Price Index.
“[Schultz] was among a very small group of community and political leaders who saw the need for a public university in Jacksonville and envisioned the vital, thriving institution that UNF has become,” said Adam Herbert, a former UNF president, at the ceremony.
Schultz was also the commencement speaker for the UNF graduating class of 1989.
In his speech, Schultz urged students to pursue their education further.
“Education has become the key to our economic progress,” Schultz said.
Schultz served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War from 1952 to 1954, where they awarded him the Bronze Star. He also served on the Florida House of Representatives from 1963 to 1970 and was Speaker of the House from 1968 to 1970.
In 1971, former Florida Gov. Rueben Askew appointed him to be chairman of the Citizens Committee on Education.
Schultz also served on the Board of Governors for the Federal Reserve System from 1979 to 1982, from then on retaining the honorary title of Governor.
Schultz also served as a member of the advisory committee for the Woodrow Wilson School of Public Policy and International Affairs at Princeton University.
He also served as a Kennedy Fellow at the Harvard University Institute of Politics.
In Jacksonville, Schultz served as president of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce, and he also founded the Frederick H. Schultz Center for Teaching and Leadership.
