This incoming Freshman class has been marked as the most diverse and biggest class to enter UNF. With 2,648 new Freshman, UNF now has students from 48 states and 56 countries. “A record 38% of Freshman identify as a minority, including 10% African-American and 13% Hispanic” compared to 9.5% African-American and 12.1% Hispanic in fall of 2018. UNF now has a total of 17,304 students, a great increase to last years total of 16,958.

Some UNF students have reflected on this. Here are a few comments from our fellow peers:

Freshman Andrew Baroutjian feels like the increase of diversity at UNF is a good thing and that a diverse environment will make Freshman more comfortable. “I grew up in the Middle East and attended a school where I made a lot of friends who were Muslim, Jewish, Christian, Orthodox I ended up enjoying my time there. I liked the diversity there, and I like it here too.”

Ashley Planco, a Junior here at UNF,  felt similarly. “It’s great that the school is getting more diverse and more accepting. It’s an amazing thing to see all different types of people coming together to create an accepting environment for all people. Everyone should feel comfortable to be who they are and I think being in a diverse environment makes that really easy for people of different ethnicities.”

Breaking school demographic records are great steps towards a more diverse future where different people can coexist and learn and experience things together. 

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