�����’s leading space medicine experts, valued strategic partners and an astronaut who holds NASA’s record for spacewalks will gather April 10 in Lake Nona’s Medical City to discuss how they can work together to keep space travelers healthy and use that research to create groundbreaking clinical innovations on Earth.

The “Star Nona 2026” event is led by the Lake Nona Research Council, which is focused on encouraging interdisciplinary scientific partnerships between industry, academia and healthcare.

The council includes physicians and researchers from UCF, Orlando Health, AdventHealth, the , the Orlando VA Medical Center, Nemours Children’s Health, business and industry.

Star Nona 2026 Event Details

“Our goal is to bring together space medicine leaders and experts from academia, medicine and the space industry to find more ways we can work together to research the health impacts of space flight and how our discoveries can also improve healthcare on Earth,” says Michal Masternak, Ů��AV professor of medicine.

An anti-aging and cancer researcher, Masternak leads the Lake Nona Research Council’s space medicine research group. He also leads the College of Medicine’s program that processes astronaut samples so physicians and scientists can analyze the immediate impact of space travel on astronauts’ bodies.

Sessions will include presentations on:

• Microgravity and radiation exposure and their impact on human physical and mental health
• How space travel affects muscles, bones, cells, vision and the brain
• Protecting muscles in space (led by AdventHealth researchers)
• Next generation of the space station
• New technologies for diagnosing how space travel impacts human cells.

These presentations will feature UCF researchers from medicine, , and . UCF graduate students and post-doctoral scientists will also present research posters on space medicine.

The plenary speaker is NASA astronaut Robert Curbeam, a U.S. Navy captain who completed four spacewalks during space shuttle Discovery’s 2006 mission to the International Space Station.

The Space Coast’s College of Medicine

Located 45 miles west of the Space Coast and Kennedy Space Center, �����’s College of Medicine is the perfect partner to chart a new frontier in healthcare as humans prepare for longer missions to the moon and Mars, and commercial space flights take more civilians into space.

The goal: explore how factors such as microgravity, radiation and isolation impact the human body in space and how that knowledge can drive innovation into diagnostics, treatment and disease prevention on Earth.

To further those efforts, UCF has created a new Center for Aerospace and Extreme Environments Medicine (CASEEM), which includes UCF faculty experts in medicine, engineering, computer science, psychology, arts and educational leadership. This interdisciplinary group will work together to research and develop new technologies for keeping space travelers healthy, as well as soldiers on military missions, deep sea explorers and mountain climbers.

About the Lake Nona Research Council

Edward Ross, the College of Medicine’s chair of medicine and assistant dean for research, leads the Lake Nona Research Council.

Ross says Star Nona and the partnerships it creates will help solidify UCF and Medical City’s reputation as a premier center for space medicine.

“When people think of keeping space visitors healthy, we want them to immediately think UCF.” — Edward Ross, College of Medicine’s chair of medicine

“As a university, UCF was born to create the workforce to send humans to the moon,” he says. “We’re continuing that legacy with space medicine. When people think of keeping space visitors healthy, we want them to immediately think UCF.”

Event Registration

Star Nona 2026 will be held at the UCF Lake Nona Cancer Center, with registration beginning at 8:15 a.m. Star Nona is made possible by support and sponsorships from Dr. Jogi Pattisapu and the Hydrocephalus and Neuroscience Institute, Tavistock Development Company and the Florida Space Institute. To sign up to attend the event, please visit .

Elected leaders joined founding donors to celebrate the pavilion’s opening on �����’s at Lake Nona. They gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and toured the pavilion, which will help to address Florida’s critical nursing shortage. Fittingly for Florida’s Premier Engineering and Technology University, the pavilion also features the latest in immersive modeling and simulation technologies.

“This facility will help strengthen Florida’s nursing talent pipeline in ways that make communities across our state healthier.” — UCF President Alexander N. Cartwright

“The Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion is a powerful example of what is possible when vision, community and partnership come together. Built with the generous support of state leaders, donors and health care champions, this facility will help strengthen Florida’s nursing talent pipeline in ways that make communities across our state healthier,” says UCF President Alexander N. Cartwright. “Together, we are fueling hands-on learning, enabling new research and discovery, and preparing generations of Knight Nurses who will have a lasting impact on the lives of those they serve.”

With the opening, UCF will increase access to its accredited and nationally ranked nursing degree programs and graduate an additional 150 newly licensed nurses annually. These graduates will have a direct impact on the state. Of the 17,000 Knight nurse alumni, 85% live and work in Florida, and nearly 60% remain in Central Florida.

Located next to the College of Medicine and in Lake Nona’s Medical City, a nationally recognized hub of healthcare innovation, the Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion will bolster interdisciplinary collaboration to prepare providers to thrive in the workforce and deploy cutting-edge research to solve the industry’s greatest challenges and ensure a healthier future for all.

Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson played a vital role as Senate President in securing about $43 million in state funding for the Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion, as well as additional funding for state university and state college nursing initiatives throughout Florida.

“We worked very hard to secure the funding,” he says. “When you think about state-of the-art nursing, when you think about doubling the capacity of nursing, this couldn’t come at a better time. Florida is growing 400,000 people a year still. We’re going to continue to grow.”

“Thanks to the leadership of Governor DeSantis and the Florida Legislature, the state continues to invest in key academic programs that set an example nationwide,” says State University System Chancellor Ray Rodrigues. “The new Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion at the Ů��AV is no exception — by providing innovative educational opportunities for nursing students now, Florida is ensuring a promising future of skilled nurses that will care for our communities.”

The Power of Partnerships

The Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion, which came to fruition through $43 million from the State of Florida and over $29 million from private donors, will directly impact the community that created it and will be a longstanding symbol of what can be achieved through the power of community partnerships — unleashing potential for generations to come.

“We are honored to be part of this transformative moment for Central Florida,” says Kenneth Robinson, president and CEO of Dr. Phillips Inc. and the Dr. Phillips Foundation. “This investment will help address the nursing shortage, strengthen our healthcare system, and expand access to exceptional education and career opportunities. By supporting this project, we’re helping to graduate more Knight nurses who will make a lasting impact. We’re proud to stand with UCF and our community partners to shape a healthier, brighter future.”

Founding donors of the facility also include the Helene Fuld Health Trust; UCF Pegasus Partners AdventHealth, Orlando Health, Nemours Children’s Health and Addition Financial; Zaby and Suree Vyas; and many others.

“Today we are witnessing the power of partnerships,” says Professor Emerita Mary Lou Sole, who, as the previous College of Nursing dean, led the efforts to advocate and raise funds for the new building. “The Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion is the result of the collective efforts of UCF and this community to come together to solve one of our greatest healthcare challenges. We are incredibly grateful for the support, which will have an immeasurable impact for generations to come.”

Inside the Future of Nursing

Every aspect of the 90,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility was thoughtfully designed to foster collaboration, innovation, and student success and well-being.

“The Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion will serve as a catalyst for ensuring a brighter, healthier future,” says new College of Nursing Dean Sharon Tucker. “In this space, UCF will strengthen and empower future nurses and nurse leaders to advance healthcare innovation and collaboration to improve evidence-based patient care and outcomes.”

On the second and third floors is a hub of healthcare innovation, the Helene Fuld Health Trust Simulation, Technology, Innovation and Modeling (STIM) Center. Ů��AV is Florida’s first simulation center to earn three international accolades in the field and the new, expanded space will build upon its global leadership to innovate healthcare education using the latest immersive technologies to prepare nurses for practice as compassionate, skilled providers.

The second floor also features the Dr. Colleen Conway Welch Virtual Reality Learning Studio, a makerspace design studio to accelerate nurse-led innovations, a home health apartment to meet growing demand for home-based healthcare, and the Elizabeth Morse Genius Foundation Healthy Aging Research Lab for interdisciplinary research and innovations led by renowned aging expert Ladda Thiamwong.

Upon entering the pavilion, students, faculty, staff and visitors are greeted with the inspiring “” public art commissioned by Florida’s Art in State Building program. The first floor also includes three large high-tech learning studios, the Zaby and Suree Vyas Collaboration Concourse, the Martin Andersen-Gracia Andersen Foundation Study Cafe and a student success suite.

The opening comes a little over a year and a half after the groundbreaking in January 2024. UCF built the Dr. Phillips Nursing Pavilion in conjunction with HuntonBrady Architects, Ayers Saint Gross and DPR Construction.

�����’s Industry Partners Highlight Transformational Impact

AdventHealth

“At AdventHealth, we’ve seen firsthand the extraordinary caliber of nurses who graduate from UCF. They bring clinical excellence, compassion and an unwavering commitment to their patients — values that perfectly align with our mission to provide whole-person care. As the demand for skilled nurses continues to grow, we’re happy to support this exciting new chapter for the UCF College of Nursing. And as a UCF alum, I’m excited to welcome even more outstanding Knight nurses to AdventHealth.”

-Cathy Stankiewicz, (MSN’11), chief nursing officer, Central Florida Division

Helene Fuld Health Trust

“The Helene Fuld Health Trust Simulation, Technology, Innovation and Modeling Center at UCF exemplifies our mission to support the education of nursing students. Simulation is a critical component [of] nursing education and will continue to be in the future, and we’re proud to make this investment to strengthen nursing skills and improve the welfare of our communities.”

-Robert Campbell, vice president of Trust & Fiduciary Services at HSBC, who oversees the trust

Nemours Children’s Health

“Growing and solidifying the nursing workforce is critical to care delivery across the healthcare sector. Through our longtime relationship with the UCF College of Nursing, we have seen firsthand the benefits of hiring their well-trained, work-ready graduates. The new nursing pavilion will be a tremendous asset in our continued collaboration, partnership, and investment to support the education, development, and maturation of emerging nurses.”

-Nicole Johnson, (DNP’17), senior vice president and chief nursing and patient operations officer  

Orlando Health

“It is an honor and privilege to be associated with UCF, and we are thankful for our partnership with the university, nursing professors, and students.”

-David Strong, president and CEO

The Board of Trustees this week approved the use of state allocated funds to begin the planning and design phase for the projected 90,000-square-foot College of Nursing building at the UCF Academic Health Sciences Campus in Lake Nona. With state allocated funding estimated to pay for less than half of the new building, the college will launch a strategic fundraising campaign to secure private support for the project.

“�����’s College of Nursing leverages the innovation and collaboration our university is known for to educate the nurse caregivers, researchers and educators of tomorrow,” says President Alexander N. Cartwright. “We are incredibly excited to have our nursing students join our Academic Health Sciences Center in Lake Nona, and we look forward to increasing the excellence of our programs and our impact in our community through the partnerships and opportunities that this move will enable.”

“�����’s College of Nursing leverages the innovation and collaboration our university is known for to educate the nurse caregivers, researchers and educators of tomorrow.” — Alexander N. Cartwright, Ů��AV president

“This is an incredible milestone for UCF, and we’re laser focused on moving from vision to reality,” says Mary Lou Sole, dean of the College of Nursing. “This is a transformational project that has wide-reaching impact for our region, and we will need the support of our entire community to help us reach our goal of educating more Knight nurses to positively impact more patient lives, and guide 21^st century healthcare.”

The new home of the College of Nursing will sit on the 50-acre property already home to the UCF College of Medicine and the UCF Lake Nona Hospital. Preliminary plans include classrooms as well as state-of-the-art learning labs for health assessment, essential skills and virtual reality located in an expanded space for the College of Nursing’s accredited Simulation, Technology, Innovation & Modeling Center, an international leader in providing high-quality simulation experiences to prepare students for clinical practice.

The design also calls for new research space — to include wet and dry labs — along with a host of student study spaces. When the new building is complete, the College of Nursing will relocate from its current location in Research Park and will have almost double its current square footage.

The location at the UCF Academic Health Sciences Campus will offer students and faculty new opportunities for collaboration and enhanced learning and research experiences.

“Our longstanding partnerships with the healthcare providers in our region have been invaluable,” says Sole. “Being physically situated in this hub of healthcare innovation is going to offer a host of new possibilities for teaching and research.”

The new building is a much-needed investment for the region and the state, both of which are facing a critical healthcare worker shortage. The Florida Hospital Association projects a shortage of 37,400 RNs by 2035 and has actively advocated to increase the supply of quality faculty and campus resources for nursing programs. The association estimates that an additional 2,300 RNs are needed to enter the workforce each year to address the projected state shortage.

The College of Nursing currently educates more than 2,900 undergraduate and graduate students and awards approximately 800 degrees annually. Enrollment has grown more than 240% since 2003. In the last five years, the college has been forced to decline admission to more than 860 qualified applicants due to physical capacity limits.

UCF already graduates the most newly licensed registered nurses annually than any other institution in the State University System, with approximately 260 Knight nurses entering the workforce each year. Once the building is complete and fully funded, the College of Nursing expects to increase enrollment for new nurses and future nurse educators, grow the number of existing UCF faculty, and ultimately graduate an additional 150 new nurses annually to enter the healthcare industry — primarily in Florida.

Approximately 85% of UCF nursing alumni live and work in Florida, and almost 60% live and work in the six-county Central Florida area.

“The community is growing,” says Sole, who notes that Florida’s population is rising at rapid rates that exceed the national average. “Our population is also aging, which is increasing demand on our healthcare systems. As a region, we need to be able to provide high quality, compassionate care to all of our residents who live here now and those coming here in the future.”

That’s where more Knight nurses will help. �����’s nursing graduates are well prepared for clinical practice, consistently surpassing the national average on the licensure examination for RNs and nurse practitioners.

“As a region, we need to be able to provide high quality, compassionate care to all of our residents who live here now and those coming here in the future.” — Mary Lou Sole, UCF College of Nursing dean

With additional faculty, staff and space, the college will also grow enrollment capacity for its doctoral and master’s degree programs. These programs help educate more advanced practice providers, nurse leaders and executives, and nurse educators who will fuel the pipeline of nursing faculty, which is essential for combating the nursing shortage.

“The ripple effects that a nurse educator has on the profession and patient lives are immeasurable,” says Sole. “They teach and mentor countless nursing students, year after year, who then go out and care for patients, and they conduct invaluable research to impact the health of communities.”

The College of Nursing has been leading the charge in educating the next generation of nurses since 1979 and is ranked among the best in the nation. It is accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education and recently was one of nine programs worldwide – the only one in Florida – to receive an endorsement from the International Nursing Association for Clinical Simulation and Learning.

The Florida Legislature allocated $29 million to UCF during the 2022 legislative session for the new building. The total cost for the new building is estimated to be just under $64 million.

Once funding is secured and planning goals are met, the college will break ground on the new building, which is anticipated to open during the 2025-2026 academic year.

UCF Lake Nona Medical Center, which will be built adjacent to the UCF College of Medicine, is a public-private partnership with UCF Academic Health, a direct support organization to the university, and the North Florida Division of Hospital Corporation of America (HCA), the nation’s largest hospital company.

Focused on providing healthcare services to the community as well as education and research, the hospital will help the College of Medicine increase residencies and clinically based research, and ultimately help build Medical City into more of a healthcare destination providing first-class health care.

The hospital “will fulfill our promise to become a hub of innovation and a healthier Orlando,” said UCF Board of Trustees Chairman Marcos Marchena.

“The aspirations that we have worked on from day one are that we would have a first-rate, top-tier medical school. It is clear to me that we need a hospital if we are going to achieve our highest ambitions for the medical college,” said UCF President John C. Hitt.

Under the agreement, HCA will spend $175 million in cash to build and begin operations of a 100-bed hospital. No state money will be used and UCF will not incur any debt. UCF and HCA will share governance, each appointing four members to the hospital board.

Dr. Deborah German, vice president for medical affairs and founding dean of the College of Medicine, said the hospital is necessary for UCF to deliver on the economic development promises it made when the college was approved more than 10 years ago. “In the United States and around the world, the best health systems have an academic component at their heart and the best medical schools have hospitals,” she said.

In 2012, the university purchased the land in Medical City and began seeking partners. Last summer, UCF formally invited hospitals nationwide to submit partnership proposals. HCA, Florida Hospital and Orlando Health did. In September, UCF trustees approved a partnership with HCA, citing its nationwide hospital operations experience, financial strength and extensive research programs.

“We are grateful to the Board of Governors for their approval and very excited to move forward in building a community-based teaching facility,” said Michael P. Joyce, FACHE, President of HCA’s North Florida Division. “Today marks a milestone for all of us at HCA. This investment benefits the future physicians we’re privileged to train, as well as the entire Lake Nona community. It also allows us to expand our footprint in the Orlando area, making healthcare more accessible for Central Floridians.”

Lake Nona is one of the Top 10 fastest-selling master-planned communities in the United States and the fastest-selling in Orlando. More than 1,000 families are moving to Lake Nona every year.

Today, the next phase of that mission begins to takes shape.

Ů��AV is seeking a partner to build a university-based teaching hospital in the heart of Lake Nona’s Medical City. The proposal will be open to local, state and national health care institutions.

“We have talked for years about when would be the right time to build a university-based teaching hospital. That time is now,” said UCF President John C. Hitt. “A UCF teaching hospital is needed to fulfill our commitment to Central Florida – and to all of the citizens of this state – to build a healthier community, train more doctors, and power economic growth through research.”

The new teaching hospital would be located adjacent to the College of Medicine on property already owned by UCF. The university will not seek new state funds for this project.

“Our invitation will look for a partner to bring most, if not all, of the funds needed to build a hospital,” said UCF Board Chairman Marcos Marchena. “This invitation is open to all and we look forward to combining our academic and research expertise with a hospital-focused partner.”

On Aug. 5, the UCF Board of Trustees approved having UCF Academic Health, a direct support organization to the university, pursue finding a partner to build a university-based teaching hospital and obtain a certificate of need from the State of Florida.

Established in 2006, the UCF College of Medicine was created with an explicit economic development purpose, as well as its teaching and research mission. University leaders believe a new teaching hospital will be a great investment for the region and beyond.

“Without a university-based teaching hospital, the research mission and the economic impact promised to our community cannot be fully realized,” said Dr. Deborah German, founding dean of the College of Medicine and vice president for medical affairs. “This will help Central Florida become a national, then global, health care destination that will benefit all of our partners and our community.”

David Silbersweig, of Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Harvard Medical School, recently wrote in The Washington Post about the benefits of teaching hospitals: “They are major life science and biotechnology incubators/attractors (sought-after ‘external innovation’ partners of choice and recruitment pipelines for the pharmaceutical and biotech industries), economic engines, large-scale job creators, and talent magnets for the cities, regions and states in which they reside. They are the place where the next generation of physicians and other clinicians are trained. This is particularly relevant in light of the aging population and the large predicted physician shortage by the year 2025. They are the birthplace of many latest scientific and technological discoveries, and their translation into improved care with near-term and long-term impact.”

Said German: “In the United States and around the world, the best health systems have an academic component at their heart and the best medical schools have teaching hospitals.”

UCF was ranked 13 of the 40 most attractive medical school campuses in the United States. In making the top of the list, the College of Medicine joined established medical schools including Harvard, Boston University, Duke, Vanderbilt, Stanford and Yale.

“Students at the Ů��AV College of Medicine experience a unique environment, living in a ‘medical city’ that includes a number of hospitals and health institutes set within a 650 acre park-like environment,” the editors wrote. They praised the medical school’s modern architecture, landscaping, palm trees and lakes, calling the college a beautiful location “to practice the healing arts.”

The editors took into account the architecture, campus landscape and local environment in making their choices. “Obviously, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and there’s nothing scientific or objective about this list, but we hope you enjoy looking at it as much as we enjoyed putting it together,” they said.

Dr. Deborah German, vice president for medical affairs and dean of the medical school, said she was “totally delighted” with the designation. “Our vision in creating our campus was to create a place that would inspire and instill the values needed by our future physicians and scientists and to do so within the parameters of a state budget.”

To see the nation’s most beautiful medical schools, please visit

Over 26 million Americans — 1 in 9 adults — have chronic kidney disease, and most don’t know it. Because symptoms may not appear until the kidneys are actually failing, millions of people with kidney damage remain unaware and are not taking steps to protect their health.

Currently, about 400,000 Americans depend on kidney dialysis to stay alive and close to 90, 000 are on the waiting list for a kidney transplant. Each year, 112,000 people are diagnosed with kidney failure – one person every five minutes.

Dr. Abdo Asmar, assistant professor of internal medicine at the College of Medicine, and a practicing nephrologist at UCF Pegasus Health, the college’s physician practice, serves on the board of the Florida NKF. He helped get this year’s walk at Medical City and welcomed participants to the event. Walkers included kidney patients, those who had received transplants and “heroes,” who had donated a kidney to a person in need. Thanking participants on behalf of “your College of Medicine,” Dr. Asmar told the crowd, “We’re walking to help all of those who are dealing with chronic kidney disease.”

First-year medical student Andrew Schiff had a personal reason for walking. His mother was recently diagnosed with kidney disease. She didn’t know she had the condition until she tried to get life insurance for her two sons and a physical found an inflammatory kidney condition called Minimal Change Disease in which large amounts of protein is abnormally lost in the urine.

At Andrew’s suggestion, the College of Medicine walkers designed their own T-shirts with slogans, pictures of kidneys and hearts to show that “COM Cares About Kidneys.” Andrew’s shirt had a large sun and the words, “Momma’s Boy.”

“My mom’s condition really puts into perspective why I came to medical school,” he said. “Being able to get up on a Sunday morning and walk for someone else, it’s why I’m here. Why I wanted to go into medicine.

First-year medical students Alex Eskandari and Jasmine Steele helped lead the Renal 9-1-1 team and both are studying aspects of kidney disease for their Focused Inquiry and Research Experience (FIRE) projects. They are examining the prevalence of foot ulcers in non-diabetic kidney patients, why such patients are prone to the ulcers, and how to prevent the condition. Such ulcers can be difficult to treat and may result in leg amputation. Alex, Dr. Asmar and other walkers said they hope events like the 5K help increase awareness of kidney disease.

“When you have kidney disease, everything changes,” said Alex. “Yet the public and families don’t seem to know how serious a problem kidney disease is.”

Students are pursuing a variety of specialties, from primary care to highly competitive sub-specialties like neurosurgery, diagnostic radiology and orthopedic surgery. They will train in hospital programs across Florida, including Orlando Health and the University of Florida, and across the nation, including the Mayo Clinic, Duke, Tufts, Brown and the University of Washington.

“It’s a great day for our university and our community,” said President John C. Hitt. “Our students have followed their pioneering spirits and accomplished so much with the help of our talented faculty and staff members and the support of so many generous scholarship donors. When our students move on to their residencies, they will be exceptional ambassadors for the College of Medicine, UCF and Central Florida.”

Thirty-five students from the College of Medicine’s charter class participated in Match Day 2013. More than 40,000 participated nationwide. Most medical institutions will not hire doctors unless they complete a residency, so there’s a lot riding on Match day. Results are kept secret until noon EST on national Match Day.

“I am happy with our match results,” said Dr. Deborah German, vice president for medical affairs and founding dean of the College of Medicine. “Our students reached for the stars in pursuing their dreams. They will continue their training in Florida and across the nation representing Central Florida as the first group of UCF-educated physicians.”

The match is similar to an online dating service. Medical students select their preferred residency program from a list of possibilities nationwide. Residency programs housed at universities and hospitals alike list their top picks. A centralized computer spends weeks sorting and coming up with the best “match,” which is announced on the designated Match Day.

There was a lot of anticipation leading up to Friday at UCF and beyond. The community eagerly awaited results after donating more than $6.5 million to fund full scholarships for every student in the class of 2013, making UCF the first medical school in U.S. history to provide full scholarships to an entire class. The scholarships provided $160,000 for tuition, fees and living expenses for all four years of medical school.

Students stood in front of an overhead banner where gold glittered clothespins held sealed white envelopes. Each envelope held a letter telling them where they had placed. As the medical school clock tower struck noon, the class, their families, donors, faculty and staff began counting down at 10…9…8…At “1” students tore into their envelopes to get the news. Tears, laughter and cheers erupted throughout the halls. Hugs and tears were common as parents and donors congratulated their students.

“I’m on Cloud Nine,” said M.D. student Mitch Popevetsky, who matched in internal medicine at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago. “Every day this week has been a countdown until now. I was so excited I had to read my letter four times just to be sure.”

The College of Medicine was the first building to call Medical City home. Today the growing biomedical cluster located near the Orlando International Airport includes Nemours Children’s Hospital, Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute, a University of Florida Research and Academic Center and the Orlando VA Medical Center under construction. Collaboration among these institutions and hospital chains such as Orlando Health and Florida Hospital also gave the charter class students unique opportunities for hands on training.

Tiffany Chen is one of five UCF students going to the University of Washington Affiliated Hospitals. “”I’m ecstatic,” said Tiffany, who opened the envelope announcing her obstetrics-gynecology residency, screamed and then turned to hug her mother.”I was in rounds all week, which was good because working distracted me. But it was hard to sleep last night.”

The match is the last big hurdle for charter class medical students before graduation on May 17 and the start of their medical careers.

The class became the first in U.S. medical school history in which every student received a full scholarship, thanks to generous donations from the Central Florida community. However, the students enrolled knowing they would not find out until a few months before graduating whether the college would earn the full accreditation necessary for them to advance to their residencies and begin pursuing careers as doctors.

Those pioneering students can now celebrate. The UCF College of Medicine has earned full accreditation following a rigorous, independent review of its educational program.

“This achievement is a credit to the efforts of our outstanding College of Medicine staff members and faculty members. They are preparing our students for a lifetime of providing high-quality, compassionate care,” said UCF President John C. Hitt, who made the announcement at a news conference Monday with Dr. Deborah German, vice president for medical affairs and founding dean of the College of Medicine.

“Accreditation also is a testament to the generosity of our Central Florida community. From government and health-care partners to volunteer faculty members and scholarship donors, many supporters stepped up to make this our community’s medical school.”

The accreditation was granted by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education, the national accrediting authority for all medical schools in the United States and Canada. Accreditation provides assurances that “graduates exhibit general professional competencies that are appropriate for entry to the next stage of their training and that serve as the foundation for lifelong learning and proficient medical care.”

Earning full accreditation has been one of German’s top priorities since she was hired in December 2006. She recruited top faculty members and community partners who collaborated with her to set up an innovative curriculum, and she oversaw construction of the college’s state-of-the-art facilities at Lake Nona. The curricula and facilities are both key components of earning full accreditation.

German thanked the community, donors, business leaders, the college’s health-care partners and more than 2,000 volunteer faculty members for “helping this medical school grow from a cattle pasture to an educational cornerstone of a thriving Medical City. I am sincerely and humbly grateful to all of you.”

“This is just the latest example of the collaboration that makes things happen here,” German added. “It’s also the reason why our college is the community’s medical school. You made this possible through your financial donations, countless volunteer hours and commitment to our students. This is a day of celebration for all of us.”

Full accreditation is the first in a series of milestones this year at the young medical school. On March 15, members of the charter class will participate in Residency Match Day 2013, when students learn where they will attend their residencies. The charter class will graduate on May 17.

The college selected the 41 charter students out of more than 4,000 applicants. The medical school opened in 2009 in temporary facilities near the main UCF campus. In 2010, the students and faculty members moved into a $65 million, 170,000-square foot medical education building at Lake Nona that includes state-of-the-art labs, classrooms, technology and a library that is 98 percent digital.

Today, the College of Medicine is the centerpiece of a growing Medical City that also features the Sanford-Burnham Institute for Medical Research, Nemours Children’s Hospital, the MD Anderson Cancer Center, the VA Hospital, and a University of Florida research facility, among other buildings. Together, UCF and its Medical City partners are projected to create 30,000 jobs and an annual economic impact of $7.6 billion by the end of 2017.

“Initially, many people questioned whether the plans for our College of Medicine would ever materialize,” Hitt said. “Today, our fully accredited college is part of a bustling Medical City considered by many to be the biggest economic game changer for Central Florida since Walt Disney World.”

“Government, business, education—everybody cooperates. How did Orlando become the computer simulation capital of America? … Because of UCF,” said Clinton. “Because every semester, you train people for the jobs that are going to be there, not the jobs that aren’t.”

In addition to highlighting Central Florida’s simulation industry, Clinton also spoke about �����’s involvement with the medical city at Lake Nona.

Obama was scheduled to speak at Monday’s rally but canceled his appearance because he returned to Washington, D.C., to advise on relief efforts for Hurricane Sandy.

Monday’s event was the third presidential campaign event held at UCF this year. In July, first lady Michelle Obama campaigned for her husband’s re-election at the Venue. Rep. Paul Ryan visited the Venue last month for an event supporting his and Gov. Mitt Romney’s Republican ticket.