Learning By Leading (LxL)

The Business Operations Communications LxL team specializes in crafting custom graphics and communications tailored to the unique needs of units under Business Operations. These units include Business Services, Parking and Transportation Services, the SPOT, Card Services, UCF Print Shop, and external university partners such as Barnes & Noble, Aramark, Canteen, Fairwinds Credit Union, and Coca-Cola. The team contributes to the creation of marketing materials and social media content, copy writing, content engagement, photography, and video production. On-campus marketing is also an area of focus with the team participating in events and on-site activations. Team members leverage their creative talents and serve as ambassadors for the units. The goal is to strike a balance between educational and entertaining! The BO Communications team plays an indispensable role in elevating the visibility and success of the units and partners they serve.

The Education and Outreach LxL team aims to develop and implement effective and engaging educational programs that cater to diverse learning styles to improve educational outcomes. Collaborating with subject-matter experts across ASI LxL, we develop informative, interdisciplinary materials and activities such as tour scripts, hands-on workshops, webpages, signage, and more with intended audience in mind. We strive to promote environmental literacy and sustainability education throughout UCF.

The Event Management LxL team works closely with all the LxL teams to help them execute the best events for the arboretum. These events vary from the participation in the Aramark farmer’s markets, to the annual Halloween Spooktacular, to Arboretum Unplugged music festival. We help bring each team’s vision for their event to life, dealing with the logistics as well as volunteer sign ups. We strive to incorporate education about the Arboretum into each event we put together as well. Our goal is to make every event a memorable event for the whole student body.

The Land Management LxL team focuses on helping UCF Landscape and Natural Resources meet management goals for our Natural Lands. The goals are to preserve and restore existing natural habitats for ecological, conservation, and educational purposes, and to use the existing natural habitats as reintroduction sites for listed and endangered species. Our current projects include invasive species mitigation, native flora monitoring, trail infrastructure improvement, wildlife camera tracking, prescription fire program support, and ecological education.

The Plant Production Learning by Leading (LxL) team focus on teaching others the basics of plant care. This includes a variety of topics such as different growing techniques, the use of appropriate tools, and how to choose the right resources for different plants. Most of this work takes place inside the Arboretum’s greenhouse, which contains the hundreds of plants that will eventually be distributed throughout the community in various ways. Our team also collaborates with other LxL teams, such as assisting in starting vegetable crops for the Urban Agriculture team. To engage with the UCF community, the greenhouse hosts monthly plant sales, volunteer opportunities, and workshops on a range of topics. Our team’s mission is to foster a passion for plants and help others develop their skills through hands-on leadership and experience in the greenhouse.

The Public Garden Management LxL team focuses on the maintenance and development of the 8-acre parcel where the Arboretum office is located, the Arboretum Park. The Park, as we often call it, is at the heart of our program. We aim to keep this park beautiful and inviting for students to enjoy and for events to take place. We design, install, and maintain gardens that honor the past, present, and future of UCF and the Arboretum program. Of these gardens we have 3 pollinator specific gardens on site. Pollinators are vital to ecological biodiversity, health, human health and crop consumption. Parks and gardens are a great way to help, encourage, and support native diversity in urban areas and can create an oasis in otherwise busy and bustling areas.

The Social Media and Video Production LxL team aims to create content for our various social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. Our team photographs and films our other LxL teams working in their various gardens, recording and creating educational and informative long and short form videos about our program. We promote Arboretum events and other green initiatives on campus. We strive to capture the most important aspects of the Arboretum Program to share with our social media followers to educate those interested in the Arboretum and what we do.

The STARS LxL team is the driving force behind the university’s Sustainability Tracking Assessment & Rating System (STARS). Our primary goal in completing this report is to assess the sustainability at UCF and how we can improve on it. We collaborate with local organizations, university departments, and others while working on projects we are passionate about. The global sustainability challenges of today are very complex and incorporate the environment, economy, and society. This is why the individuals on this team are all unique, with their own specialties, background, and interests. Our vision is for UCF to continue to pursue and accomplish sustainability goals in all aspects of campus life, while promoting the environment and community around it.

The UES Stormwater LxL team works with UCF’s Utilities and Engineering Services to maintain, regulate, expand, and protect the stormwater system on campus. UCF has a multitude of pipes, drains, and curb inlets that all drain into the canal. This canal leads to the Econlockhatchee River and eventually to the ocean.  Our team works to support and regulate the stormwater systems on campus to avoid pollution in nearby ecosystems. Our team’s responsibilities include managing the Adopt-a-Program, tracking and reporting compliance goals and tasks, inspecting pumps, curb inlets, and dumpsters, researching ways to combat pollution within our stormwater on campus, and more. We strive to protect, upkeep, and educate on the runoff on our campus to keep it free from pollution.

The Urban Agriculture LxL team operates an organic community garden dedicated to sustainability and food security. Featuring 16 garden beds, each modeled after one of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, the garden serves as a living classroom and a source of fresh produce. The 17th bed is a unique communal space outside the farm, open to the entire community for tending and harvesting. The team’s success hinges on the generous support of volunteers, who contribute thousands of hours annually to maintain the garden. All the produce grown is donated to the Knights Helping Knights Pantry, ensuring that UCF students have free access to fresh, nutritious food. Through this work, the team cultivates both crops and a stronger, more sustainable community.

The Urban Forestry LxL team aids UCF Landscape and Natural Resources Department (LNR) in expanding the Urban Forestry Program by assisting in the arboricultural practices and procedures in preserving, protecting, planting, and removing trees on campus to ensure a safe, aesthetically pleasing, economically efficient, and environmentally productive tree canopy. Since 2012, LNR has represented an award-winning program, holding a nationally recognized certification by Tree Campus Higher Education. Our LxL team is responsible for monitoring and tracking over 8,000 trees – including hazard mitigation and work orders as well as providing educational tours at the Arboretum. As urbanization continues to accelerate and cities expand into natural areas, it is imperative to find ways to incorporate a natural tree canopy into our urban environments. In urban areas, trees increase numerous ecosystem services such as improving air quality, promoting energy conservation, CO2 sequestration, reducing erosion, providing habitat for wildlife, and slowing storm water runoff.

The Website and Microsoft Teams Management LxL team works with other LxL teams, program area coordinators, and staff to promote ASI programs, events, and initiatives across campus and to outside communities. We oversee the official ASI website, internal Microsoft Teams communications, and Arboretum email account. We edit current and develop new content for the ASI website and manage all Microsoft Teams communication including the development of custom apps for internal program support such as intern timekeeping and event scheduling.