University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

College of Liberal
Arts and Sciences
Type	Public
Established	1910
Parent institution	University of Florida
Endowment	$2.379 billion (2021); (university-wide)
Dean	Dr. Mary Watt (Interim)
Undergraduates	11,000
Postgraduates	1,500
Location	Gainesville, Florida, United States; 29°38′56.9″N 82°20′38.8″W / 29.649139°N 82.344111°W
Website	www.clas.ufl.edu

The University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) is the college for the liberal arts and sciences of the University of Florida, and the largest of the university's 16 academic colleges. Most core curriculum classes, 43 majors, and 47 minors are part of the college. The university reports that more than 700 faculty members teach at least 35,000 students each year, with more than 11,000 undergraduates pursuing a degree from the college and 1,500 graduate students are also attaining graduate degrees in the college.^[2]

The college faculty have received a variety of national and international awards, including the Pulitzer Prize,^[3] Guggenheim Fellowships,^[4] Senior Fulbright Awards, National Science Foundation Fellowships, Presidential Young Investigator Awards and National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowships. They hold memberships in the National Academy of Sciences, the Nobel Prize Committee, the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences and the Royal Societies of London and Edinburgh.[2]

Liberal Arts and Sciences students have numerous scholarships and awards for their academic performance. During the past several years, CLAS students have been recognized as a Rhodes Scholar, Barry Goldwater Scholars, Harry Truman Scholars, and James Madison Scholars.^[5]

National rankings according to US News (2020 edition)

Department	Ranking
Analytical Science	11th overall
Criminology	19th overall
Physics	37th overall
Psychology	39th overall
Statistics	40th overall
Chemistry	41st overall
Computer Science	49th overall
History	53rd overall
Earth Science	54th overall
Economics	55th overall
Sociology	57th overall
Political Science	61st overall
Mathematics	62nd overall
English	67th overall
Biological Sciences	73rd overall

Departments

Research Centers and Institutes

Academic Advising
African American Studies
Bureau of Economic and Business Research
UF Center for African Studies
Bob Graham Center for Public Service
Center for European Studies (CES)
Center for Greek Studies
Center for International Studies
Center for the Study of Hindu Traditions (CHiTra)
Center for Humanities and the Public Sphere

Center for Jewish Studies
France–Florida Research Institute
Land Use and Environmental Change Institute (LUECI)
Learning Resources (previously the Language Learning Center and the Teaching Center)
Center for Gender, Sexualities, and Women's Studies Research
Samuel Proctor Oral History Program
University Writing Program
William and Grace Dial Center for Written & Oral Communication
Tea Literary & Arts Magazine^[6]

Additional Programs and Centers

Center for Applied Mathematics
Center for Applied Optimization
Center for Catalysis
Center for Chemical Research at the Bio/Nano Interface
Center for Chemical Physics
Center for Children's Literature and Culture
Center for Film Studies and Media Studies
Center for Macromolecular Science and Engineering
Center for Medieval and Early Modern Studies
Institute for Fundamental Theory

Deans of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

Years	Dean
1910–1934	James N. Anderson
1934–1947	Townes R. Leigh
1948–1971	Ralph E. Page
1972–1978	Calvin A. VanderWerf
1978–1988	Charles F. Sidman
1988–2000	Willard W. Harrison
2000–2007	Neil S. Sullivan
2007–2008	Joe Glover (interim)
2008–2014	Paul D'Anieri
2014–	Dave Richardson

Research

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences was awarded $43.9 million in annual research expenditures in sponsored research for 2024.^[7] Liberal Arts and Sciences researchers have been involved in groundbreaking research in a variety of disciplines. Their achievements include contributions of the algorithm and input optics for LIGO, which has detected several "chirps" of gravitational waves produced by colliding black holes. Other significant research includes Project Implicit, which studies implicit bias.^[8] The college includes experts on pressing topics such as climate change.^[9]

Alumni

Notable alumni of the college include politicians Bob Graham, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Marco Rubio; former ambassador Dennis K. Hays, Kathy Fields, co-creator of Proactiv and Rodan + Fields skincare; Nobel Prize-winning chemist Robert Grubbs; award-winning authors Kate DiCamillo and James Grippando, and Pulitzer-winning journalist Dexter Filkins.

Notes

^ As of June 30, 2021. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2021 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY20 to FY21 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
^ "About the College." University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences [1]
^ "Pulitzer winners". www.pulitzer.org. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
^ "Under the Skin". 27 June 2016.
^ "CLAS for Faculty/Staff". www.clas.ufl.edu. Archived from the original on 2005-05-14.
^ "About us — Tea". Archived from the original on 2019-08-02. Retrieved 2019-08-02.
^ "UF research spending at record $1.26 billion for FY2024". news.ufl.edu. Retrieved 2024-08-11.
^ "Measuring the implicit biases we may not even be aware of".
^ "Hurricane Matthew's Destructive Storm Surges Hint at New Normal". 8 October 2016. Archived from the original on October 9, 2016.

External links

[1] As of June 30, 2021. U.S. and Canadian Institutions Listed by Fiscal Year 2021 Endowment Market Value and Change in Endowment Market Value from FY20 to FY21 (Report). National Association of College and University Business Officers and TIAA. 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.

[2] "About the College." University of Florida College of Liberal Arts and Sciences [1]

[3] "Pulitzer winners". www.pulitzer.org. Retrieved 6 May 2023.

[4] "Under the Skin". 27 June 2016.

[5] "CLAS for Faculty/Staff". www.clas.ufl.edu. Archived from the original on 2005-05-14.

[6] "About us — Tea". Archived from the original on 2019-08-02. Retrieved 2019-08-02.

[7] "UF research spending at record $1.26 billion for FY2024". news.ufl.edu. Retrieved 2024-08-11.

[8] "Measuring the implicit biases we may not even be aware of".

[9] "Hurricane Matthew's Destructive Storm Surges Hint at New Normal". 8 October 2016. Archived from the original on October 9, 2016.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]