History

National History

The University of Florida Alumni Association was organized and chartered in 1906 by the first group of graduates from the Gainesville campus. Today, alumni on record total nearly 350,000. We have alumni in every state and in more than 100 foreign countries.

The Alumni Association is responsible for a network of nearly 100 Gator Clubs® in Florida, across the U.S. and internationally. These clubs are composed of alumni and friends who represent UF in their communities. They hold a wide variety of programs and events in support of the university. The Alumni Association is also actively involved with the recruitment of superior students to attend the University and with financial assistance programs in the form of scholarships sponsored by the Gator Clubs®. In addition, we host outreach programs that bring faculty and administrators on the road to carry the University's message to alumni and friends.

Reunion programs are organized and conducted by the Alumni Association and have been successful in bringing alumni back to Gainesville, with activities that are designed to involve returning graduates with campus life. We host the Grand Guard reunion, which honors 50 year graduates of UF, and the Silver Society, which recognizes 25 year grads. In addition to these reunions, several annual events are held each year including Back to College, Spring Weekend and our Gator Nation Tailgate party before each football game.

Specific groups have been organized to represent the needs of special interests on the campus, including the Association of Black Alumni and the Association of Hispanic Alumni. In addition, Student Membership in the Alumni Association was developed to create networking opportunities between current students and alumni. With more than 11,500 members, this group offers career networking, social events and special programming. The Florida Cicerones, who are UF’s campus ambassadors, are also members of this group. These students, specially selected to represent the University, lead tours and host events across UF’s campus.

Knoxville Gator Club History

The idea of starting a Knoxville Gator Club came from a couple dedicated Gators in the Knoxville area. Even before the club became official, the Knoxville Gator Club participated in their first International Gator Day in May 2014 by cleaning up Melton Hill Park. There were a few other social events through the summer to keep Gators engaged until the 2014 football season.

 Brittnee, the first President, found out that the Knoxville Gator Club had become official the day of the Florida vs Kentucky football game in 2014. Just two weeks later, the Knoxville Gator Club welcomed Gators from all over the country to their first Gator Headquarters Tailgate in the heart of downtown Knoxville for the Florida vs Tennessee football game.

 Since then, the club has grown in UFAA membership and participated. At Florida Forward 2015, the club was welcomed into the UFAA community and was awarded the Most Improved Out-of-State Gator Club Clubbie. Also, Brittnee was awarded the Young Alumni Leader Award.

 Now, the Knoxville Gator Club looks towards the future with so many more events and bringing Gators together in a rival city. Go Gators!