Florida Institute of Technology
EN-3: Student Life

- SOSA, Student Organization for Sustainable Action: Works to bring best practices in sustainability to the Florida Tech campus and community. The organization has several teams working projects and events on- and off-campus, many tied to projects within the academic sustainability program.
- Residence Life Sustainability Committee: Student group focused on creating a more sustainable Residence Life experience for students. This group was also instrumental in obtaining the university's Ethos Community Garden.
- Ethos Community Garden Club: This organization operates the Ethos Community Garden and generates diverse harvests of food in the Residential Quad on campus. This work includes organizing volunteers and renters, maintaining garden production at full potential, and sustaining sponsor relationships. The club catalyzes student involvement in the garden and helps advance sustainability on campus and in the community.
- Keuper Palm Botanical Society: To preserve, cultivate, and share the rich botanical heritage at Florida Tech while fostering a personal connection with the botanical garden. This will be achieved by actively restoring and maintaining the garden and its amenities, so that members of the campus and community may enjoy the garden and the activities hosted within. The Society also seeks to actively raise awareness of the garden’s history and biodiversity.
- American Society of Civil Engineers: A professional organization focused on enhancing working and practical knowledge of engineering. Hands on projects and competitions coupled with networking opportunities provide an opportunity for all engineers to grow personally and professionally. This group has commonly worked closely with SOSA to achieve several sustainable goals around campus including the building of a panther statue out of 100% collected recyclable materials. In addition, they have also participated in Fall and Spring Earth week.
- SOARS(Sustainability Outdoors Adventure Recreation Survival): We are an organization founded by Eagle Scouts who have instilled scouting principles into a Florida Tech outdoor organization. As an organization, we are focused on outdoor adventures including camping, hiking, snorkeling, fishing, backpacking, sustainability, conservation, and wilderness survival. Throughout our adventures, we aspire to not only have a great time but to also further one another's love for the outdoors, enhance each other's knowledge, and to help each grow as people.
- Marine Biological Society: This society was created to assemble an involved group of marine enthusiasts on campus and work for a marine biology program at Florida Tech that is stimulating, engaging and meaningful.
- Florida Tech Student Government Association (SGA): SGA acts as a liaison between the student body and the faculty, staff, and administration by presenting programs and activities that reflect the tenor of the student body's opinion. The association also manages the student government projects fund which helps fund different sustainability projects on campus.
- Squamish: A social and service co-ed environmentally-minded group, with interests in activism, awareness, and social networking. Their main objective is to maintain, protect, and advocate for the botanical gardens at the school. In addition, Squamish regularly participates in jungle and beach clean-ups within the surrounding Melbourne community.
- https://www.fit.edu/sustainability/campus-and-community-actions/student-organizations/

The university has our student-run Ethos Community Garden, Florida Tech's first on-campus community garden. Strategically located within the campus’s Residential Quad, the Ethos Community Garden aims to promote nutritional education, sustainable gardening, and relationship building within the campus and surrounding neighborhood. As a student-run community garden, on-campus students, faculty, and staff all share in the benefit as the garden becomes a hub for cross-collaborative learning while encouraging environmental sensitivities and sustainable behavioral change.
https://give.fit.edu/pages/give-pages/ethos-community-garden

In order to ensure the success and sustained existence of the community garden, there is a student-run club that oversees the management of the garden. The Ethos Community Garden Club is responsible for meeting the needs of the garden and ensuring that it stays clean and healthy, which includes garden upkeep, budget management and addressing the potential problems (e.g. vandalism, weeds, etc.). The members of the club also are responsible for community outreach, which includes running events and fundraisers for the garden and involving students who are interested. The club also organizes a booth to distribute plants at the monthly market day on campus.
https://floridatech.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/community-garden-club

In Fall 2023 Evan's Library hosted the Environmental Justice Forum: Make a Green Noise. This day long event had several speakers and discussions focused on environmental and social sustainability in the local community. Speakers and panelists included CEO of the Hip-Hop Caucus Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr. and representative from the City of Melbourne Housing and Urban Development Division.
https://floridatech.campuslabs.com/engage/event/9526587

- The Holi Festival hosted at Florida Tech helps bring Indian traditions and culture to our campus annually. Last held at Florida Tech on April 2023. The Holi Festival is an ancient Hindu tradition and a very popular festival in India, and in the Spring at Florida Tech there is a celebration that includes cultural activities, games, and dances.
- https://floridatech.campuslabs.com/engage/event/8959971

Sustainability Outdoors Adventure Recreation Survival (SOARS) conducts events that specifically follow Leave No Trace principles. This organization is run by students who are Eagles scouts who are in the Boy Scouts of America, and explicitly adhere to these principles.
https://floridatech.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/soars

Every semester many student organizations come together to put on both a Fall and Spring Earth Week. Which includes many events a day and broad advertising across campus. Some of these past events include campus clean-ups, tree-plantings, and several opportunities for local non-profits to share what they have been working on. The Earth Week celebration for Spring 2023 had a different theme each day of the celebration, ranging from 'Sustainability Around the World' and 'Life on Land: Outdoors Day' to themes focused on our local campus community such as the 'We ❤️ Botans'
https://floridatech.campuslabs.com/engage/news/279338

In AY 2022-23 and AY 2023-24, the Sustainability Academic Program had four Federal Work-Study student employment positions to assist with sustainability research, the university's sustainability website and social media. As well as sustainability data collection.
https://www.fit.edu/career/students/gain-experience/federal-work-study/

Information from AY 2022-23.
All data sourced from various student organizations per above, the Office of Student Life, Evans Library, the Office of Residence Life, and the Academic Sustainability Program. Information processed by Christian Foster and April-May Sullins.