J. Wayne Reitz Union
Educating Leaders for a Global Community
Student organizations are an essential part of the University of Florida community and are an integral part of the total academic program. The presence of a diverse group of organizations is in the best interest of the University and its students. Such organizations foster valuable experiences for students that lead to significant learning and development and create a sense of belonging.
Student organizations provide a valuable service to the University community by promoting leadership development, community spirit, activism, public service, and social and cultural interaction. Each year the close to 700 student organizations sponsor conferences, seminars, lectures, debates, cultural and social events, and fine arts programs. These activities allow UF students to meet and interact with local, state, nationally and internationally renowned scholars, artists, politicians, academicians and other professionals. Student organization members also spend countless volunteer hours each academic year participating in service projects for campus and community efforts.
All student organizations must completer registration paperwork with the Center for Student Activities and Involvement each year in order to be registered at the University of Florida and to take advantage of all available facilities and services. Benefits provided by UF to registered student organizations include, but are not limited to:
There are three types of student organizations at UF:
Registered Student Organizations – The majority of organizations at UF fall in to this category. These organizations are formed by any group of students currently enrolled at UF sharing a common interest and/or goal and are entirely student run. Registered organizations must have three members, an approved constitution and a faculty adviser and must complete annual registration paperwork with the Center for Student Activities and Involvement to maintain access to university benefits.
Political - Political groups are a form of registered organizations, but have slightly different registration criteria. These groups are created for the purpose of supporting candidates who are seeking elected office. The office can be any federal, state and local offices as well as campus offices such as student body president or student senator. All political groups are only allowed for the duration of the campaign. The Center for Student Activities and Involvement will deactivate the political group immediately following the election. Political groups are not required to have a constitution.
Political groups that are operating as political parties for on campus elections must also abide by the relevant Student Body Statues which can be found here. When registering political parties the name of the party may be retained by the students who used that name in the previous election. The president (and only the president) of the party from the previous semester has the right of first refusal to the party name. If the president does not want to use the name again, the name may be used by the group that submits the first complete registration. The registration includes a hard copy of the political party registration form and the online component of the registration process.
Sponsored - This category of student organizations consists of groups that serve as a function of a University department or have obtained sponsorship from such a University department. Sponsorship may be granted to those organizations whose purpose and activities are in accord with the mission of the sponsoring department. Sponsorship requires support, endorsement, supervision of and assumption of responsibility for the action and activities of the sponsored organization. Sponsorship may not be extended to groups involved in political or religious activities or projects for private gain.
Social Sorority/Fraternity - Social sororities and fraternities are self-supporting organizations. Most social sororities and fraternities are single sex organizations; while social sororities and fraternities may not discriminate on the basis of age, color, creed, handicap, inter/national origin, race, religion, or sexual orientation, University policy and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 do permit their selection of members on the basis of sex.
Social sororities and fraternities are required to abide by the same University regulations and policies as other registered student organizations (as outlined in this handbook). In addition, social sororities and fraternities are also responsible for abiding by the policies, regulations and procedures of their Inter/National office, the Office of Sorority and Fraternity Affairs (OSFA), as well as their governing council if they are to maintain their rights as a registered student organization. No social sorority or fraternity may exist at the University without approval from the OSFA. *Social sororities and fraternities cannot request funds from Student Government.
All students are free to join and participate in registered student organizations. All student organizations and groups are subject to the rules of the University of Florida, including the Student Conduct Code and Academic Honesty Guidelines. Student organizations are encouraged to register in order to take full advantage of available University resources (including possible eligibility for funding and priority use of University facilities) pursuant to applicable University rules, regulations, and guidelines, including the Student Organization Handbook. Information on policies, procedures and the registration process can be found in the Center for Student Activities and Activities and Involvement in the J. Wayne Reitz Union.
To register a new organization with the Center for Student Activities and Involvement, the group must:
Registered organizations must re-register each academic year with the Center for Student Activities and Involvement. Annual registration for the coming year will occur between April and September. All registered organizations will remain active during this time and will maintain access to University benefits. Organizations that do not complete the annual registration by the set date in September (determined each year) will be deactivated and will forfeit University benefits until re-registration is completed.
NOTE: Organizations that have not been registered for more than two years must complete the new organization registration process.
The University reserves the right to register all student organizations. The Center for Student Activities and Involvement serves as the University registrant of all student organizations and maintains current information on each registered student organization, its officers or authorized representatives, its purpose and its faculty advisor.
It is the policy of the University of Florida that registered student organizations shall be in full compliance with all federal and state nondiscrimination and equal opportunity laws, orders and regulations. Student organizations registered at UF will not practice any discrimination against a member or prospective member on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, disability, unfavorable discharge from the military, or status as a disabled veteran of the Vietnam era, except specifically exempted by law. Discrimination based on sexual orientation is prohibited by the University policy, but not by law. (Please refer to the University Non-discrimination Policy for more information).
All student organizations are under the jurisdiction of the Director of Student Involvement. The responsibility for establishing and enforcing policy concerning organizations and activities, including the requirement that they function in accordance with their constitutions, is vested in the Center for Student Activities and Involvement. All student organizations (both registered and sponsored) are subject to the rules and regulations governing the University, including, but not limited, to the Code of Student Conduct and Academic Honesty Guidelines. Information from the Student Guide is used and referred to throughout this handbook. The Center for Student Activities and Involvement strongly recommends that all student leaders and student organizations become familiar with the sections of the Student Guide that refer to student organizations. A student wanting to contact an organization can readily find that information at the Student Activities Center or in the Student Organization listing which is available on line here.
Honorary organizations encourage and honor superior scholarship, service and leadership achievement. With so many societies out there, it is difficult to determine who is legitimate and who is not. There are typically two types of honorary organizations: professional honoraries and leadership/service honoraries.
Student organizations may be listed in the Center for Student Activities and Involvement database as Honoraries if they meet the following criteria:
Currently registered student organizations wanting to be identified as Service Organizations with the Center for Student Activities and Involvement must meet the following criteria:
Registered Service Organizations may also apply to be affiliated with the University of Florida Center for Leadership and Service. To do so, the organization must show proof of:
Applications for new service student organizations should be submitted to the Center for Leadership and Service 1 to 3 weeks in advance for review. To be identified by the Center for Student Activities and Involvement as a service organization, the organization must:
Submitting an application to CLS for affiliation does not guarantee a service organization designation or an affiliation with CLS.
