From Adolescence to Adulthood
1979-1986

A former White House statesman and president of Portland State University, Gregory Wolfe, FIU's third president, guided the institution from adolescence to adulthood. Probably his greatest challenge was the conversion of FIU from a two-year, upper-division school with limited graduate programs into a university with a lower division and doctoral programs. The legislature approved the proposal, and in August 1981 the first-ever freshmen and sophomores started to attend classes at FIU. In 1984, FIU received the authority to begin offering degree programs at the doctoral level -- but the University required additional funding to support the establishment of new graduate programs. To that end, the "Southeast Florida Comprehensive University Presence Plan" (CUP) was sponsored by state Senators Ken Jenne and Harry Johnson and passed by the legislature.

Implemented in 1985, CUP was a ten-year, $170 million plan to fund additional master's and doctoral programs at FIU and FAU to increase University access at all levels to South Florida residents. In accordance with the State University System master plan, the University expanded into Broward County, offering courses at Broward Community College's Davie Campus.

In addition to the growing curriculum, the student experience was changing. In October 1983, groundbreaking was held for the first on-campus residence halls at North Campus, which housed 550 students. A $10 million housing facility for 738 students opened at University Park in 1985. By the time President Wolfe retired in 1986, FIU had grown to more than 16,500 students, facilities were mushrooming and the University was featured in the Top 200 Best Buys in College Education by The New York Times. At the end of his presidency, FIU was heading into the last decade of the 20th century. Gregory Wolfe had guided the institution from adolescence to adulthood.