Jeff Hartzler '09

Event Manager & Marketing Coordinator,
Knights Plaza

q: What do you do?

a: I work on sales, sponsorships and day-to-day project management for Knights Plaza, which includes the UCF Arena. Currently I'm preparing for Light Up UCF, an event running from November 20 through January 10. The light show has doubled in size from 2008 and in addition to the ice rink, we've added a Ferris wheel, ice slide and carousel. We'll be playing 15 holiday movies.

q: What's your favorite part of the job?

a: I was prepared for front of the house responsibilities from my work in restaurants and guest services, but this job is better for me because no day's ever the same. There are so many different logistics involved. For instance today, they're starting to hang up the holiday lights and we have a strategic planning meeting. On another day, I could be meeting the Fire Marshall.

q: What's the greatest challenge?

a: Developing an abstract idea into a concrete event. I brainstorm so many ideas for events but it's not as simple to come up with a realistic action plan.

q: Do you stay in touch with any other UCF hospitality alums?

a: So many! Just a few are Matt Bunevich '08, Christine Calace '09, Ashley Lopez '09 and Jamie Simpson '09.

q: Outside work...you're most likely to be seen?

a: Kayak fishing.

q: Your biggest accomplishment since graduating, outside your career?

a: Taking the initiative to run for a seat on the Oviedo City Council. (Jeff put up a good fight but did not win in the Nov. 3, 2009 election.) More people should run for public offices. Competition is the lifeblood of democracy.

q: How did UCF prepare you for what you do?

a: Rosen is different from other colleges because 95% of the teaching is from a real-life standpoint. I can't say enough good things about my professors, specifically Darren Chiappetta, Scott Smith, Dr. Youngsoo Choi and Dr. Hyung-il Jung. Thanks to Tony Peluso, who was my theme park professor at Rosen, I got the internship here at the UCF Arena, and they kept me on full-time after graduation.

q: How could the hospitality program have been better?

a: There should be a real-life facility completely run by Rosen students, similar to the Statler Hotel on the Cornell campus. Ideally this would be a restaurant, hotel, attraction or club on the Main Campus of UCF or located close by, which would give exposure to what Rosen College is all about. As a remote campus, we can be forgotten and/or mistakenly perceived by some of the UCF community as a trade school. There's so much talent at Rosen College that's not being marketed to the public through small class projects. Also, a large percentage of the Rosen students live near Main Campus, so working in a living, breathing facility in that area would be more convenient than internships in the Disney or International Drive area.

q: A UCF memory?

a: Dr. Parsa's speeches before and after the guest lecture series. He is always so positive and happy. I love that about him. So many of the professors are that way.

q: Favorite meal in Orlando?

a: The Mexican buffet at El Potro in Oviedo and, for breakfast, The Townhouse Restaurant in Oviedo.

q: On your iPod?

a: I'm Old School so don't have an iPod. If I did, it would have reggae music on it.

q: Little known fact about you?

a: Half of my family (my mother's whole side) is from Aruba and Curaçao.