Orlando, FL, July 18, 2024 — Praising a lifetime of selflessness, achievement and giving back to others, today the University of Central Florida (UCF) informed hotelier and philanthropist Harris Rosen that it will bestow an Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree upon him. It is one of the highest recognitions awarded by the university, requiring a detailed nomination process, a recommendation from the university president and ultimately approval from the Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees vote, which occurred on June 25, was unanimous.
In nominating Mr. Rosen, the Dean of the UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management Dr. Cynthia Mejia acknowledged Mr. Rosen’s sustained achievements in public service over the last 50 years as extraordinary. “I have learned from Mr. Rosen how modest beginnings can translate into hard work, and how doing the right thing for his associates and company can transcend people’s lives,” Dean Mejia wrote. Dean Mejia reiterated that sentiment this morning as she personally delivered news of the honor to Mr. Rosen.
Mr. Rosen is known as one of Central Florida’s leading entrepreneurs, purchasing one hotel (now the Rosen Inn International) in 1974 and growing it into seven area hotels, multiple subsidiary businesses and employing more than 4,000 associates. Now celebrating the company’s 50th anniversary, Mr. Rosen’s company, Rosen Hotels & Resorts, is one of the Southeast’s largest independent hotel chains with over 6,300 guest rooms and suites, more than 740,000+ square feet of event space and more than 30 unique dining options.
Honored with multiple Lifetime Achievement awards, Mr. Rosen is known as one of the most generous, selfless and kind-hearted people in all of Florida.
In 2004, after Mr. Rosen donated time, resources and millions of dollars, the UCF Rosen College of Hospitality Management opened its doors, offering students an amazing opportunity to learn and work in the heart of the hospitality industry. Currently celebrating 20 years of excellence in education, the Rosen College is annually recognized as one of the best hospitality schools in the nation and in the world.
Mr. Rosen’s Tangelo Park Program, created in 1994, provides free preschool to children ages 2, 3, and 4 in this underserved community, in addition to full college scholarships once they graduate high school. In turn, the crime rate dropped, high school graduations soared to nearly 100% and the program’s success led Rosen to start a similar program in another underserved community in Orlando, Parramore. Together, more than 500 students have received college or vocational school scholarships to state schools, providing tuition, room & board and books.
After the passing of his youngest son, Adam, 26, to brain cancer in 2018, Mr. Rosen made a $12 million donation commitment to the University of Florida and the ReMission Alliance for an innovative laboratory center, now named the Adam Michael Rosen Neuro-Oncology Laboratories. This world-class collaborative facility creates an open environment in which doctors and experts can share equipment, labs and research results in hopes to ultimately provide better, faster patient care and someday find a cure for cancer.
Dr. Mejia also highlighted Mr. Rosen’s additional philanthropic efforts, including founding the Jack and Lee Rosen Jewish Community Center in Southwest Orlando, preventing the closure of what is now, the Rosen Aquatic & Fitness Center, along with providing drinking water, housing and other relief supplies to people in Haiti after multiple natural disasters. “His remarkable life of giving to the local, regional and international community is a rarity and noteworthy of distinction,” Dr. Mejia concluded.
Rosen Hotels & Resorts Vice President Frank Santos enthusiastically discussed the man he has known for 39+ years saying, “While I could write a book about his business success and how leaders all over Florida look to him as a beacon of light, it is the foundations, his generosity and his selflessness which I would like to highlight,” Santos said in his accompanying letter to UCF’s Commencements, Convocations and Recognitions Committee. “Quite simply put, Mr. Rosen is a humble man who has positively impacted the lives of thousands of Floridians not for any other reason than, in his words, ‘because it is the right thing to do,’” Santos added.
Mr. Rosen will receive this Honorary Doctor of Public Service degree on August 3 at 9 a.m. during UCF’s Summer Commencement at Addition Financial Arena. That arena is located at 12777 Gemini Blvd. N. in Orlando.
For more information about Harris Rosen, Rosen Hotels & Resorts or any of the foundations or subsidiary businesses mentioned, please visit www.rosenhotels.com.
Media Contact:
Rob Hubler, Public Relations Manager
Rosen Hotels & Resorts
407-996-7656
rhubler@rosenhotels.com or publicrelations@rosenhotels.com.
