Two students pose for a photo with their Presidential Service Award medallions.

Presidential Service Awards

The Presidential Service Awards honor graduating undergraduate, graduate, and professional students who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to service and community engagement throughout their academic careers. These awards recognize individuals who have gone above and beyond in contributing their time, skills, and efforts toward making a positive impact on their communities.

Recipients of the Presidential Service Awards embody the university's core values. They have actively participated in service-learning projects, volunteered with local organizations, and initiated community-based initiatives.

Recipients will be awarded and recognized at the Presidential Service Award Ceremony at the end of the Spring semester!

Please contact James Agan (James.Agan@ufl.edu), if you require any accommodations when completing your application.

All student applicants must graduate from UF during the calendar year the award is granted (spring, summer, or fall).
Undergraduate students must have a minimum of 400 verified community service hours.
Graduate/Professional students must have a minimum of 200 verified community service hours.
Transfer students are also eligible to apply, if they provide documentation of service hours from time accumulated at a prior institution of higher education.

Service Hour Verification:

All hours must be verified through the Gators for Good Network and submitted via the Impact Summary.
All documentation, including verification information and contact names, numbers, emails must be ready to upload prior to submitting an application.
If you have participated in any extended service experiences (ie. mission trips or Florida Alternative Breaks), be sure to only include the hours spent doing service work (not travel times, down time, religious worship, meal times, etc.)
Please note that hours required by court order and hours earned through paid opportunities are not eligible to be counted towards an applicant’s total hours.

Please read through all of the guidelines and expectations thoroughly before submitting your application through the Gators for Good Presidential Service Awards page.

Required Materials:

Application
Professional Headshot Submission
Documentation of Service Hours (Gators For Good Network Impact Summary)

Service Hour Documentation:

Documentation must be provided via the Impact Summary (pdf) available on the Gators for Good Network.

Access your Gators for Good Impact Summary: Impact Summary/Transcript
How to add Impacts to the Gators for Good Network:
Review the student tutorial page about the Gators for Good Network with additional resources on how to use the platform.
Be sure to use the attachment section on the impact form to include any certificates or external tracking documents related to the impact form(s) you are submitting.
Historical service hours not currently listed on your impact summary can be added via the impact form. These can be entered as a cumulative total if tracking occurred electronically in an external system. If this is the case, for your hours you must attach the external documentation via the add an attachment section on the impact form. You can also enter multiple hours/dates/times for a supervisor's approval via the timesheet option.

Applications Open: January 12, 2026
Deadline to Apply: March 02, 2026 | 11:59 P.M.

Apply on Gators For Good Network

Additional Recognitions

Once the minimum service hours for the Presidential Service Award have been met - students are eligible to receive additional awards. The additional awards are listed below - with the requirements for each. Please read carefully and collect the required documents before clicking register to submit the application for consideration.

This is to recognize a UF undergraduate, graduate, or professional student who participated in service-learning as part of a course and extended their involvement in that project beyond the semester of the course.

Requirements:

Must be eligible for the Presidential Service Award
Must have a 1-2 page letter of recommendation from the faculty member who worked with the student in the course
Students must submit a short 200-500 word essay** answering the following question: Describe your involvement in the service-learning experience. Why did you continue your work beyond the semester of the course and what have you learned from this experience?

This is to recognize a UF undergraduate, graduate, or professional student who participated in a community-based learning opportunity or research project that had a significant impact on the community.

Requirements:

Must be eligible for the Presidential Service Award
Must have a 1-2 page letter of recommendation from the faculty/staff or community partner contact who worked most closely with the student
Students must submit a short 200-500 word essay** answering the following question: Describe your involvement with a community-based learning experience. Why did you choose to work with this community partner and what have you learned from this experience?

This is to recognize a UF undergraduate student who engaged in service activities or projects that were exemplary. The activities can be co-curricular (outside of the classroom) or curricular (inside the classroom).

Requirements:

Must be eligible for the Presidential Service Award
Must be an undergraduate student
Must have a letter of recommendation from the faculty/staff or community partner contact who worked most closely with the student
Students must submit a short 200-500 word essay** answering the following question: Describe your involvement in service activities during your time as a UF student. What impact have you made within the community and/or with a specific partner(s)? What have you learned from this experience?

This is to recognize a UF graduate/professional student who engaged in service activities or projects that were exemplary. The activities can be co-curricular (outside of the classroom) or curricular (inside the classroom).

Requirements:

Must be eligible for the Presidential Service Award
Must be a graduate or professional student
Must have a letter of recommendation from the faculty/staff or community partner contact who worked most closely with the student
Students must submit a short 200-500 word essay** answering the following question: Describe your involvement in service activities during your time as a UF student. What impact have you made within the community and/or with a specific partner(s)? What have you learned from this experience?

Special Recognitions for Collaborators

The Presidential Service Awards (PSA) Special Recognition Categories honor UF Faculty/Staff Members and Community Partners who have demonstrated outstanding commitment to service and engagement on and off the University of Florida campus. These awards recognize individuals and organizations who have gone above and beyond in contributing their time, skills, and efforts toward making a positive impact on their communities.

Faculty/Staff or Community Partner selected will be invited and honored at the the Presidential Awards Ceremony at the end of the Spring semester!

Please contact James Agan (James.Agan@ufl.edu), if you require any accommodations when completing your application.

Recognizes a community partner (non UF faculty or staff) who has gone above and beyond in promoting UF students to pursue service and leadership opportunities.

Requirements:

Cannot be a current UF faculty or staff member
Submit a short 200-500 word essay** answering the following question: Describe the community partner's collaboration with the University of Florida over the last year. What impact has the community partner made on the community with the help of UF students, faculty/staff or department(s)?

Recognizes UF faculty or staff who have gone above and beyond in promoting UF students to pursue service and leadership opportunities.

Requirements:

Must be a current UF faculty or staff member
Submit a short 200-500 word essay** answering the following question: Describe the opportunities this faculty/staff member has promoted for students over the last year. What impact has this faculty/staff member made on the community or cause over the course of the work?

Use the following link registration form to nominate (self nominations also accepted) a Community Partner or Faculty/Staff Member that has gone above and beyond in promoting UF students to pursue service and leadership opportunities.

Nominate Collaborators

Essay Submissions

**Essay Submission Disclaimer: AI can be a wonderful tool to expand your learning and access to information, but you should never represent AI-generated text as your own writing. Please be mindful of the writing you submit for this application and ensure that it is completely your own work.

Have Questions?

Contact James Agan, Coordinator for Immersive Service Programs.

James.Agan@ufl.edu