Get to Know Us! A monthly showcase of the amazing staff who make the International Center a place where the UF community meets all its international goals!
Kenneth Parker
Kenneth Parker is a Program Assistant and Front Desk for Exchange Visitor Services where he enjoys helping international students and scholars navigate new beginnings here at UF. Born in Long Beach, California, Kenneth moved to Florida at a young age and grew up in Tallahassee. He attended the University of South Florida in Tampa, where he earned a degree in theater before switching to English with a concentration in creative writing. While he jokes that the English degree was “only marginally more useful” than his theatre degree, it laid the groundwork for a lifelong love of writing, storytelling, and communication.
Before joining the UF International Center, Kenneth spent years working in public-facing government and nonprofit roles — experiences that shaped his approach to service and empathy. His work included processing disability claims at the Social Security Administration and managing Social Security benefits for foster children through the organization Partnership for Strong Families. “Those jobs taught me not to judge people based on their worst day,” Kenneth explains. “When someone is applying for disability, they’re often facing the worst period of their life. I learned to give people a lot of grace.”
That perspective carries over into his current role at UFIC, where he serves as the front desk representative for Exchange Visitor Services and is often the first point of contact for students, scholars, and faculty. Kenneth fields general questions, routes phone calls, supports advisors by handling simpler inquiries, and helps ensure visitors feel welcome and informed. “I can answer a lot of general questions right away, which helps take some pressure off the advisors,” he says. “And when something is urgent, I know how to get people the information they need quickly.”
In addition to front desk duties, Kenneth helps run several UFIC programs and events. He organizes the annual Pie Day event, coordinates the K–12 school visit program, and supports summer camp visits where international scholars share their cultures and research with local students.
One student interaction stands out most to Kenneth: helping a scholar who had experienced a death in the family and urgently needed guidance on traveling home during the holidays, “They were struggling to get answers because people were out of the office,” he recalls. “I was able to reach out directly to colleagues and get them what they needed that day. It felt good not to give them the runaround during such a hard moment.” After years of interacting with people during crises, Kenneth values the optimism he encounters at UFIC. “A lot of students and scholars are excited — they’re starting a new chapter in their lives,” he says. “It’s nice to be part of the beginning of something, instead of meeting people on their worst day.”
If there’s one thing Kenneth wishes every international student and scholar knew, it’s this: UFIC staff are here to help — and questions are always welcome. “We’re not annoyed when you ask questions,” he says. “Even if we don’t have a perfect answer, we want to help however we can, and we understand that things can feel scary.”
Kenneth’s connection to international experiences began early. At age 10, he participated in a cultural exchange program that involved hosting a student from France and then living with a French family in southern France for six months. That experience sparked a love of travel, history, and culture that continues today.
Kenneth and his wife have traveled extensively, visiting countries across Europe, the Caribbean, and North America. From exploring castles in France to mudlarking along the Thames in London, hiking in Scotland, and visiting Denmark and Norway, travel remains one of his greatest passions. One formative memory still stands out: standing atop a castle parapet in France as a child, overlooking a valley and river below, “I remember thinking, even at ten years old, that I must be pretty lucky to be there,” he says.
Outside of work and travel, Kenneth is deeply involved in historical fencing, a practice rooted in medieval and Renaissance combat manuals. He has been fencing since age 15 and now serves as a coach with the Society of Historical Fencing in Gainesville. He also participates in tournaments, teaches demonstrations at local conventions, and studies weapon systems ranging from Scottish broadswords to two-handed European swords. “This summer, I went to a convention in Las Vegas and got to work with Robert Redfeather, an Apache knife-fighting specialist who worked on The Last of the Mohicans,” recalls Kenneth, further explaining the breadth of martial art styles under the historical fencing umbrella. The above photo shows Kenneth fencing on the right.
When he’s not fencing, traveling, or writing speculative fiction — sci-fi, fantasy, and horror — Kenneth enjoys spending time with his wife and their three dogs and two cats, gaming casually, and continuing to write with hopes of publishing more work in the future.
Photos - Left: some of the Parkers’ furry family members. Right: With wife Leah in Norway.
Whether greeting visitors at the front desk, coordinating outreach programs, or helping someone through a stressful moment, Kenneth Parker brings empathy, curiosity, and a genuine love of people to everything he does — making UFIC a more welcoming place for all who walk through its doors.
Thank you, Kenneth, for your contributions to make UF a global university!
Story by: Terrence Funke
Photo credits: Kenneth Parker and Christina Cozart