By Marc R. Masferrer, University Communications and Marketing
Atalas, the rare tropical butterflies after which USF Sarasota-Manatee's new residence hall is named, are back on campus, just in time to witness the final stages of construction before the building opens in August.
Atala butterflies are small with inky black wings, speckled with iridescent blue spots and a bright red body. Once thought to be extinct, they are making a comeback thanks to the popularity of its host plant in Florida, known as coontie — including at USF Sarasota-Manatee.
Atala Residence Hall, named after a rare tropical butterfly whose range includes the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus, will open to students in August.
This month, atalas were spotted fluttering near the footbridge at the western edge of campus and among the coontie that is part of the landscaping on the edge of the campus courtyard near the Crosley Campus Center. Also crawling and feeding on the coontie were several bright orange and yellow atala caterpillars.
USF President Rhea Law and Sarasota-Manatee Campus Regional Chancellor Karen Holbrook announced in April that the residence hall portion of the building would be named Atala Hall. The name was selected after a campus committee of students, faculty and staff considered numerous possible names; an online survey that drew more than 300 responses; and final selection by Law and Holbrook.
Housing and scholarship applications are being accepted
Earlier this month, crews removed the chain-link fence that had surrounded the building site since early 2023, signaling the progress in the project’s construction.
Several atala caterpillars feed on coontie plants that are part of the landscaping at USF Sarasota-Manatee.
Atala Hall, which will have room for 200 USF students, will be comprised of suites and apartments in the top four floors of the six-story building going up along the south edge of the campus courtyard. The student center on the first two floors will include a ballroom, a dining hall, a book store, a game room, study lounges and offices for student government, other student organizations and USF World.
The USF Sarasota-Manatee Campus Student Center and Atala Residence Hall will welcome students on Aug. 23 for the start of the fall semester.
USF Housing is continuing to accept applications from current and new students, including transfers, who want to be among the first to ever live on campus. Applicants are eligible for up to $4,000 in housing scholarships for the 2024-25 academic year.
Students who live in the building as part of a new Living Learning Community co-sponsored by the Muma College of Business, College of Education and the Judy Genshaft Honors College, are eligible to apply for additional scholarships.
For more information about housing at USF Sarasota-Manatee, visit https://www.sarasotamanatee.usf.edu/housing/