02 December 2025
Full Sail University has officially opened the doors to its state-of-the-art drone facility "The Full Sail University Drone Innovation Center."
Faculty, students, staff and a plethora of invited guests were on hand in celebration of the December 2 ribbon cutting to open and tour the more than 7,870 square foot multi purpose-built Drone Innovation Center on the university's Winter Park, FL based campus. The facility features six designated areas dedicated to the following:
- Advanced Airspace: This indoor, fully netted, 3,564-square-foot flight zone supports drone races, autonomous navigation, safety security and defense applications.
- Communications: This dedicated space within the facility serves as a communications hub, fully equipped for podcasting, live streaming, and a range of multimedia communications needs.
- Engineering: This space houses hardware and serves as an engineering hub for students.
- Remote Operations: Designed to mimic remote operation environments commonly used in live event production, business, as well as military and defense applications, here students will learn to monitor, coordinate, and control drone operations from a distance.
- Simulation & Programming: Here students test flight simulations using AI, computer vision, and drone simulation software such as VelociDrone.
- Situation Room: This multipurpose room will allow educators and students to debrief, review flight footage, learn new flight control software, and collaborate on next steps for ongoing drone projects.
Full Sail University Drone Innovation Center's Advanced Airspace.
"Today marks the first day that the Drone Innovation Center is open at Full Sail University. This space gives students across both the emerging technologies and entertainment media degree programs the opportunity to learn how drone technology best serves a wide array of sectors ranging from commercial, industrial, and business, to media, military, live events, entertainment and more," said Haifa Maamar, PhD, Executive Director of Emerging Technologies at Full Sail University. "We are proud to welcome this new facility to our university, and we cannot wait to see the inspired innovations that will be developed by our students here."
About Full Sail University
Full Sail University is an award-winning educational leader for those pursuing careers in entertainment media and emerging technologies. Founded in 1979, Full Sail has received innumerable accolades throughout its 45-year history including most recently being named a 2025 "Top Game Design School" by The Princeton Review and featured in MovieMaker magazine's "30 Best Film Schools in the U.S. and Canada" list for 2025. Full Sail University is a graduate and undergraduate degree-granting institution offering on-campus and online degree programs in areas related to Art & Design, Business, Film & Television, Games, Media & Communications, Music & Recording, Sports, and Technology. With over 100,000 graduates worldwide, Full Sail alumni have worked on countless award-winning projects with individual recognition including Oscar, Emmy, Grammy, Addy, and The Game Award honors.
