If a poet, athlete, music enthusiast and novice ping pong player were gathered into a room, it may seem like they wouldn't have much in common.
The UF cheerleading team currently has 13 men and 24 women, divided into a combination of male-female stunt pairs and all-girl groups. The athletes spent most of the two-hour practice preparing for next month’s cheer tryout, during which they’ll do their best to recruit talented newcomers — and show up themselves to re-earn their spots on the team. But tryouts will be less competitive for some than others.
The winner of the Florida Invitational Step Show’s Stroll Off competition, Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, is focusing on its community and celebrating Black culture — despite an arrest that occurred at the event last weekend.
The Divine Nine promote academic excellence for African American students on predominantly white campuses. It also provides them with a space to address pertinent issues within the Black community, said Ammir Thomas, vice president of Theta Sigma Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity.
In 2023, the UF Police Department had 122 cases of registered bike theft. That’s 60% higher than the previous year, which saw 76 thefts. The numbers for registered cases in the preceding years were 76 in 2022, 84 in 2021, 130 in 2020 and 104 in 2019, even with the effects of COVID-19.
Black UF students form strong bonds through diverse campus organizations at the predominantly white university.
David Canton, UF director of African American studies, calls it the “eyeball test.”
For vegan students like Maxine Sculthorpe, an 18-year-old UF biomedical engineering freshman, walking into a new dining hall can be intimidating because her food options are frequently limited to meager portions and subpar substitutes, she said.
Every semester, a small group of students have the opportunity to play the Century Tower Carillon — an instrument made of bells — ranked among one of the largest university carillons out of the less than 200 nationwide. Since the carillon’s first recital in 1979, each student’s performance is an addition to the tower's historic legacy and unique sound, according to its website.
With a prominent LGBTQ+ community at UF, including the UF Pride Student Union and the UF LGBTQ+ Alumni Association, gendered housing can be a difficult experience for many students on campus. Out of 26 residence halls on campus, UF only has one gender neutral housing option — the Lavender Living Learning Community, located in Springs Residential Complex, hopes to create a more inclusive and diverse housing experience.
Students’ first impressions of the temporary dining hall included “eating in the trenches,” “an interesting experience” and “kind of cute” since its opening Jan. 6. The climate-controlled Norman Field structure will serve UF students while The Eatery at Broward Hall undergoes a full renovation.
In the past two years, the areas surrounding Gainesville campuses saw both the Thanksgiving weekend shooting and the shootings at The Crossing. Both UF and Santa Fe College received hoax school shooting threat calls in 2023 as well. Both UF and Santa Fe College students have concerns about campus safety.
The start of every semester brings about a new wave of academic goals and resolutions, with students scrambling to find the best tips and tricks for productivity. While there’s no doubt that building healthy study habits is important, finding the perfect space to implement those habits is just as important.
After months of bargaining, UF Graduate Assistants United saw the fruits of its labor after the university Board of Trustees approved Article 10 of GAU’s collective bargaining agreement. Article 10 states graduate assistants on nine-month appointments will be paid $19,200, while those on 12-month appointments will receive a minimum of $25,600.
Whether thousands of miles apart from their hometown or swarmed with studying for final exams, circumstances of all sorts are keeping many from their family dining tables this week.
On Saturday, the Gator Chess Club hosted international master of chess and online content creator Levy Rozman, known online as Gotham Chess, while he promoted his new book.
Gathering every Sunday morning, the UF student-run nonprofit A Reason To Give has worked to serve the Gainesville homeless community for over seven years, making more than 150 bagged lunches a week and collaborating with a variety of Gainesville organizations and homeless shelters.
Florida Sen. Jason Pizzo considers himself the “biggest no-bulls—t person in the Florida state legislature.” He’s spent the past two weeks on the road to prove it. A group of 30 UF students gathered in the Reitz Student Union Friday for a meet-and-greet coordinated between Pizzo and UF College Democrats.
A day after Gov. Ron DeSantis ordered Florida universities to deactivate pro-Palestinian student groups, a crowd of over 250 people rallied on UF’s campus with Palestinian flags draped over their shoulders and drawn onto cardboard signs.
In 1951, a total of 101 Hispanic and Latino students attended UF. More than half a century later, over 9,000 Hispanic and Latinos attend UF — making up more than one-fifth of the student population.
Solutions by The State News
