News - The Independent Florida Alligator

NEWS | CAMPUS STUDENT LIFE

UF student charged with sexual battery

By Rachael Schirmer | May 11, 2019

The incident occurred on March 22

Officials guide students off a bus and into a recreation center where they were reunited with their parents after a shooting at a suburban Denver middle school Tuesday, May 7, 2019, in Highlands Ranch, Colo.

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1 dead, 8 hurt in Colorado school shooting, 2 in custody

By The Associated Press | May 8, 2019

Two students opened fire Tuesday inside a charter school in an affluent suburb of Denver not far from Columbine High School , killing a teenager, wounding eight and spreading terror before they were taken into custody, authorities said.

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UF football player arrested Monday for simple battery

By Mark Stine | May 7, 2019

Brian Edwards was accused of grabbing his girlfriend of two years by the neck

Syed Muhammad Omar holds a banner during the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences commencement ceremony on Sunday. Omar, a 27-year-old UF psychology bachelor’s graduate, said he is involved with Divest UF.

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Graduates protest prison labor at UF commencement ceremonies

By Josephine Fuller | May 7, 2019

Amid fellow UF graduates with decorated caps and flags of their country of origin, Juan Esteban Zapata strolled onto the O’Connell Center’s jumbotron with a white sheet.

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean, David Richardson, gestures to pause the commencement ceremony. Richardson announced the ceremony would be delayed by 30 minutes, but the ceremony was later moved to an insidehallway of the stadium.

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UF responds to commencement cancelation with makeup ceremony indoors

By Kelly Hayes | May 6, 2019

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences commencement will be May 18 at the O’Connell Center.

Bestselling author James Patterson speaks to an estimated 2,500 students at UF's university-wide commencement on Saturday. "If you only take one thing away from today, please take this: Passion is the key reason for choosing a career,” Patterson said.

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James Patterson, Tom Petty and boycotts: UF hosts weekend of graduations

By Josephine Fuller | May 5, 2019

An estimated 2,500 graduates of the more than 7,000 who ordered regalia attended the hour and a half university-wide commencement at the Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday, said UF spokesperson Steve Orlando. The ceremony featured a speech from bestselling author James Patterson and a new tradition of singing Tom Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down.”

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UF College of Liberal Arts and Sciences graduation ceremony rained out

By Kelly Hayes | May 5, 2019

About 200 to 300 students were not called on the main stage.

Julian Obligado, a 21-year-old UF business management senior, was known for his love of cooking, video games and Supreme clothing.

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Supreme garments and robot dances: Remembering Julian Obligado

By Lina Ruiz | May 2, 2019

Julian Obligado could always be seen wearing Supreme. When he wasn’t wearing it, he was buying more of the skateboarding brand or selling what he owned to his friends.

UF freshman quarterback Jalon Jones was accused of two instances of sexual battery on April 6 according to two University Police reports. Charges were not pressed for either incident.

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Jalon Jones accused of sexual battery

By River Wells | May 2, 2019

He was accused of two separate incidents, but no charges were pressed.

Students gather on the campus of the University of North Carolina Charlotte after a shooting Tuesday afternoon, April 30, 2019, in Charlotte, N.C.

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North Carolina campus shooting leaves 2 dead, 4 injured

By The Associated Press | Apr. 30, 2019

A shooting on a North Carolina university campus left two people dead and four wounded Tuesday, prompting a lockdown and chaotic scene in the state’s largest city.

Anthony Rojas, a 23-year-old UF political science master’s student, and Mackintosh Joachim, president of the UF chapter of the NAACP, announced a boycott of the university-wide commencement ceremony on Friday afternoon outside Tigert Hall.

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Graduation boycott aims to address racial equity issues on campus

By Kelly Hayes | Apr. 30, 2019

The university-wide commencement ceremony will take place on Saturday in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

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UF students announce university-wide graduation ceremony boycott

By Hannah Beatty | Apr. 27, 2019

The university-wide ceremony will take place on May 4 in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

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UF Student Affairs executives leave following investigation

By Kelly Hayes | Apr. 25, 2019

Executive Chief of Staff Win Phillips will be interim Vice President

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Ralph D. Turlington: The plaza, the building, the man

By Paige Fry | Apr. 23, 2019

Turlington Hall received name in ’80s

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Mental health concern increases as UF moves up in Top 10

By Kelly Hayes | Apr. 23, 2019

More students sought out counseling this year than last

Bulls Dabke performs a traditional Levantine dance at Students for Justice in Palestine’s second annual Middle Eastern Fashion Show on Sunday. The group traveled from the University of South Florida to take part in the event. More than 100 people attended the fashion show, watched the dance performance and ate traditional Palestinian food.

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U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib speaks at second Middle Eastern Fashion Show

By Nushrat Nur | Apr. 21, 2019

More than 100 people attended.

Shannon Moriarty, a 20-year-old UF art history junior, created a SpongeBob SquarePants meme after hearing loud noise from the Garth Brooks concert and soundcheck. She posted it on the Swampy memes for top 10 public teens Facebook group page.

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‘All I could hear was Garth Brooks’: UF students react to concert in the Swamp

By Taylor Girtman | Apr. 21, 2019

UF reserved 16 parking areas for $25 to $50 for the concert

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Limited number of ASL interepreters leads to UF PSU event cancellation

By Hannah Beatty | Apr. 21, 2019

SG provides at least $10,000 per year for interpreters

A view of St. Sebastian's Church damaged in blast in Negombo, north of Colombo, Sri Lanka, Sunday, April 21, 2019. More than hundred were killed and hundreds more hospitalized with injuries from eight blasts that rocked churches and hotels in and just outside of Sri Lanka's capital on Easter Sunday, officials said, the worst violence to hit the South Asian country since its civil war ended a decade ago. (AP Photo/Chamila Karunarathne)

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Easter Sunday bomb blasts kill more than 200 in Sri Lanka

By Associated Press | Apr. 21, 2019

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — More than 200 people were killed and hundreds more wounded in eight bomb blasts that rocked churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday — the deadliest violence the South Asian island country has seen since a bloody civil war ended a decade ago.

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Garth rocks the Swamp despite early hiccups

By Tranelle Maner | Apr. 21, 2019

This was the first performance at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in 25 years.