OPINION: The apparently imminent appointment of Ben Sasse will leave me no choice but to renounce my alma mater and forsake Gator Nation.
OPINION: Object, call out, denounce, but don’t let it make you mad. Not just because that’s what they want, but because the author and their argument are not worth your emotional energy.
OPINION: My foremost impression of this ordeal has nothing to do with Sasse himself. It concerns freedom of belief and academic liberty here at UF.
However, despite the three semesters of reporting from our hard-working staff, the announcement of Sen. Ben Sasse as the sole presidential finalist came as a shock to The Alligator.
The protest that occurred at Emerson Hall was the first one I had ever attended, and it showed me how important it is for everyone to speak up for the things they believe in. I went into the protest believing we would all be able to speak to Ben Sasse directly, explaining to him why he is unfit for the job of UF president. But this wasn’t the case.
We are declaring Wednesday, October 12, to be a Day of Gratitude. On that day, we are acknowledging and thanking every UF student, faculty and staff member for their work in overcoming the challenges of the pandemic.
As The Alligator gets ready to launch a forthcoming project on the local impact of Roe v. Wade’s reversal, we’re asking for your help. Students and Gainesville residents, we want to hear from you.
The less students vote, the less accurate image SG members have of student opinion on campus, and the less students will be satisfied with election results. It’s a lose-lose situation.
No university has ever broken into that top-five ranking and stayed there for two consecutive years, until last month, when UF was ranked among the top five for the second year in a row. Berkeley and UCLA are tied for first, Michigan and Virginia tied for third, and UF and UNC are tied for fifth.
Florida’s current abortion ban only prohibits abortions after 15 weeks, but make no mistake, the Florida Republican Party will work for a complete ban. They’re hoping you won’t pay attention. They’re counting on you doubting that the worst can happen. But pay attention, because it very well might. If Florida Republicans win big in November, they will double down on denying your right of bodily autonomy the first chance they get.
Recently, UF has been celebrating the renewal of its top-five public university ranking. But last month, U.S. Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona, called college rankings “a joke.” He pointed out they encourage colleges to compete for prestige when they should be working toward equity.
Our Student Government and our elections are supposed to reflect the interests of the entire UF student body, no matter who you are. Unfortunately, there has been persistent misallocation of student funding, prioritizing a slim number of interests. The inequitable distribution of our student budget was most recently manifested in the recruitment of Accent speaker Josh Richards for $60,000.
Gator Party is proud to have led Student Government for the last two years. It has been an honor to generate long-lasting impacts for the Gator community through the executive and legislative branches.
Our university and our democracy is under attack. On a broad scale, assaults on our academic freedom by Tallahassee have gone unchecked by the UF Board of Trustees, creating an atmosphere of fear and censorship.
Earning the title of a top-five public university last year, UF has become a space for some of the nation’s most gifted individuals — something that often prompts students to go the extra mile when doubting their own skills. Questions of academic ability often become questions of belonging, with a single less-than-superior grade housing the potential to make students worry about whether they deserve to have a spot here.
The first year of my Ph.D. program in psychology had taken a toll on my finances. I had moved from a job that paid me just enough to get by, determined to make UF’s much lower stipend work. Unfortunately, determination wasn’t enough to make that stipend stretch to cover the cost of living.
It’s a student-run newsroom that cycles through a new staff every semester. It’s a breeding ground for developing new skills — a place to mess up before you mess up as a full-time journalist.
Despite their unpopularity, communal residential halls offer benefits that complete the freshman experience here at UF.
A shout-out of gratitude and admiration to all the staff and students who this past week welcomed our new students into residence and dining halls with cheerfulness and effectiveness, even in the heat and rain of August in Gainesville.
We’ve provided hard-hitting news the community depends on before, and it’s a challenge we’re ready to take on once again.
Solutions by The State News
