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Friday, July 25, 2025

El Caimán

THE AVENUE

UF PhD student discovers record-breaking number of sea turtle nests at Disney Conservation

By Jared Teitel | Sep. 11, 2023

For the past six months, Rachel Smith and her team of conservationists at Disney Conservation loaded into their ATVs at first light and ventured along the scruffy sands and past the warm waters of the Disney Vero Beach Resort. As she travels further down the 5-mile stretch, she closely watches for footprints left behind by sea turtles in the peak of their nesting season. 

Opinions generic
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

Navigating the Grey Areas of Anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric: Can We Disagree Without Demonizing?

Sep. 11, 2023

UF College Republicans hosted Christian preacher Derek Paul as the speaker for their first meeting of the semester Sept. 6. Paul identifies himself as an “ex-gay” who overcame his same-sex attraction through the Christian faith. As a queer woman who was once religious, a lot of emotions and thoughts came up at the prospect of writing about his speech. I was angry, confused and asked myself a lot of questions. 

METRO

Local front-yard ‘fresh eggs’ box delights neighborhood

By Zoey Thomas | Sep. 11, 2023

Michelle Castronover wasn’t keen on owning chickens. But when her husband and daughter asked to build a coop as a “COVID project,” the 49-year-old Shell Elementary teacher agreed. Three years later, the Castronovers own 10 chickens — the maximum allowed to residents by Gainesville’s Fowl, Chickens or Livestock Code — and share their eggs with the neighborhood through the “fresh eggs” box standing on the edge of their front lawn, which they restock regularly with six- and nine-egg-sized boxes. The coop is just one of the family’s backyard sustainability projects, along with a greenhouse and butterfly garden. 

Opinions generic
OPINION  |  COLUMNS

UF’s AI vision: A policy of buzzwords

By Ronin Lupien | Sep. 11, 2023

We call ourselves an AI university. The artificial intelligence page of the UF website claims we are on the brink of a fourth digital revolution. The page — singularly focused on our AI policy and research — highlights specific uses of the technology. The highlights given should be an example of how the president can reshape his communications. The information is there, he just needs to communicate it.

Third grade teacher Alayna Schwenker sits on a hand-made bench in the library corner of her classroom at Stephen Foster Elementary School Sept. 8, 2023.
METRO  |  K-12 EDUCATION

Teachers spend up to thousands on classroom supplies

By Alissa Gary | Sep. 11, 2023

Teachers across Alachua County Public Schools and throughout the country spend from hundreds to thousands of dollars each year buying school supplies, class decorations, cleaning supplies and snacks for their students — most of which can’t be purchased using district-allocated supply funds. Among the ACPS teachers who talked to The Alligator, the average amount spent out-of-pocket was between $1,460 and $2,500, with the lowest estimate being $100 and the highest being $10,000.

Bryn Taylor, Rachel Hartnett and Jackie Schnieber table in front of the J. Wayne Reitz Union on Sept. 14, 2022
NEWS  |  CAMPUS

Graduate student union could lose recognition under new law

By Megan Howard | Sep. 11, 2023

A law from Florida’s legislative session puts unions — including UF’s collective for graduate students — at risk of losing legal recognition as early as next year. SB 256 requires unions to reach 60% membership quota. The unions will no longer be legally recognized if the quota is not met. 

Environmental activist groups hold up signs supporting the protection of the springs at Alachua County Library on Monday, Aug. 28, 2023.
ENVIRONMENT  |  ENTERPRISE

Activists clash with FDEP over springs regulations

By Kylie Williams | Sep. 11, 2023

Florida’s freshwater springs overflow with life, combining rich biodiversity with community recreation. Yet, springs activists argue a once-pristine environment is at risk of being ruined. For nearly a decade, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection has been locked in legal battles with springs activists about Florida spring preservation. On Aug. 11, the FDEP proposed revisions to Chapter 62-41.400-403, F.A.C., which the agency claims will limit excessive harm to springs. 

Magnolia Plantation Bed & Breakfast Inn is seen on Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023, in Gainesville’s Historic Bed & Breakfast district.
METRO

Deeper than beds and breakfast: Preserving a piece of Gainesville’s rich history

By Ella Thompson | Sep. 11, 2023

Only a 10-minute drive from UF lies one of Gainesville’s hidden gems: the historic bed-and-breakfast district. With a rich history and eclectic aesthetics, these inns have provided a unique travel experience to Gainesville visitors for 32 years. Ghosts, hippies, Tom Petty and some members of his first band, Mudcrutch, have inhabited these inns long before they became temporary homes to travelers passing through. 

NEWS  |  CAMPUS UF ADMINISTRATION

UF will accept 'classical' entrance exam in admissions

By Bailey Diem and Garrett Shanley | Sep. 11, 2023

UF joined 11 Florida schools in becoming the first state university system in the country to accept the Classic Learning Test as an alternative to the SAT and ACT in its admissions following a Board of Governors vote Sept. 8. The vote comes nearly seven months after Gov. Ron DeSantis’ proposed reevaluation of the state’s relationship with College Board, the non-profit that administers the SAT.

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