Week 3 (March 18-22, 2013) of the 2013 Legislative Regular Session in Florida begins today:
The Senate Education Committee meets 3:30 to 6 p.m. today in 412 Knott. The following higher ed bills are included in the meeting notice:
- SB 1276 by Montford—Public Meetings/University Direct-support Organizations - Providing an exemption from public meeting requirements for certain portions of meetings of a university direct-support organization or of the executive committee or other committees of the board of directors of such organization; providing for legislative review and repeal of the exemption; providing a statement of public necessity, etc.
A public hearing will also be held for consideration of the below-named executive
appointments:
- Morton, Edward Allen (Naples) - Board of Governors
- Moabery, Abdol (Delray Beach) - Board of Trustees, Florida Atlantic University
- Grant, Gerald C., Jr. (Palmetto Bay) - Board of Trustees, Florida International University
- Edwards, Charles B. (Ft. Myers) - Board of Trustees, University of Florida
- Franklin, Fred D., Jr. - Board of Trustees, University of North Florida
- Russell, Lanny (Ponte Vedra Beach) - Board of Trustees, University of North Florida
Florida Higher Ed Legislative News
How Florida Lawmakers Would Change High School Graduation Requirements
State Impact Florida
After years of adding requirements to earn a high school diploma, Florida lawmakers have proposed bills which would allow students more flexibility in how they earn a diploma. A House proposal (HB 7091) would create three diploma tracks: College and career; industry and scholar. All three diplomas require four years of English language arts.
Debate about teacher, state employee pension plan ignites at FSU
Florida Flambeau
Florida State students are still buzzing about the opening legislative session in the State of Florida on Tuesday, March 5, during which the Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford laid out the plans for the session—including the highly controversial topic of state pension reform, which has the capacity to affect the future of prospective teachers and state employees at Florida State.
UF opposes bill that would hold tuition steady
Gainesville Sun
Officials at the University of Florida have taken a stance against a bill moving through the Legislature that would guarantee in-state students their tuition and fees would not change for four years as long as they remain enrolled full time. Gov. Rick Scott first promoted the “Finish in Four” concept in his budget proposal in January as a way to encourage students to graduate on time and keep higher education costs predictable for families. UF administrators say such a program would mean revenue losses for UF of as much as $36 million annually after four years of the program.
State University System
FAMU suspends search for new president
AP
Florida A&M University on Friday abruptly halted its search for a new president after the university board chairman contended it was the wrong time to move ahead with a new leader. The move came just days before university trustees were expected to interview finalists and possibly hire a permanent replacement for the job. Last July, James Ammons resigned as part of the fallout over the November 2011 hazing death of a drum major aboard a bus.
FAMU suspends search for new president
Tallahassee.com
Florida A&M University is no longer searching for a new president. Solomon Badger, chairman of FAMU’s Board of Trustees, earlier today suspended the search indefinitely for the university’s 11th president. FAMU’s presidential search committee had been scheduled to meet Monday and Tuesday in Orlando to review a list of 29 applicants and begin reviewing the top candidates. FAMU sent out a release Thursday evening saying the trustees would meet on Friday with the goal of hiring a new president that day…
FAMU holds off picking a new president
Tampabay.com (blog)
Florida A&M University‘s board of trustees was scheduled to pick a new president as early as next week. But the chairman of the school’s Board of Trustees announced today that he had decided to suspend the search. Instead, interim President Larry Robinson will remain at the school’s helm as it works to end its accreditation probation and address issues of hazing. FAMU is the second school, after the University of Florida, to abruptly suspend a presidential search already this year.
Campus to become tobacco-free
Florida Flambeau
Florida State will be the third public university in Florida to adopt a completely tobacco-free campus policy along with the University of Florida and Florida International University, which have already adopted tobacco-free policies for their campuses…
FSU investigates teaching complaint
Florida Flambeau
An anonymous ethics complaint that was filed on Jan. 18, 2013 to the Florida State University Inspector General Services concerning the possibility of undergraduate students wrongfully filling teaching positions designated for graduate assistants is now being investigated. The complaint specifies this practice is happening within the computer science field and throughout the University…
FSU launches new research vessel, the RV Apalachee
Tallahassee Democrat
The R/V Apalachee, Florida State University Coastal & Marine Labís new research vessel, is the only one of its kind in this region of the Gulf of Mexico. The custom-built, 64-foot catamaran-hulled boat was a nearly two-year project…
Main Campus Closed Until 12 for Classes, Employees
UCF Alert - March 18, 2013
UCF’s main campus is closed for classes and employees until noon. All classes scheduled to begin before noon will not be held today. Essential personnel should report to work. All classes and operations in the Central Florida Research Park and at all other campus locations will continue as scheduled. Police have found a suspicious device in Tower 1, where police are investigating a suspicious death. Tower 1 remains evacuated, and Parking Garage G is closed. Counselors are available in the Recreation and Wellness Center annex to talk with students who need assistance. Students also can go to the Student Union. The UCF Arena will open at 7 to accommodate students evacuated from Tower 1. Counseling services will move into the Arena at that time…
Police evacuate students from UCF campus housing
Orlando Sentinel
University of Central Florida students were evacuated early this morning because of a “suspicious death” at a housing site on campus…
Greek life reinstatement plan created
Central Florida Future
Within the next two weeks, UCF Greek life organizations will present plans to UCF staff at fact-finding meetings to begin their reinstatement processes. Presentations to the Greek Reinstatement Committee will begin Friday and resume from March 25 to March 28, according to an updated timeline on the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life’s website.
Car crashes into UF dorm
Gainesville Sun
A car crashed into the side of a University of Florida residence hall Friday afternoon, but no one in the dorm was injured, officials said. Officials would not identify the driver, nor would they give the driver’s condition or explain how the accident occurred. Officials did say that the female driver was taken to Shands at the University of Florida…
Student Veterans Center opening at UF on April 2
Gainesville Sun
…A grand opening ceremony will take place on April 1 at 1:30 p.m. in the Reitz Union Amphitheatre. The grand opening, open to the public, will feature a presentation for veterans and a performance by members of the UF marching band…
Special Section: Med School Match Day Coverage from Around the State
FIU’s first graduating medical school students all get residencies
Miami Herald
Almost 30 years ago, Trine Engebretsen made history — and national headlines — as Florida’s first liver-transplant recipient. On Friday, Engebretsen added to her pioneering life story as she joined 32 other Florida International University students in the school’s first graduating medical school class.
FSU med students meet their match
Tallahassee Democrat
Sarah Genet celebrates as Florida State held its annual Match Day for FSU fourth-year medical school students as they learned where they will go this summer as new doctors to begin a residency…
Potential energy in the air at UCF College of Medicine Match Day
Orlando Business Journal
There’s a feel of potential energy in the air — the potential for screaming and crying of the joyous kind. I’m at theUniversity of Central Florida College of Medicine for the charter class’ first Match Day.
UCF medical school’s students celebrate Match Day
Orlando Sentinel
In a ceremony that took place in the center of the University of Central Florida’s Health Sciences campus in Lake Nona, parents, donors, faculty and students all gathered for the news. Related; UCFmedical school’s students celebrate Match Day…
Tears, shouts erupt on ‘match day’ as UF medical students move into careers
Gainesville Sun
…all 127 students in the graduating class got matched — many with their first choices. They will go to hospitals throughout the country, with 25 students staying at UF and 38 in Florida…
USF medical students find out future at Match Day
TBO.com
More than 100 senior medical students from the University of South Florida learned their fates Friday at a “Match Day” ceremony at Skipper’s Smokehouse.
State College System
The Florida College System (FCS) Council of Presidents holds a press conference today to release the findings of a new report that they say demonstrates the multibillion-dollar positive economic impact of state and community colleges in Florida. The FCS Council also releases data on college graduates who have successfully transitioned into Florida’s workforce. Participants include the council’s chairman, Joe Pickens, and Rep. Marti Coley, R-Marianna, Education board member John Padget, Colleges Chancellor Randy Hanna and others. (Monday, 1 p.m., Fourth Floor Rotunda, The Capitol.)
Pensacola State to host state SkillsUSA competition
Pensacola News Journal
Pensacola State College will host the 2013 Florida SkillsUSA state competition and Worlds of Possibilities Career Expo next month.
Santa Fe teems with activity for India Fest
Gainesville Sun
India Fest has been held by the cultural center since 1999, each year sharing the diversity and variety of Indian culture. The festival offered food, drink, jewelry, clothing and even karaoke…
Independent Colleges and Universities
Good News: New Community Garden built in New Town
Florida Times-Union
Officials from Edward Waters College, representatives of Second Harvest North Florida and more than 80 volunteers took a vacant lot and laid the foundations, dug the plots, connected irrigation systems and planted the first round of seeds.
Florida Tech facility designed to test, inspire
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
The complex features five courses designed to test cadets’ physical fitness, as well as their ability to work together in teams…
Cuba trip’s cancellation disappoints Saint Leo students
Tbo.com
It was supposed to be a combination of service and exploration, a “once in a lifetime” alternative spring break experience that would lead eight students and four adults through urban and rural Cuba…
Yip Yap: Noted and Quoted FLHE Voices from Around the State
Editorial: New president key to Florida A&M University’s chance at a brighter future
Sun-Sentinel
His words are measured, but interim president Larry Robinson has an encouraging message about the future of Florida A&M University. It’s an approach the college’s next president must sustain if the historic institution hopes to restore its reputation as a quality school…
Miami Dade College needs local tax to remain ‘dream factory’
MiamiHerald.com
Opportunity is the bedrock of our nation. And, nothing better exemplifies that opportunity than the prospect of a college education. In our community, Miami-Dade College provides that opportunity to almost two-thirds of our high school graduates each year…Norman Braman is a businessman and civic activist. Bob Martinez is a lawyer and former vice chair of the Florida Board of Education and served as chair of the Board of Trustees for Miami-Dade College from 1999 – 2005.
FAMU Professor receieves patent to combat MRSA “Superbug”
WTXL ABC 27
A Florida A&M University Professor is making strides towards eradicating a staph infection that’s been dubbed a “super bug.” Professor Seth Y. Ablordeppey has received a patent to develop an inexpensive compound that combats Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), which is a staph infection that is resistant to common antibiotics. He is developing drug compounds using plants he found in Ghana, West Africa. He found antibacterial activity in the plants that heals wounds. He is looking at their extracts to see if one will kill MRSA.
Funeral today in St. Petersburg for FAU student shot to death by Boca Raton police
Palm Beach Post
There will be a funeral at 2 p.m. today for Adam Donohue, the Florida Atlantic University student and rugby player shot to death by Boca Raton police March 8, at First Baptist Church in St. Petersburg…
Former FAU student pleads guilty to $10 million Ponzi scheme
Sun-Sentinel
Former Florida Atlantic University student Donald R. French Jr. transformed himself from suburban Detroit kid to international jet-setter with an acting credit in an Italian movie. His free-spending journey took him to 30 countries in just four years, but brought him Friday to a federal courtroom in West Palm Beach, where he admitted his glamorous life had been financed by fraud.
Moving up: Dr. Matthias Haury
Palm Beach Post
Haury is the new Chief Operating Officer at the Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience (www.maxplanckflorida.org), where he is responsible for the scientific infrastructure and operations at the 10,000-square-foot biomedical building. He is busy establishing and managing the institute’s laboratories and scientific services and working on the budget…Stationed at Florida Atlantic University’s MacArthur Campus, the institute opened in December and has 90 employees and nine distinct groups investigating the many remaining mysteries of the brain.
Exhibit spans 40 years of artist’s photos
Tbo.com
Gallery 221 on the Dale Mabry Campus of Hillsborough Community College will present an exhibit of about 35 photographs by Tampa artist Suzanne Camp Crosby. The show begins Thursday and runs through May 2.
Roundup of political club news from Manatee County
Bradenton Herald
Southeast Manatee County Democratic Club luncheon is set for 11:30 a.m. March 21 at Peridia Golf and Country Club, 4950 Peridia Blvd. The featured speaker will be Richard Coe, professor of economics at New College of Florida. His topic will be “The US Budget, Taxes, and Expenditures.”…
Author, NY restaurateur Eddie Huang will speak at Rollins College
Orlando Sentinel
Huang, 31, doesn’t mind the comparison to the intrepid author, chef and TV host. But it’s clear that Huang, who is the proprietor of Baohaus restaurant in New York City, has his own authentic edge when it comes to food and traditions.
Choice of new pope has opened dialogue at St. Leo University
Northwest News and Tribune
The selection of former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires to be the next Pope was an exciting time for Saint Leo University students and faculty, said Randall Woodard, associate professor of theology…”It’s great stuff for the classroom and it’s a great time for Catholics,” Woodard said.
Democracy is ‘compromise,’ former governor tells Stetson ’senators’
Daytona Beach News-Journal
Stetson political science professor T. Wayne Bailey, founder of Stetson‘s Model Senate, said Graham is “very committed to promoting leadership and public service among our young people, which are central values to Stetson University.”
‘Giant’ Mosquitoes Set to Invade Florida This Summer
TIME
As if residents of the Sunshine State didn’t have enough to worry about, they should now be preparing themselves for a possible statewide infestation of supermosquitoes, according to University of Florida entomologists…Entomologists expect that a large crop of these mosquitoes could hatch this summer, given enough rainfall. “I wouldn’t be surprised, given the numbers we saw last year” when Tropical Storm Debbie inundated the area, said Phil Kaufman, an entomologist at the University.
USF professor next in Venice historical society’s Civil War series
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
A history professor from the University of South Florida is the next speaker in the Venice Area Historical Society’s series about the Civil War. John M. Belohlavek will discuss the causes of the war at 7 p.m., March 26, at Village on the Isle …
Dr. Kyle Marrero is the finalist for the presidency of the University of West …
Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog)
[Kyle] Marrero is currently vice president for University Advancement at the University of West Florida, Pensacola, a position he has held since August 2009.
Releases and Web Stories
Flagler College to host lecture on Andean mummies and archaeology of the Incas
ReadMedia (press release)
AUGUSTINE, FL (03/15/2013)(readMedia)– Dr. Constanza Ceruti, the only female Andean high altitude archaeologist in the world, will give a lecture at Flagler College on “Andean Mummies, Sacred Mountains and the Archaeology of the Incas…
Law Students honored at National Convention
Stetson University Today
Stetson University College of Law’s Black Law Students Association was honored with the National Most Improved Chapter Award during the 45th annual National Black Law Students Convention in Atlanta, Ga., March 6-10. Out of more than 200 chapters in BLSA, Stetson’s BLSA was the only chapter to receive the coveted award.
Hundreds hear successes of UF startup companies
University of Florida
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — How far can a technology startup go with the help of angel investors? Pretty far. The University of Florida’s seventh annual innovation showcase on Thursday featured 14 UF startup technology companies and a panel discussion with three successful startup entrepreneurs whose companies each were bought for more than $100 million…
UF Historic St. Augustine welcomes new historic attraction
University of Florida
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — After two years of historical triage in St. Augustine, the University of Florida will take part this weekend in the opening of a new tourist attraction based on the city’s history. Colonial Quarter, a public-private enterprise, will open on a two-acre parcel between the east side of St. George Street and the city’s iconic fort, Castillo de San Marcos, said Linda Dixon, associate director of Facilities, Planning and Construction, which oversees UF Historic St. Augustine.
ImpactObesity: University of Miami to Host Hacking Competition to Find Innovative Solutions in Fight Against Obesity
PR.com (press release)
The University of Miami Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and Lift1428, a Miami-based innovation, design, and strategy firm devoted to the healthcare industry, will stage Impact Obesity, a hack-a-thon competition aimed at tackling the issues of obesity, starting at 8 a.m., March 23, and continuing on March 24, at UM’s Life Science & Technology Park…
Valencia College Theater to Stage ‘Eros in Veracruz,’ Winner of Playwright Competition
Valencia College News
The Valencia College Theater will present the first staging of playwright Jack McGrath’s original play, “Eros in Veracruz.” Show times are April 3-6 at 7:30 p.m. There will be a matinee performance on Sunday, April 7, at 2 p.m. The April 5 performance will be followed by a question-and-answer session with the playwright and the actors.
Valencia Uses Simulators To Train Cardiovascular Tech Students
Valencia College News
How do you teach students to insert stents and balloons into arteries, so they’re ready to work on real patients when they graduate? At Valencia College, students in the college’s Cardiovascular Technology (CVT) program learn by using training simulators that deliver a virtual-reality experience. Valencia’s CVT program educates and prepares students to become Invasive Cardiovascular Specialists known as a Cardiovascular Technologists (CVT).
