The change is part of an overall commitment to expanded national and local news and public affairs coverage to better serve the needs and interests of the North Central Florida area. It will also allow the college to better meet its educational mission by providing improved digital and multimedia training to its students, aligning it with current trends in journalism education.

At the same time, WUFT-FM will boost total time allotted to classical music by featuring it 24 hours a day on its high-definition HD2 signal and by streaming it on its Web site.

“The Internet and digital communications revolution have significantly increased the need for dissemination of high quality news and public affairs programming,” said John Wright, dean of the college. “I made this programming decision after several months of research and data analysis and conversations with management in other public stations, our faculty, station personnel and other media professionals across the nation.

“I am convinced this combination of service will allow WUFT-FM to better serve the public interest of the Gainesville and Ocala communities. Expanded news and public affairs offerings also will better serve the educational mission of the college and align the station more fully with our emerging Center for Media Innovation and Research, which is a digital training ground for our students. I believe that WUFT-FM should be a beacon of national and local news and information for our community in the same manner that our college is a national leader in journalism and digital communications education and research.”

New NPR programs that will now be aired on WUFT-FM include “The Diane Rehm Show,” “Tell Me More,” “On Point” and “Talk of the Nation.” Local news expansion will include the award-winning “Front Page on the Air,” which will migrate from WRUF-AM and air at 4 p.m. Monday-Friday.

Other changes will include a significant expansion of local news coverage on weekends and during major news events and emergencies.

WUFT-FM also will work closely with the board of Classic 89 and form a community classical music advisory committee to provide greater listener input into programming and to gain better community perspective.

“I am sensitive to the cultural impact WUFT-FM and its programming has in this community and this solution expands that opportunity,” Wright said.

This change of programming mix at WUFT-FM is part of the overall plan Wright announced recently with the formation of the college’s Division of Multimedia Properties.

The inaugural Gator Charity Challenge, hosted in July of 2008, drew approximately 1,800 fans from The Gator Nation who watched the intra-squad strength competition. The Florida players competed in six events, all held simultaneously.

Similarly, this year the squad will be divided into teams that will represent six charities: American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, Children’s Miracle Network, March of Dimes, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the North Florida Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

“It was great for the team to come together at last year’s Gator Charity Challenge and show hard work and commitment, both on the field with their teammates and supporting our six charities,” said Mickey Marotti, director of strength and conditioning at UF. “We are really looking forward to our second year of the GCC and making it another successful event. Our main mission is to create awareness for the six charities we’ve chosen to represent. We want to get Gator fans to come out and not only support the Gators, but support some really great causes.”

Pledge cards will be available on the West Concourse of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium for fans to have an opportunity to donate to this year’s six worthy causes. Cash and checks will not be accepted on site, only pledge form donations.

The Gator Charity Challenge is being held in association with Uplifting Athletes, a charitable organization leading an effort to align college football with the awareness of rare diseases and raise them as a national priority.

2009 Team Captains
1. American Cancer Society – Joey Sorrentino (Ocala, Fla.)
2. American Heart Association – Jermaine Cunningham (Stone Mountain, Ga.)
3. Children’s Miracle Network – Dorian Munroe (Miami, Fla.)
4. March of Dimes – David Nelson (Wichita Falls, Texas)
5. Cystic Fibrosis Foundation – Cade Holliday (Gainesville, Fla.)
6. Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation – Dustin Doe (Jasper, Fla.)

UF is among just 10 universities worldwide chosen to share $7.6 million in seed money for the creation of master’s in development practice programs over the next three years. The programs are designed to provide students with training beyond the typical classroom study of economics and management found in most development studies programs.

“This grant gives the University of Florida tremendous opportunities in two fields in which we already excel: international studies and sustainability,” said UF President Bernie Machen. “These are exactly the types of challenges we like to see our university take on, and we welcome the chance to expand our leadership role in sustainability to the global stage.”

The program’s core curriculum bridges the natural sciences, health sciences, social sciences and management. It combines classroom study with field experiences in agriculture, policy, health, engineering, management, environmental science, education and nutrition.

“The impact of this program will be in terms of the kind of graduates that are produced, people with the interdisciplinary training and skills to tackle real world problems,” said Carmen Diana Deere, director of the Center for Latin American Studies, which will administer the program in collaboration with the Center for African Studies.

UF’s program will build on the university’s expertise in conservation and sustainable development, especially in Latin America, she said. There will be collaborative summer field programs with the University of Botswana and the Autonomous University of the Yucatan.

The new program will draw on the internationally recognized Tropical Conservation and Development program run by the Center for Latin American Studies during the past 20 years, Deere said. The program has perfected an applied and interdisciplinary approach to training students in sustainable development practices. Originally focused on the Amazon region, the focus has expanded to other tropical regions of Latin America as well as Africa.

Deere believes the program’s strength and the collaboration between the two centers and faculty from so many colleges were factors in winning the MacArthur grant. The UF Steering Committee includes representatives from the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, the College of Public Health & Health Professions, the College of Veterinary Medicine, the College of Design, Construction & Planning, the Warrington College of Business Administration and the Levin College of Law.

The MacArthur Foundation’s seed grant will be supplemented with funding from various units in the university for a total of about $1.8 million over four years. The funding will pay for two new faculty positions, one in health and development and the other in development administration, as well as a program coordinator.

Other universities in India, Australia, Ireland, China, Senegal, Botswana and Nigeria as well as Emory University are involved in the program. The global network of master’s programs will be coordinated by a secretariat based at the Earth Institute at Columbia University.

“Through our work around the globe, we at MacArthur understand that poverty, population, health, conservation and human rights are all interconnected, requiring sustained and comprehensive interventions,” said foundation President Jonathan Fanton. “These new programs are a model for training the next generation of these critically needed professionals.”

The universities are expected to produce 250 graduates by 2012, with a total of 750 students enrolled. More than 70 universities in North America, Africa, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America submitted proposals.

Deep budget cuts passed by the Florida Legislature have resulted in reduced funding for public broadcasting stations WUFT-TV, Channel 5, WUFT-DT, Digital 5, WUFT-FM, Classic 89 and WJUF-FM, Nature Coast 90 and the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications.

The priority of the stations is to maintain the public television and radio programming that serves residents throughout North Central and Mid-Florida. Thus, services and activities that do not directly impact programming will need to be reduced.

In the past, local businesses and organizations have contributed significantly to help support the campus-area event. Even with this corporate support, the stations have always provided much of the funding from their operating budgets. The downturn in the economy has made it difficult to secure corporate grants, and WUFT must use available funds for programming and services.

Fanfares & Fireworks has been a popular family celebration for many years, and hopefully will return in the future.

For more information contact:

Larry Dankner 352-392-0771, ext. 2101 or

Brent Williams 352-392-5551, ext. 1109

“My goal is to bring to life the vision for sustainability that we crafted with our campus community,” said Prizzia. “We have all the talent, expertise and dedication we need to make UF a model of sustainability in higher education. My job is to help connect the dots.”

Prizzia has a bachelor’s degree in marine biology from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, and a master’s of science degree in wildlife ecology and conservation with a concentration in tropical conservation and development from UF. She has experience in natural resources management, volunteer coordination, and facilitation in the areas of education and the environment.

Prizzia has been outreach coordinator for the office since June 2007. Previously, she worked with the St. John’s River Water Management District, Alachua County Environmental Protection and the City of Gainesville to craft water education campaigns and coordinate a joint Watershed Action Volunteer program. Prizzia also was an environmental consultant and a Peace Corps volunteer in Vanuatu, an island nation in the South Pacific Ocean. Anna also serves on the boards of Sustainable Alachua County, Sustainable Florida and Slow Food Gainesville.

“Our primary job is to support all the hard work that is already going on across campus,” Prizzia said, “and to help connect our faculty, staff and students to the resources they need to successfully incorporate sustainability into their work and lives.”

Following in the footsteps of her predecessor, Dedee Delongpre-Johnston, Prizzia hopes to create programs that balance the environmental and social aspects of sustainability while remaining fiscally responsible.

“Dedee will be sorely missed, but the foundation she laid for the office is strong, and will help guide us moving forward,” Poppell said. “We are fortunate to have someone of Anna’s caliber in place to continue UF’s efforts and help us develop new ones. She has the know-how and the drive to keep UF as a university leader in sustainability.”

Programs and initiatives in the past few years include:

• The “Green Team Network,” an effort to involve members of the campus community at all levels in achieving a more sustainable university. The Office of Sustainability works directly with Green Teams to develop strategies for sustainability that are a good fit for their colleges, departments, or organizations.
• The “One Less Car” challenge to encourage members of the UF community to try one of the many options for travel other than a single-occupancy vehicle.
• “Zero Waste by 2015,” a comprehensive waste composition study aimed at helping UF maximize its reduction, recycling and reuse efforts.
• “Carbon Neutral by 2025,” a plan to capture as much efficiency as possible by working with units on campus to reduce energy use.

The office has also coordinated the Strategic Implementation Plans for the UF Vision for Sustainability, a comprehensive vision for sustainability at UF was created through a collaborative process with members of faculty, staff, students and administration over the past two years. The office is now crafting action plans for the next three years that will move UF closer to these visions and goals.

Speakers will include President Bernie Machen, as well as Ed Poppell, vice president for business affairs, Scherwin Henry, District 1 commissioner/mayor pro tem and Rodney Long, Alachua County Commissioner. Following the on-site ceremony, refreshments will be served in the Community Room, which is located in an existing Eastside Campus building.

Scheduled for completion in April 2010, the building will serve more than 300 employees and will be named at a later date. Originally planned as a four-story, 65,000-square-foot structure, market conditions allowed for an increase to 82,000-square-feet, with no increase in construction costs. The completed structure will be three stories tall and gold-certified according to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System.

The building will expand the university presence in east Gainesville and assist with economic revitalization efforts in that area. More information (previous news release) on the new Eastside Campus building is available at http://news.ufl.edu/2008/02/06/eastside-offices/.

The award is given annually to a botanist and scholar of international stature who has made significant contributions to the field of tropical botany. Williams, who is author or co-author on nearly 100 academic papers, received the medal March 28.

His two main areas of research are floral chemistry, which involves identifying floral fragrances that attract orchid pollinators, and molecular phylogenetics, which involves the study of evolutionary relationships among neotropical orchids. Williams did most of his field work in Panama and Ecuador and has studied orchids in the wild from Mexico to Bolivia.

Florida Museum director Douglas Jones said Williams’ colleagues and friends are thrilled he won the award. “Norris is truly a world-class scholar and we are fortunate to have him as keeper of the herbarium at the Florida Museum,” he said.

Orchids are the largest family of flowering plants, comprising about 25,000 to 30,000 species. The orchid family has more species than mammal, bird, reptile and amphibian species combined, Williams said. “It’s a really nice big group of plants with a diverse set of pollination mechanisms and floral morphologies.”

Williams’ work on floral fragrances focuses on male bees that actively collect orchid fragrances for use in mating behavior. Different bee species pollinate different orchid species, and his early work set out to determine how these floral fragrances attracted specific bees.

“We knew they were collecting fragrances, but we couldn’t identify a lot of the floral fragrance compounds,” said Williams, who used gas chromatography and mass spectrometry in the identification process.

Floral fragrances can have from one or two organic compounds to as many as 60. Williams and his colleagues found that any given fragrance had two or three compounds that attracted certain bees and other compounds that repelled other groups of bees.

Williams helped develop methods for collecting, isolating and identifying those compounds. Some of the compounds were then tested in the field. “We showed that some compounds that were attractants to some bees were repellants to other bees,” he said. “So a plant might be able to selectively attract one species of pollinators out of the whole range of potential pollinators. It leads to reproductive isolation among closely related species that are growing in the same general area.”

Williams’ other primary research involves classifying groups of neotropical orchids based on DNA sequences. He started working on molecular systematics in 1995 and has since used gene technology to clarify evolutionary relationships that previously were unknown or tenuously suggested.

“It’s given us some real ideas on relationships in terms of numbers of groups of orchids,” Williams said. “But it’s upsetting to horticulturalists who are always complaining that we’re changing the names.”

Williams received his Ph.D. from the University of Miami in 1971. After post-doctoral positions at the National Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian Institution, he taught at Florida State University until 1981, when he joined the University of Florida. He holds a joint appointment with the Florida Museum and the botany department.

The new Web site allows users to manage office supplies and equipment, browse available items and save money while furthering sustainability on campus. To browse the list of available items or add items to a department’s list, visit the Web site at https://myassets.fa.ufl.edu/os/.

To learn more about UF’s conservation efforts, contribute ideas or join the UF Green Team Network, visit http://www.sustainable.ufl.edu/greenteam/. Communicate with other interested faculty and staff at http://groups.google.com/group/uf-green-team to help implement sustainability across campus.

The highly selective NIH MERIT Award (Method to Extend Research in Time) recognizes researchers who have demonstrated superior competence and outstanding productivity in research endeavor and provides long-term support to investigators with impressive records of scientific achievement in research areas of special importance or promise.

In January Lamont initially received a five-year, $2.4 million grant for his study, “P. Gingivalis Interactions with Gingival Epithelial Cells,” which investigates the molecular dialog between oral bacteria and host cells and has yielded groundbreaking insights into the bacterial lifestyle within humans. Study of the subgingival epithelial interface, the work for which he received the MERIT award, has fundamentally changed the appreciation of the role of bacteria in maintaining oral health and contributing to oral disease.

In May Lamont was notified that the original award had been named a MERIT Award, which essentially upgrades his grant from a five-year to a ten-year term, and guarantees additional funding during the second five-year phase of the study.

With only 5 percent of all NIH-funded investigators receiving a MERIT Award since its inception in 1987, the percentage of dental research investigators who have received MERIT Awards is very low. In fact, the only other UF College of Dentistry researcher who has received one was Kenneth Anusavice, D.M.D., Ph.D., associate dean for research and a professor and chairman of the Department of Dental Biomaterials, in 1994.

Lamont joined the college in 2002, having been at the University of Washington in Seattle since 1989 where he was a professor.

“I relocated to UF because the College of Dentistry provides one of the strongest environments in the country for oral microbiological research, and the Oral Biology Department has been immensely supportive of my program,” Lamont said.

In 1982 Lamont earned his undergraduate degree with honors in Biological Sciences from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. He went on to receive his Ph.D. Bacteriology from the University of Aberdeen in Ireland in 1985. From there he came to the United States where he was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

More on the MERIT Award
Initiated in 1987, the MERIT Award program extends funding to experienced researchers who have superior grants and who have demonstrated a long-term commitment to and success in research. The principal feature of the program is the opportunity for such investigators to gain up to ten years of grant support. The MERIT Awards are intended to provide such investigators with long-term, stable support to foster their continued creativity and spare them some of the administrative burdens associated with frequent preparation and submission of research grant applications.

Seda Muradyan, director for the Armenian branch of the Institute of War and Peace Reporting, has seen the emergence of new media in her country. For instance, A1+, which operated solely as a TV company before its seven-year ban, recently launched a mobile-phone news operation. Muradyan applied for the Study of the United States Institute on Journalism and Media to acquire new skills as a journalist and media educator.

“I also hope to gain strong personal and professional ties,” she said, “which will contribute to the implementation of different workshops and training programs for Armenian journalists.”

Muradyan joins 17 participants from Nepal, Libya, Cameroon and other countries for the institute’s third consecutive year at UF’s College of Journalism and Communications. The theme again this summer is “New Freedoms in Media: Teaching the Digital Journalism of Tomorrow.” The State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs awarded the college $290,000 to run the institute, a $10,000 increase from last year. Feedback from last year’s participants helped to improve the program. Participants said they enjoyed working with online tools, particularly social network sites.

Through the institute, professors and professionals will teach participants a variety of skills, such as creating blogs and podcasts and using Photoshop. They’ll also educate the participants about freedom of the press in the United States.

“Institute leaders strive to deepen the participants’ understanding of the critical role of journalism and media in the United States and challenge participants to think about how media can make positive contributions in the context of their countries and cultures,” said the program’s academic director, Sylvia Chan-Olmsted, the college’s associate dean for research and a telecommunication professor.

The institute also offers a two-week study tour of newsrooms in Miami, Washington, D.C., and New York City. There, they’ll study “minority journalism challenges and opportunities with journalists in converged newsrooms, as well as visiting the Federal Communications Commission, Bloomberg and The New York Times,” Chan-Olmsted said.

The Study of the U.S. Institutes (SUSI) for Student Leaders are designed by the Study of the U.S. Branch in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) to promote a better understanding of the U.S. abroad and to help develop future world leaders. Institute participants are among the more than 40,000 academic and professional exchange program participants overseen annually by ECA. Other ECA programs include the Fulbright Program and the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program. For more information about ECA programs, visit http://exchanges.state.gov/.

• July 14, 2-3 p.m.
• July 16, 1-2 p.m.
• July 21, 10-11 a.m.
• July 23, 12:30-1:30 p.m.
• July 28, 10-11 a.m.
• July 30, 3-4 p.m.

For more information, contact Missy Shoop at shoop@ufl.edu.

Warwick and Deohgare were selected based on their contributions to promoting diversity and multiculturalism within University of Florida residence facilities.

Warwick, Jennings Hall resident assistant, received the award in recognition of the quality and quantity of diversity programming she presented. Deoghare, president of the Graduate and Family Housing Mayors Council, received the award in recognition of his efforts to positively impact village residents through cultural awareness programming designed to ease the transition to UF.

The UF department of Housing and Residence Education Multicultural Student Award recognizes student leaders from diverse cultural backgrounds, including, but not limited to, international, African-American, Hispanic, Native-American and Asian-American residents. Nominees for the award may be undergraduates, graduates, or professional students living in residence facilities.

Award recipients must actively support and promote diversity and multiculturalism, provide quality programs to residents and significantly contribute to the campus community.

The Florida Governor’s Alliance for the Employment of Citizens with Disabilities (The Able Trust) will award UF the Business Mentor of the Year Award for its outstanding commitment to serving the community by providing mentoring and internships to Florida youth with disabilities.

Since 2002, mentors from 15 UF departments have worked with students with disabilities as part of Florida’s Disability Mentoring Day and the Florida High School/High Tech program. Florida’s Disability Mentoring Day is a one-day program in October when young people with disabilities shadow professors and other professionals to gain exposure to different careers and potential internships. The High School/High Tech program is a year-round program designed to reduce the dropout rate for students with disabilities, increase their enrollment in post-secondary education and improve employment opportunities.

UF has had a long history of working with these programs to benefit the Gainesville area, said Sally Ash, Florida High School/High Tech assistant program manager and Disability Mentoring Day coordinator.

“We just want to recognize them for all the service to their community,” she said.

Carl Crane, a professor in the UF mechanical and aerospace engineering department, has been the individual most involved with the mentoring programs, Ash said. In 2008, UF had four departments participate in the two programs, resulting in seven mentored students and two internships. Crane will attend the 2009 Ability Awards ceremony on Friday to accept the award on the university’s behalf.

Crane said the point of the program is not only to expose students to jobs they wouldn’t know about otherwise, but to contribute to the richness of people who will be involved with the university in the future.

“It’s a people business,” he said.

The Able Trust Ability Awards annually recognize individuals and organizations for outstanding contributions toward the employment of Florida citizens with disabilities. The awards ceremony will be held in Tallahassee at the Golden Eagle Golf and Country Club. Other recipients in the business community will include Lockheed Martin, Florida Public Radio and Volunteer Florida.

Information about volunteer or sponsorship opportunities with The Able Trust may be obtained at info@abletrust.org or 888-838-2253. For more information about its programs, visit www.abletrust.org.

The award recognized Swinson for outstanding leadership and management excellence in the fields of engineering and information technology for national security applications. He was nominated for the award by current university faculty.

The award was presented by Professor S. “Bala” Balachandar, chairman of the department of mechanical and aerospace, at a spring awards ceremony. Awards are presented in several categories each year.

Swinson earned his Ph.D. from the UF, a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a Master of Science degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Wisconsin (Madison).