As a public relations major, I receive a lot of questions when I talk about my time as president of the UF chapter of the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), an engineering society that designs and builds a small, Formula-style race car and competes in an international competition.
One of my favorite professors once told me that college isn’t just about learning the material of your respective occupation or future career; it’s about learning how to navigate through the everyday things life throws at you, like time management, self-discipline and managing your ambitions such that they actually become realized. His words, compounded by me recently taking “What is the Good Life” — which, let’s be real, isn’t that terrible and could actually be great with a few major refinements — have had me thinking a lot about how I’ve spent my time in college, and how I ought to be spending it moving forward.
Let me tell you about journalism.
There’s a lot that makes up a “college experience.”
I always take a deep breath when people ask why I do what I do. It’s a long story.
It took me three and a half years to build up the courage to step foot in the Alligator’s old, sometimes smelly, but overall homey newsroom.
Well, we’ve come full circle.
Saying goodbye isn’t necessarily always hard.
In 2013, 47 percent of high school students reported having sexual intercourse. Furthermore, nearly one in two 12th grade students reported having had intercourse in the last three months. You and I both know that high school students have sex. Why, then, did the superintendent of Alachua County Public Schools, Dr. Owen Roberts, take a major step back for the sexual health of local youth and ban the distribution of condoms on campuses of public high schools?
Last year, I came home from class to find my roommate and a few of my friends glued to a laptop. “This fight comp is crazy; come see this,” my roommate said. I sat down and watched a series of brutal videos of people fighting. Some were alcohol-fueled altercations outside bars, others were neighborhood events with dozens of local spectators.
Well, this is it.
A boat laden with up to 950 people capsized in the Mediterranean Sea on Sunday. Its passengers were migrants bound for Europe escaping the limited opportunities, war and chaos of their home countries. The ship left from Libya, a failed state which has descended into civil war, where ISIS executes people on the beach. Who can blame them for wanting to leave?
Denisha Merriweather recently wrote about her schooling experience in The Wall Street Journal. She was in fourth grade, and she hated school. She was held back twice, disliked going to school and thought she would end up as a high school dropout. She grew up with her biological mother but moved around a lot, which took a heavy toll on her grades and enthusiasm for learning. In her own words, “learning had become a nightmare — a punishment for being a child.” Denisha’s story is not a unique one. Unfortunately, there are kids in all 50 states who resent education. Some of these negative frameworks are out of the government’s control, but I would argue most of it is due to an educational system stuck in the 20th century and bogged down by bureaucracy. We all know education reform is desperately needed, but no one, especially our elected officials, is ever willing to confront the problem.
When even Elmo supports vaccination, it’s hard to believe there are people out there who are so vehemently against it. Since “Sesame Street” is a show that strives to remain inclusive and neutral, something would have to have a pretty strong scientific consensus in order for Elmo to outright endorse it.
It’s finally here — the last real Friday of the semester. Your last Friday to skip classes before you head off to a beach somewhere, to more classrooms for Summer C, or even worse — to the real world.
The effects of war are undoubtedly tragic. Loss of life, regardless of any affiliating identity, is always devastating. Mothers weep for their sons; sons weep for their mothers. Fathers fear for their daughters; daughters fear for their fathers. We all cry the same tears. We all bleed the same blood. My flesh is his flesh, and his mine. I feel profound empathy for the pain people feel, for the grief the Israeli-Palestinian conflict causes on a daily basis, to both Israelis and Palestinians.
Apple released its newest operating system, iOS 8.3, last Wednesday. Among plenty of updates, Siri is now capable of calling someone on speakerphone, and Braille Screen Input users can fill out forms on Web pages. The most obvious update, however, is Apple’s introduction of more than 300 inclusive emojis.
Last Thursday, The New York Times published an article about Orthodox Jewish men refusing to sit next to women they are not related to when boarding planes. This raises the question: At what point does one person’s religious freedom end and another’s basic rights begin?
As California scrambles to conserve water during a historic drought, one multinational company is continuing to take huge gulps of the state’s water for profit. Nestle Waters North America, a subsidiary of food and beverage company Nestle, has been tapping California’s groundwater to sell in plastic bottles for its Arrowhead and Pure Life brands.
Tax Day is upon us, providing us another example of how overbearing and complicated our government truly is. April 15 is the deadline every year when every citizen must hesitantly file his or her taxes or face the wrath of the uncontrollable Internal Revenue Service. The tax code has become quite a monstrosity over the past few decades. It is riddled with all kinds of loopholes and deductions for corporations and wealthy people to take advantage of, leaving the middle class stuck with the bill.
Solutions by The State News
