Monday, April 3, 2023

MONDAY, APRIL 3, 2023

4Most Gallery fields smashed windows, pressure from UF

FLORIDA PRISONER SOLIDARITY CONTRIBUTED ARTWORK

Broken glass littered the sidewalk outside 4Most Gallery March 27 after someone threw rocks through the window. Inside, a painting of a blazing jailhouse set against a natural scene showcased the exhibition’s goal: a society without prisons.

Kayla Burnett has a one year fellowship with UF teaching art students, curating exhibitions, using studio space as the 4Most artist-in-residence. The attacks felt personal, they said.

“Students should be allowed to speak on whatever beliefs that they have,” Burnett said.

About 100 people gathered at the 4Most Gallery to condemn the vandalization of the gallery’s exhibit “Burn It Down: Communications of Resistance” Wednesday, March 29, 2023. “F-CK OFF FASCISTS” was spray-painted on the wall prior to the event.

Changes to House Bill 999, explained

Women’s studies might be safe

The newest version of House Bill 999 may elicit a sigh of relief from UF’s department of gender, sexuality and women’s studies. Under the March 15 version, UF’s women’s studies major and minor seems to no longer be at risk of elimination, Provost Joe Glover said at a Faculty Senate meeting March 23.

The Florida Legislature has made significant edits to the sweeping higher education reform bill between its original filing Feb.

21 and its most recent update March 15 — notably concerning majors and minors that will be removed if the bill becomes law.

The UF Foundation, the fundraising and gift management arm of UF, contracted lobbyists on HB 999 and its counterpart, Senate Bill 266, according to state lobbying records.

UF spokesperson Steve Orlando didn’t specify the nature of the lobbying but said the lobbyists are working in the best interest of the university.

While the original bill

SEE HB 999, PAGE 4

Florida Prisoner Solidarity announced on Instagram March 28 the windows had been smashed. The vandalism came about two weeks after UF took down banners that hung on the outside of 4Most Gallery as

part of the exhibit. The banners were bed sheets painted with “ALACHUA JAIL HAS BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS,” “ABOLISH GPD” and “ABOLISH PRISONS.”

The 4Most Gallery, located on Southwest 4th Avenue, operates as an off-campus UF space for the artist in residence — now Burnett — to curate art shows. Burnett has complete autonomy over the artists they choose to showcase. They also teach a class to 30 to 40 freshmen in the attached WARPhaus as a part of the fellowship.

The gallery housed an art exhibit called “Burn It Down: Communications of Resistance,” by Florida Prisoner Solidarity, a prison abolitionist group, March 10 to 29. The exhibit featured artwork by prisoners, letters from inmates detailing the conditions of Florida prisons and artwork by members of the organization.

Alex Greene, an organizer with Florida Prisoner Solidarity, said she believes rightwing activists are behind the vandalism.

“We have political messages that a lot

UF Housing ends 273 housing agreements for Honors Village

STUDENTS SCRAMBLING FOR ALTERNATIVE OPTIONS

The day after Mallory Tyler registered to live in the new Honors Village beginning Fall 2023, she rode her scooter to the UF housing office to confirm her spot was reserved.

The 19-year-old UF data science freshman was nervous

there was a processing issue when she submitted her housing agreement in the housing portal Nov. 3. Housing staff reassured her, and she rode back to her dorm.

Almost five months later, she received an email saying she no longer had a room.

“I had to take a few moments to process it more,” she said.

UF Housing sent an email out to 273 UF Honors students at 5:30 p.m. March 29 with

news that their reserved spot for residence in the Honors Village has been removed due to construction delays.

Tyler works as a desk assistant for the housing office and tried working out a plan that evening. The housing office closed 30 minutes before the email was sent out, which Tyler said caused her to spend the next night worrying about her future.

The next morning, other

SEE HONORS, PAGE 4

SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT

Story description finish with comma, pg#

Nina Rickards honors background during time with Gators Rickards remembers former mentors as she leads Florida’s team. Read more on pg. 11.

Gainesville celebrates Transgender Day of Visibility

Anti-trans legislation persists in Florida, United States,, pg. 6

UF hosts summit on Florida springs

Leaders discuss the best plan forward to save water bodies, pg. 7

FOLLOW US ONLINE FOR UPDATES

No need to panic: Tenders, other UF campus cats safe from eviction

Tenders the cat will not be removed from her home outside the Tolbert Area — despite worry and speculation that she would, UF confirmed to The Alligator Friday.

UF Facilities Services has no plan to remove Tenders or any other campus cats, UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldan said.

Panic ensued online after Tenders’ cardboard “home” and bowl, usually outside the entrance to a dorm building, went missing Wednesday.

Students circulated the information online through Instagram, Snapchat and Reddit. One Instagram commenter on Tenders’ unofficial Instagram

account, @gatorcats, wrote they hadn’t seen Tenders or her things for several days, and area desk staff told them she would be removed.

A Reddit post asking what had happened to Tenders’ bowl was followed by a comment saying they had too heard she’d be removed, though they heard third-hand.

By Thursday night, Gatorcats had planned a protest to prevent her eviction.

Roldan said UF did remove Tenders’ belongings from the area desk, but never planned to remove Tenders herself. Instead, they were concerned that a food bowl near the building entrance could attract unwanted pests, like raccoons or rats, she said.

Devon Limcangco, a 22-yearold electrical engineering junior, said she was upset by Tenders’

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possible removal, considering Tenders has lived near Tolbert for several years and is beloved by the student body.

“UF is her home,” she said “I don't think we really consider her a stray cat because we take pretty good care of her.”

Though the cats won’t be removed, feeding and harboring stray animals is prohibited as per Housing and Residence Life Community Standards, Hannah Farrell, a spokesperson for the Division of Student Life, pointed out via email.

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UF has no plans to remove campus cats as of March 31

Bills continue to change

prohibited degree programs related to critical race theory, gender studies and intersectionality, the newer version replaces that language by prohibiting critical theory outright.

Critical theory refers to examining social movements and systems of oppression, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Some banned critical theory programs include critical race studies, radical feminist theory and queer theory, according to the bill.

Glover referred to the change as an improvement during the March 23 Faculty Senate meeting — a statement followed by laughter in the chamber.

“I think we are making some progress here, and we'll continue to make progress,” he said.

Diversity, equity and inclusion programs at the university remain targeted by HB 999.

State or federal money granted to the university can’t be spent on programs that promote DEI or engage in social or political activism if the bill passes. Programs that show preferential treatment based on race, gender or other identifiers are also prohibited.

Diversity statements used in hiring or applications, including student admissions, are prohibited in the most recent version — whereas the original version only included faculty and staff applications.

While both versions of HB 999 allow a university’s Board of Trustees to review tenured professors’ performance at any time, the most recent specifies parameters and gives examples of reasons for the review, like negligence, insubordination and violation of the law.

Other changes since the bill’s filing assure that students receiving fee waivers will continue to receive them until graduation, regardless of whether their program was discontinued after enrollment. It also includes more specific guidelines for general education courses.

Though SB 266 contains similar provisions to HB 999, in its current form, it adds that UF will open the Hamilton

College to offer degree programs in the history of Western civilization and civics. Currently known as Hamilton Center, the college is part of a conservative push to teach classical American history.

As HB 999 and SB 266 make their way through committee,

Some students feel shorted

HONORS, from pg. 1

Honors students with the same thought as her had already lined up in the small room of the housing office. One student stood to the side, swearing at an employee as students worked to get the room assignments they wanted for Fall.

Tyler secured a single suite-style dorm in Cypress Hall for the Fall semester after working with a housing staff member for more than an hour. Housing staff did everything they could, she said.

“I understand why people are very upset, but some people were taking it a little bit too far by cursing at them,” Tyler said.

Tyler planned on living on campus during her entire college career.

Priority will be given to incoming freshmen for the 662 beds that will be available, though freshmen aren’t typically notified of their Fall housing assignments until July 7.

“UF determined that the best way to create community would be to group firstyear students in the same residence hall,” UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldan said.

Students have until May 1 to select a new housing option, which can be another residence hall, depending on current availability. Rental rates will be based on students’ new room assignments, and transfer fees will not be required.

Students can submit cancellation requests through their housing portal if they opt to live off campus. The $225 cancellation fee will be waived, though that remained unclear earlier in the week.

The Honors Village will be a traditional

and suite-style dorm complex at 1512 Museum Road. The residential complex will have study spaces and laundry rooms on each floor. There will be private music rooms, libraries, maker spaces and meditation spaces on the first floor.

Buildings two and four are still under construction and will not be completed for the Fall semester due to ongoing supply chain disruptions and weather, while buildings one and three will be done by the Fall, Roldan said in an email.

“In February, UF learned supply chain disruptions could potentially affect the project’s completion date,” Roldan said. “Once it became clear that the materials would not arrive within the project’s builtin delay window, the decision was made to inform those who would be affected.”

The project is still within the original cost estimate of $187 million, Roldan said, even with construction delays. The new facility will have a total of 1,407 beds available once completed. UF housing has yet to determine when all buildings will be ready for move-in. The construction delay is only applied to the Fall semester.

Sam Curtis, an 18-year-old UF biology freshman, decided to live on campus again once he learned about the Honors Village. Living in the Honors Village was one of the benefits of being in the Honors Program, which Curtis said he worked hard to get into.

He reserved a spot as soon as possible, then received his email and began looking into alternative options.

“I was like, ‘There's no way that they just did me and all the other people that signed up for this dirty like that,’” Curtis

there is a possibility that a final bill text will be passed to Gov. Ron DeSantis.

@AlissaGary1 agary@alligator.org

said. “They promised something that didn’t come through.”

Curtis found a friend who has a room available for him to live in next year in Sweetwater Apartments. Still, Curtis said off-campus apartments tend to be significantly more expensive than oncampus options.

“If they saw this coming, they totally could have given a warning when we registered,” he said. “They definitely could have given us priority to those because we were here first. We kind of deserve it.”

The Honors Village was advertised as new with nice amenities in a central location on campus, which was appealing to Curtis and his peers. The chance to live in a new facility was taken away without a warning, and students were left to pick from remaining on-campus options, Curtis said.

As of noon March 30, 135 students have already selected new living arrangements for Fall with UF Housing, Roldan said. UF Housing is offering a waitlist for students who choose to remain on campus and would prefer to live in the Honors Village if spaces become available in the Summer. A date is not yet confirmed for when students will learn about potential openings.

Paul Grau, a 19-year-old UF computer engineering freshman, planned on living in a single dorm during his sophomore year before living off campus his junior year. He currently lives in a double suite in Hume West and had secured a single room in the Honors Village.

“If they were just like upfront earlier … I would have considered other options,” Grau said. “I feel like that goes for a lot of other Honors students who signed up.”

Since receiving his email, he has heard no direct word from the Honors Program

or housing office about updates or plans to assist students in room reassignments.

“I don't think the Honors Program themselves is at fault,” he said. “I don't feel like they should be blamed for what happened. I feel like maybe everyone was being a little too optimistic.”

When Grau received his email, he immediately secured a dorm in Hume East for the Fall, but he’s looking into other options. Single room options are sparse in Hume Hall and often go to resident assistants, he said.

“I'm not really distraught about it,” he said. “I think it's just more so that it's annoying that this happened, and I wish I had more ability to make a choice about the matter.”

Marc Taylor, an 18-year-old UF medical engineer freshman, also reserved a room in Hume East after receiving his email.

“I had a list of where I'd rather live,” he said. “Honors Village was my No. 1 spot, but Hume was No. 2, and that seems to be pretty open for me.”

For Taylor, the appeal of the Honors Village was the ability to get to his classes easily without a car and feel close to the Honors community.

The Honors Program hosted an Honors Involvement Conference at the beginning of the Spring semester. The conference gave an overview of the new Honors Village. There was no mention of construction delays.

“I think everyone for the most part has found a backup,” Taylor said. “I don't know everyone's exact situation, but a lot of people were definitely frustrated with it, and they were kind of scrambling for a minute.”

@sophia_bailly sbailly@alligator.org

UF history professor appointed to national science board

SMOCOVITIS OPERATES IN CROSSHAIRS BETWEEN HISTORY, BIOLOGY

Vassiliki Betty Smocovitis — professor Betty, as she’s known by students — was in the middle of teaching a class when she received a call from the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

She recognized the organization from the Washington, D.C., area code — she was expecting the call.

“I thought they were calling to break the bad news to me,” she said.

But when she picked up, it was the CEO of the AAAS on the line, who personally wished her congratulations for winning a seat on the AAAS board of directors.

As one of the organization’s newest board members, Smocovitis will serve four years, traveling four times a year to various U.S. cities for meetings. Her work starts in April, when the board will meet in Washington, D.C.

Through her research, she has looked at both positive and negative facets of scientific history: while science explains human evolution, it also paved the way for eugenics, for example.

“There’s this really earnest attempt to own the past and to recognize that the sciences are a spectacular practice with this rich and marvelous history,” she said. “But it's also done harm.”

The largest multidisciplinary science society in the world, the AAAS, holds meetings for members from across scientific fields — including humanities, like history and philosophy — to advance the sciences as a whole. It also publishes “Science” magazine, a renowned academic journal, and other peer-reviewed news.

Earlier this year, colleagues nominated Smocovitis, a longtime AAAS member and officer, to run for the board. Although she’s been

an officer with the organization for more than 25 years, she was surprised to be nominated, she said, because she is, first and foremost, a historian.

Smocovitis lingers between UF’s departments of history and biology, teaching courses in both. Though she earned degrees in biology, she considers herself more a historian, she said.

Her specialty is a cross between the two: the history of science — specifically, evolutionary biology. Books on the human species line her office wall floor to ceiling, and she owns no shortage of Charles Darwin-themed memorabilia: a Darwin mini-figurine, a monkey holding a human skull, and a birthday card inscribed with an evolution pun.

“I've never seen any kind of split between science and history because I've always gravitated toward those sciences that were historical,” she said.

Her attraction toward this scientific niche is in her DNA, she said. Born in Egypt to Greek parents, Smocovitis’ first historical interest was in her family heritage, partially thanks to a trip to the Egyptian pyramids when she was 4.

Hanging on a magazine rack in Smocovitis’ office, beneath a copy of “Science,” is her father’s name tag from his time working at Windsor Regional Cancer Center in Ontario. He was a physicist — and her first unofficial science teacher, she said.

It was with him that she attended her first AAAS meeting in Detroit in the early 1980s. When she was elected onto the board, she immediately thought of him, wishing he was alive to hear the news.

“I wish I could tell my father,” she said. “The twist is that I did this through history, not by being a great scientist. I did this by being a teacher, scholar of history, loving science, but also by seeing the damage that it has done.”

Smocovitis has been a member of the AAAS since that first meeting in 1982, when she was a graduate student at Cornell University. Throughout the 1990s, she presented research at meetings, eventually running for and win-

ning officer positions within the organization’s history and philosophy of science section.

Smocovitis was one of the first people Andrew Black, AAAS chief of staff, met when he joined the organization almost nine years ago, he said. Recently, they’ve spent more time together on a project to modernize AAAS governance and structure — time which has allowed him to know her better as a colleague, he said.

“She listens to understand, and her contributions are always powerful and really drive the strategic direction of a conversation,” he said. “That's great, and a lot of people do that, but on top of that, she's just an absolute delight and a joy to be around.”

Despite traveling for board meetings, Smocovitis will continue teaching at the university. In fact, her experiences in the classroom will partially inform her work on the board, she said.

“You're sharpening your mind because younger people see the world differently,” she said. “Very often their reactions startle me and delight me, and I have to think about them. But I learn, so I get to take this into this big organization.”

Classroom discussion not only lets her understand the perspectives of the younger generation, she said, but also of a range of disciplines.

Artists claim censorship

VANDALISM, from pg. 1

of people don't agree with because they believe we should continue enslaving people in prisons,” Greene said.

UF doesn’t know the motive behind the attack, UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldan told The Alligator. However, UF affirms its support for the First Amendment rights of the artists whose exhibition was targeted.

“As a public institution, UF is committed to providing and supporting First Amendment protections for our students, faculty, staff and other members of the university community,” Roldan said.

A statement to students and faculty from Elizabeth Ross, an associate professor and the director of the UF School of Art and Art History, said UF removed the banners because they may have been misconstrued as UF’s speech. The artists and curator also didn’t seek approval to install artwork on the roof and exterior walls, violating rules outlined in the SAAH Faculty Handbook and the SAAH Graduate Handbook, she said.

SAAH didn’t have specific guidelines prohibiting Burnett or the artists from installing the banners, but it did cross the line for some existing policies in the handbooks, Ross said.

“It has become clear from this situation that we need to offer more support for the 4Most Resident, including clear processes and guidelines for curating shows in the gallery,” she wrote.

She has students in a number of majors from biology to journalism; but they’re all united by a shared interest in scientific history. Several of them have gone on to be science writers, doctors and scientists, Smocovitis said. At the core of her work, both in and out of the classroom, is an interdisciplinary approach.

Patrick Grey, a 21-year-old UF history junior, said he was unfamiliar with genetics and other scientific concepts before taking Smocovitis’ class. But he appreciated that Smocovitis doesn’t tailor her classes to just one type of student, he said.

“Her pedagogy was: Don't try to limit yourself by putting yourself in a box,” he said. “Always explore different fields, even if they don't have anything to do with each other. Because at the end of the day, it just makes you a more interesting person.”

Grey went on to become the first UF student in 15 years to win the Beinecke scholarship, an award to fund his graduate studies — and he couldn’t have won it without Smocovitis’ help, he said.

Annalisse McKee, a 24-year-old UF physiology and pharmacology master’s student, was also Smocovitis’ student last Fall. Smocovitis’ Genetics and the Human Imagination course was McKee’s favorite of her undergraduate career, she said.

McKee got to know Smocovitis during office hours — one session ending with a twohour conversation about good books on the shelf.

“She's super knowledgeable, she's super passionate and she's really caring to all of her students,” she said.

Smocovitis is doing exactly what she dreamt of doing since she was a child, she said. It’s advice she gives to all her students.

“You’re never going to be happy, and chances are you’re not going to be good, unless you’re literally pursuing what you love to do,” she said.

@AlissaGary1 agary@alligator.org

After the banners were removed during spring break, Florida Prisoner Solidarity decided to end its showcase early after having one night open to the public. The group blocked off the windows with paper as it reorganized its showcase, Greene said.

“When the gallery reopened, we were planning to just continue our show, but we believe that the integrity of the show was drastically changed without the banners,” Greene said. “So, we decided that we wanted to do something different.”

For the last day of the exhibition, Florida Prisoner Solidarity decided to showcase the four rocks thrown through their window and the glass it broke through. The three pedestals listed their creator as: “artist unknown.” On a wall, Florida Prisoner Solidarity released a statement calling the banner removal a violent act of censorship.

“We use the word violence here with the explicit intent of highlighting the institutional repression of a part of [UF’s] own body, transgressing its own sacred mission to provide sanctuary for free thought and expression and reifying the violence of the state once again,” the statement read.

The group put up a plank to cover up the hole the rocks left behind. Someone later spray-painted “F-CK OFF FASCISTS” on it. Greene isn’t aware who wrote it.

At the closing ceremony, UF placed a sign with an arrow pointing to the spray-painted message, reading “THIS IS ARTISTS’ SPEECH, NOT UF’S SPEECH.”

@ainzinna

Transgender Day of Visibility reaches Gainesville community

Protesters fight for transgender rights amid legislative attacks

Pink, blue and white signs lined the city corner outside Gainesville’s Hippodrome State Theatre March 31 for a Transgender Day of Visibility demonstration. Decked out in rainbow colors, a crowd of approximately 40 ranging from young college students to senior citizens gathered for the occasion.

Ruka Scarlett, a 33-year-old Gainesville resident who identifies as a transgender woman, planned the demonstration to show that trans identities intersect with nearly every community, she said.

“My trans-ness is a very, very small part of my identity and what makes me and what makes my life,” Scarlett said. “Until things like this happen where my rights are being taken away, and I have to make it a bigger part of my life.”

Transgender Day of Visibility is an annual international event that raises awareness about transphobia.

The demonstration was charged by recent attacks on the trans community in the state legislature, such as House Bill 1421, which would prohibit a person from changing the assigned sex on their birth certificate and prohibits minors from obtaining genderaffirming care, such as sex reassignment surgery.

It was boosted by the Gainesville chapter of National Women’s Liberation, a “grassroots gender-affirming radical feminist organization fighting back against male supremacy, white supremacy and capitalism,” said Emily Calvin, the chapter’s chair.

Calvin, 35, spoke at the demonstration as a cisgender ally, she said.

“They’re really just stripping away all of

their rights and all of their health care. It’s really scary,” she said. “None of us are safe.”

Bills that ban gender-affirming care and restrict bathroom use for trans individuals are especially scary, Calvin said.

Morgan Averette, a 31-year-old UF sociology doctoral candidate, identifies as a transwoman and is a member of Gators for Gender Affirming Care, a UF coalition fighting for gender-affirming care. The current legislative session has been heartbreaking, she said, but she felt uplifted by the demonstration.

“It’s just been really overwhelming personally, as a trans woman,” she said. “Seeing people here support us and vocalize that support just really matters.”

If she wasn’t too far into her academic track she would plan to transfer, Averette said.

“We need people at the university to stand up for us and show that they prioritize trans, non-binary and gender nonconforming people,” she said. “As a student, I’m possibly looking at my health care being taken away.”

Among the crowd were Chris and Carmen King, a married couple with a 33-year-old trans daughter who lives in the Netherlands.

The Kings fully supported their daughter, they said, but the transition was difficult. They wanted to grieve the person she was before her transition, Carmen King said.

“It was definitely hard because I didn’t want to show her that I mourned for the other person that she had been,” Carmen King said.

Carmen King, a retired teacher, wrote her daughter a letter stating that her mind and heart were fully open for her. She feels relieved to be out of education, describing a lack of academic freedom in the Florida school system. For instance, school boards banning

books will be detrimental to students, she said.

One piece of legislation — House Bill 1521 — is particularly worrisome, Carmen King said. The bill would force educational institutions to separate males and females in bathrooms and dressing rooms based on sex; it would also require separate housing in correctional facilities and domestic violence shelters.

“I feel that the bathroom ban that they are trying to push through today is going to cause everybody to stand out,” she said.

Salem Calypso, 34, who identifies as a trans, intersex woman, said the bills in the current legislative session would encourage transphobia.

“It’s just heartbreaking to see that they’re demonizing us and using us as a target,” she said.

Samara Powers, a 52-year-old Gainesville resident who attends Meadville Lombard Theological School, hopes to become a leader in the Unitarian Universalist tradition, a liberal faith based on love that aims to be welcoming and inclusive to all forms of people and beliefs, she said.

Powers has a 22-year-old trans daughter. She came to the protest to show her support and allyship to both her followers in faith and her daughter, Powers said.

She’s considered moving out of the state given the legislative session, she said.

“There really is a dismantling of the processes of democracy that is just deeply disturbing,” Powers said.

@elladeethompson ethompson@alligator.org

UF hosts Future of Florida Springs discussion, workshop

RESEARCHERS, CONSERVATIONISTS AND ACADEMICS EXAMINED HEALTH OF FLORIDA’S SPRINGS

Despite being surrounded by water on three sides and receiving on average 53 inches of rainfall a year, Florida’s most fragile resource is water.

At the Future of Florida Springs symposium held at Pugh Hall, activists, authors and assorted experts came together to weigh in on the current state of Florida’s over 1,000 freshwater springs. The conclusion? They are in grave danger.

Vasilios Kosmakos, a recent UF graduate and the event’s coordinator, made a concerted effort to make sure the message was at the forefront of discussion April 1. Kosmakos’ care for Florida’s waterways has been lifelong, he said.

“I grew up on the beach in Treasure Island, Florida,” he said. “My grandparents are fishermen from Greece. Water is life.”

Kosmakos has done extensive research on Florida’s waterways. Through the Florida Naturalist Oral History Project, he’s conducted 60 in-depth interviews with everyone from fishermen to policymakers to illustrate the springs’ worsening conditions. Several of his subjects were invited to speak April 1.

The presentations centered around the history, overall health and restoration efforts of the springs. Leading environmental figures such as Robert Knight, executive director of the Florida Springs Institute, and Gregory Owen, senior planner of the Alachua County Environmental Protection Department, posited their theories on the current delicate state of the springs — and later disagreed on who should bear that responsibility.

Panelists presented their worries about the overpumping of Florida’s springs, along with fears of misappropriated funds for restoration.

Knight, who has conducted lifelong research on wetland restoration, cited agriculture as a large factor in the depletion of Florida springs.

“About 90% of the problem is with

about 30,000 corporations and people,” he said. “If you turn off the water when you’re brushing your teeth it’s … not going to solve the problems.”

Conversely, Owen felt the responsibility of protecting Florida’s water is also that of the individual.

“We all need to think about this together,” Owen said. “Maybe turning your water off while you brush your teeth isn’t really impactful, but as we approach this collaboratively, that’s how we’re going to have this restoration.”

This call for collaboration was echoed by panelist Matt Cohen, scientist and professor. Personal consumption matters, he said.

“If every resident of Gainesville elimi -

nated meat one day a week,” Cohen said, “we would save, collectively … a water footprint equivalent to the flow of the Ichetucknee River.”

Workshops followed the Q&A session with guests having the opportunity to cycle through the rooms of Pugh to learn more about conservation photography from Linda Wilinski, stakeholder communication from Sadie Hundemer or scientific writing from Sandra Poucher.

This quiet period in the Pugh Hall Ocora gave Kosmakos a moment to reflect on the success of the event, which was the culmination of research started in August 2021.

Kosmakos anticipates guests will take the lessons they learned past the lecture hall and far beyond UF’s campus, he said.

“I hope they come [back] with a more nuanced perspective of these issues,” he said. “Just because something is complicated doesn’t mean we can’t figure things out.”

Most importantly, Kosmakos said, he hopes the symposium would serve as a reminder that the ability to have a productive discussion, regardless of belief, is what propels us forward.

“This world is so divided,” he said, “Have conversations. Be intellectually honest … Have conversations because humanity is at its best when we come together and we discuss ideas.”

@sydajohnson15 sjohnson@alligator.org

All-day brunch restaurant Ruby Sunshine set to open this summer in Gainesville

Up and down the streets of Gainesville, students, residents and visitors alike are met with an array of options to relish in what is arguably the most important meal of the day: brunch.

Now, the city’s most dedicated brunch aficionados can add yet another restaurant to their list.

Ruby Sunshine, an all-day brunch restaurant chain, is set to open its doors to the greater Gainesville public this summer. The restaurant will join other retail locations in occupying Butler Town Center, located at 3600 SW 32nd Court.

The restaurant brings a New Orleans flair to Southern brunch classics, serving dishes like The Trifecta — which combines Ruby Sunshine’s three signature benedicts: the Eggs Cochon, Chicken St. Charles and Bayou Shrimp — often paired with a seasonal mimosa flight or one of the restaurant’s award-winning Bloody Marys.

Marla Chua, 37, is Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group’s culinary operations partner, as well as a former Louisiana State University student and graduate of the Louisiana Culinary Institute.

“In New Orleans and even LSU, we like to have fun,” Chua said. “Our menu and our atmosphere will bring a lot of college students and locals to our restaurants to have fun, indulge in our delicious menu items and crave and come back for more.”

Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group has grown to 21 restaurants in various states throughout the country, including Florida, Alabama, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.

The Ruby Sunshine location in Gainesville will mark the group’s fourth location in Florida — joining restaurants in Destin, Pensacola and Sandestin.

Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group traces its roots back to 2008, after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans in 2005.

Jennifer and Erich Weishaupt decided to transform an old corner store in a New Orleans neighborhood that had been damaged by the storm into what would become the first-ever Ruby Slipper Café.

The couple had a vision to create a space aimed at bringing people together and fostering a sense of community following the traumatic storm.

After the restaurant quickly gained a

following, the couple decided to open a second restaurant in the city’s Central Business District.

Along with the restaurants’ growing popularity came a demand for additional restaurants in other states. As the couple began opening more restaurants to satisfy the demand, they found that they were actually creating more demand.

Danielle Stokes, 57, is Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group’s vice president of real estate and development and oversees the progress of the group’s restaurants in different markets. Demand was a significant factor in the growth of Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group into Gainesville, she said.

“We’ve had a lot of customers that have eaten at our restaurants from other locations that are from Gainesville that have requested for us to come there,” Stokes said.

The group’s original restaurants along the Gulf Coast donn the name Ruby Slipper, and the company has started using the name Ruby Sunshine as they’ve expanded into other markets.

Nonetheless, every restaurant that has grown out of Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group is united under a single mindset, #ThatBrunchLife, which focuses on brunch as an experience rather than just a meal. The hashtag is such an important part of its brand that an entire section of its website is dedicated to it.

Jennifer Beougher, Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group’s 46-year-old chief financial officer, described the hashtag as a reflection of the “Big Easy” of New Orleans and the easygoing nature of brunch at the restaurants.

As a UF alumna who moved from Florida to New Orleans to take on the role,

Beougher looks forward to bringing the spirit of Ruby Sunshine to her beloved college town, she said.

Now that she lives in “a complete city of LSU Tigers,” she also anticipates creating some internal rivalry among LSU and UF fans as Ruby Slipper Restaurant Group, born out of New Orleans, makes its way down from the Panhandle into Gator Nation.

“We’re really excited to be part of the community and to build kind of a longterm relationship there and use it as a launchpad for growth,” Beougher said.

The public can stay up to date on Ruby Sunshine Gainesville’s official opening date by visiting the company’s website, rubybrunch.com.

@amandacrubio

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Nina Rickards carries New York roots through Florida career

NEW YORK CITY NATIVE FINISHED HER SENIOR SEASON WITH GATORS

Florida senior guard Nina Rickards has a silver chain with her jersey number: 15. For some players, that could just be a symbol of ego or pride. But for Rickards, it’s something more.

Clare Droesch, who lost her fight to breast cancer in 2018, wore the number throughout her playing career, and it’s become a symbol for Rickards to connect with someone who helped elevate her game – her assistant coach at Christ the King Regional High School.

The number stands for a connection to Rickard’s New York City roots, and it’s a meaningful tribute to Droesch — one of the coaches that helped her get to this point in her career.

“I keep it on during warmups, so I'm just reminded who I'm playing for and what I do it for,” Rickards said.

Rickards capped off her fourth season with the Florida Gators March 27. She was one of two players on this past year’s team who spent all four years in Gainesville, and Rickards surpassed 1,000 career points.

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL GYMNASTICS

Throughout her success in college, those New York roots always ground her.

The basketball culture in New York City helped inspire Rickards to pursue the sport, she said. There are always huge crowds on park courts, and people spend all hours of the night hooping indoors, she said.

“It's an honor to come from a place like that,” Rickards said.

“New York City is really big on basketball, and I think I'm one of the lucky ones.”

Rickards attended one of the most prestigious basketball schools in a basketball-mad city: Christ the King Regional High School in Queens.

The program has produced Women’s National Basketball Association superstars Sue Bird and Tina Charles. Countless other players have gone on to play National Collegiate Athletic Association Division 1 Basketball.

Joe DeLuca, an assistant coach at Christ the King, said he started working with Rickards in seventh grade. From the beginning, he was impressed by her work ethic and basketball ability.

“She loved basketball, [and] she was just very easy to work with,” DeLuca said. “She had certain things in her game at a young age that you can't teach.”

Head coach Bob Mackey knew

Rickards had a lot to improve upon on the court and in the classroom but was immediately impressed with her work ethic and the habits she built, he said.

“She really worked hard and became a really solid kid, and a solid player, solid student,” Mackey said.

Rickards was coming off the bench in her junior season and was frustrated with her role, she said. Droesch joined the staff that season and helped Rickards elevate her game.

She didn’t click with Droesch right away, she said. But the new assistant coach saw something in Rickards and helped her improve on the court.

“I thought she was just picking on me, but she saw something that I didn't,” Rickards said. “We got closer; our relationship got stronger.”

DeLuca served as a mentor for her as well. But Droesch could provide unique guidance as a former top player, he said.

“I can be that big brother,” he said. “But I can’t tell you what it’s like to play in the NCAA tournament … She can. She gave that to Nina and also gave Nina someone to turn to.”

Rickards’ relationship grew with Droesch off the court.

When Droesch was battling breast cancer, Rickards made

sure to check in on her in the hospital. After Droesch passed away in 2018, Rickards was given the honor of carrying on her legacy with the number 15. Christ the King won a state championship the next season —

Rickards’ final high school season. That 2019 team was focused and dialed in to succeed that season, DeLuca said.

“They knew what they had to

SEE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL, PAGE 12

Florida gymnastics progresses to NCAA semifinals despite Trinity Thomas’ injury

GATORS MOVE FORWARD AFTER 2 SUCCESSFUL EVENINGS

Graduate student Trinity Thomas stepped off the mat midway through her floor routine March 31. She pointed at her lower right leg as she walked off the floor and headed to the training room.

Despite Thomas’ devastating injury, the Gators prevailed and moved on to the semifinals of the NCAA Championship. Florida advanced forward in their region but settled for second place — behind only the California Golden Bears — in its first meet without Thomas.

Gators Gymnastics confirmed Thomas sustained a lower right-leg injury and said she was day to day as of March 31.

Thomas’ injury occurred in the second rotation, leaving a notable gap through the vault and bars rotations. Florida head coach Jenny Rowland was proud of her team following Thomas’ injury.

“I think the Gators did a great job,” Rowland said.

“There was a little adversity tonight. However, I told them they handled it very gracefully.”

Freshman Kayla DiCello became one of Florida’s biggest contributors in Thomas’ absence.

The UF freshman reached perfection for the second time in her collegiate career in the NCAA Pittsburgh Regionals Friday. She was given a 10.0 after she delivered a flawless bars routine. The score made her the only freshman in the nation with multiple 10s — both coming on the uneven bars.

Her perfect 10 added to her stellar performance in round two of the regionals. DiCello posted an all-around score of 39.800 — the highest all-around total by a freshman in the country this year.

For inspiration, DiCello wrote four phrases on her arm: “Be You,” “Trust,” “Normal” and “Goldfish.” DiCello took up the mentality of a goldfish during her performance at the Southeastern Conference Championships, she said.

“At SEC, I was warming up my front double full,” DiCello said. “Jenny told me to be a goldfish as their memory is 10 seconds. Just forget about that one and move on to the next.”

The Gators faced some difficulties in the final round of the NCAA Pittsburgh Regionals April 2.

Senior Payton Richards stepped in for the bars and beam with Thomas out of the lineup.

Richards had the opportunity to compete in all four events; she received a score of 39.575. She secured a season-best 9.90-point score on the beam. Her 9.950-point performance on vault secured first place in the event.

Junior Victoria Nguyen was originally set to fill in for vault in round three. After sophomore Sloane Blakely fell earlier in the rotation, sophomore Bri Edwards replaced Nguyen. She earned a score of 9.750 to secure Florida’s spot in the semifinals.

Thomas’ absence was felt throughout the team’s journey in the postseason. As her condition is day to day, Thomas could return for the NCAA Semifinals.

The Gators will be competing in the NCAA Semifinals in Fort Worth, Texas, April 13. The meet will be streamed on ESPN2.

@jorirzepecki jrzepecki@alligator.orgw

New York roots

WOMEN'S BASKETBALL, from pg. 11

do,” DeLuca said. “They were doing it for Clare, they were doing it for [themselves].”

Rickards built a relationship with then assistant coach Kelly Rae Finley at Florida during the recruiting process. She built a connection with the Gators’ program and felt like it was a strong fit for her.

But there was one small thing she needed before coming to Gainesville: the number 15.

“I made sure when I spoke

to Kelly about if I was going to come to Florida, I have to have this number,” Rickards said. “I'm going to put on for my city, but I gotta put on for my coach too.”

Rickards spent four seasons at Florida, but it’s been a challenging tenure for the program. In 2021, then head coach Cam Newbauer resigned citing personal reasons. Several former players later accused the coach of abuse.

Despite the chaos, Rickards

stayed in Gainesville. The commitment to stick with the program is a testament to her loyalty, DeLuca said.

“Nina sees everything she starts through,” he said. “That’s one of the most loyal kids I know.”

Finley was named interim head coach in 2021 after Newbauer’s resignation. Florida removed the interim tag after the season to make her the permanent head coach.

To Rickards, Finley has done an excellent job of turning the program around and building relationships with players, she said.

This past season was Rickards’

best yet. She set a new careerhigh in scoring with 12.1 points per game. Rickards spearheaded the Gators' run to the Women’s National Invitation Tournament Great Eight. She scored a career high 25 points against Wake Forest in the second round of the tournament.

Rickards topped 1,000 career points with her strong performance against Wofford March 16, where she scored 18 points.

“It's really exciting just knowing that all the work I've put in — I've been here for all four years — it's paying off, and it’s showing, and I'm glad to be here,” Rickards said postgame. “Forever a Gator.”

Even after a successful career with Florida, Rickards never stopped connecting with the people who helped get her here. Rickards still works with DeLuca in the offseasons, and the two have a strong bond, she said. She even invited him to be a part of her senior day celebration, an honor DeLuca said he’ll never forget.

“I'll remember her asking me to be part of that day probably a little more than I remember us winning that championship,” DeLuca said.