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MONDAY, MARCH 23, 2026
VOLUME 120 - ISSUE 25 Not officially associated with the University of Florida
Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida
What to know about Alachua County’s persisting K-12 racial achievement gaps SCHOOLS CONTINUE EQUITY WORK AS STRUCTURAL AND HISTORICAL BARRIERS PERSIST
By Julianna Bendeck Alligator Staff Writer
On the first day of kindergarten, teacher Caitlin Gallingane recalls stark differences among her students: Some could read full sentences, while others had never held a pencil. While the 49-year-old now works as a clinical associate professor in UF’s College of Education, she previously taught in the early 2000s at what’s now Duval Early Learning Academy in East Gainesville. For decades, Alachua County’s schools have faced scrutiny over stark racial achievement gaps that have proven difficult to narrow. Despite various initiatives, community members and education experts say disparities persist, — shaped by ineffective state policy,
high staff turnover and historic inequities. Almost a decade ago, Alachua County held the state’s largest achievement gap between Black and white students, prompting the district to address those disparities with an equity plan in 2018. The plan aimed to narrow or eliminate the achievement gap between white and Black students by 2028. It included raising the reading achievement of Black learners and participation in advanced programs. To do this, schools in Alachua County implemented college readiness classes, credit retrieval programs and individual learning plans for students who aren’t on track to graduate. Nearly eight years after the equity plan was introduced, those gaps remain among the largest in the state. In 2025, Alachua County had the second-highest achievement gap statewide between white and Black students in ELA achievement and is tied for the second-
SEE K-12, PAGE 5
Noah Lantor // Alligator Staff
Florida guard Boogie Fland (0) drives against Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz (14) during the first half of an NCAA Tournament second round game against Iowa, Sunday, March 22, 2026, in Tampa, Fla. Find more photos in Sports on pg. 12.
UF fires second Honors leader in 4 years, raising questions about program’s future INTERIM HONORS PROGRAM DIRECTOR WAS ISSUED NONRENEWAL IN NOVEMBER
By Nevaeh Baker Harris Alligator Staff Writer
The UF Provost’s Office removed Melissa Johnson from her role as interim director of the UF Honors Program in November 2025. It’s the second time in just four years the university has removed an Honors leader, leaving lingering questions about the program’s future and its usefulness to participating students. The university provided Johnson with a notice of nonrenewal Nov. 18, 2025, according to an internal email obtained by The Alligator. Kellie Roberts, a formerly retired UF professor, took over the role of acting director Jan. 16. Leadership changes Johnson served as interim director for three years after Honors Program Director Mark Law was fired in August 2022. At the time, UF Provost Joe Glover took responsibility for the decision and said he lost trust in Law and his vision
SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT Speeding
Story description finish with comma, Speeding cameras in school zones pg# raise privacy concerns for Gainesville residents. Read more on pg. 2.
for the program. Yet Law said the UF Board of Trustees, not the provost, made the decision to fire him. The termination, which he said came with no stated reason, “bitterly disappointed” him, he wrote in an email to students Aug. 15, 2022. Law kept his position at UF as a professor in the Wertheim College of Engineering, but his salary was halved after his position loss, according to previous reporting from The Alligator. Law had been making another $240,000 a year on top of his salary as a professor. Law declined to comment on his firing and the honors program for this story. Johnson's departure from the interim director role also came with a salary decrease of more than 25%. She was earning over $161,000 as of Fall 2025, according to publicly available UF salary data. Her salary was reduced to $120,000 after her removal from the Honors Program, according to the obtained emails. It’s unclear whether Johnson is still a UF employee following her removal from the Honors role. She is not registered to teach any classes in Spring 2026 or Fall 2026. The memo did not provide a reason for Johnson’s
removal. Johnson did not respond to multiple requests for comment via phone call, text message, email and a letter left at her home address. In the memo, Interim Associate Provost Matthew Jacobs told Johnson her final day of employment with the university would be Dec. 31, 2026, and that her position would become 100% remote in her final year. Johnson began as an adviser with UF Honors in 2005 and maintained a hands-on presence with the program throughout her three years as interim director. Johnson sent a weekly “Honors on Wednesday” email, taught classes ranging from professional development to a lyrical analysis of Jimmy Buffett and hosted Honors on Thursday, or “H.O.T.,” coffee chats with students. In a LinkedIn post Jan. 14, 2025, Johnson wrote she jokingly refers to her time as interim as “my term as the fake director.” “20 years is a long time, right?” she wrote of her years at UF. “Never imagined I would be here this long - and who knows how long it will last. I get regular inquiries from search firms about open honors positions - some I
Student life
UF students start women-specific mental health group, pg. 3
entertain, and others I do not (always nice to be contacted though - validation that someone out there values my experience). But for now, we're pushing onward to year 21…” In another post, dated Aug. 21, 2025, she called the first day of Fall classes her fourth “& final” as interim director. UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldán said the university does not comment on personnel matters in a statement to The Alligator. Kellie Roberts, the current acting director of the honors program as of January, clarified in an email that she’s helping the program with day-to-day activities until a permanent director is appointed, “likely within the next six months or so,” she wrote. Roberts wrote she has no plans to become the permanent director of the program. ‘Don’t really see the benefits’ The UF Honors program is structured in two parts: the First-Year Honors Program — for incoming freshmen — and the University Honors Program, for current UF students. Any honors student can receive tailored
SEE HONORS, PAGE 5
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LGBTQ+
Pride Community Center of North Central Florida votes to rent or buy a new space, pg. 3
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