Office of Community Relations

UF Government and Community Relations

Monday, February 3, 2025

Across the University of Florida, our 16 colleges, numerous institutes, and health care facilities embrace our shared mission of outreach and service to improve and enrich our community, nation, and the world. UF in the Community spotlights the impact of UF in our region.

Although UF has students and employees throughout the state, North Central Florida is home to much of our faculty and staff and to our 50,000+ students. Like all area residents, we want a vibrant, safe, healthy, and equitable place in which to live and thrive. Here are some of the ways in which we are enhancing our shared community.?

February Eye Opener Breakfast

Join us for the February Eye Opener Breakfast and discover how the CS Everyone Center for Computer Science Education is empowering Florida’s teachers to shape the workforce of tomorrow. By providing professional development and resources, CSEveryone equips educators—regardless of subject area or experience level—with the skills to seamlessly integrate computer science (CS) and artificial intelligence (AI) into their classrooms. With a strong emphasis on inclusivity, best practices, and cross-disciplinary collaboration, CS Everyone is fostering a statewide and national network of K-12 educators and CS leaders to ensure every student has access to transformative CS education. Join us to learn how UF and the CS Everyone Center is creating a brighter future for Florida’s students and communities.

National pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson will headline the University of Florida's 2024 & Beyond: Insights and the Future of Campaigning conference on Tues, Feb 4, 2025 at Emerson Alumni Hall.



The conference will focus on key takeaways from the 2024 election cycle and provide a forward-looking perspective on major political events, including the 2026 gubernatorial race, Congressional midterms, and the 2028 presidential election. 

The event is free and open to the public, running from 8 am to 4 pm at Emerson Alumni Hall on UF’s campus. 

No registration is required to attend the conference sessions; advance registration is necessary for the keynote luncheon featuring Kristen Soltis Anderson.

One of higher education’s fastest supercomputers arrives at the University of Florida; assembly begins later this month 

The first components of HiPerGator AI 2.0, expected to be one of the country’s fastest university-owned supercomputers, arrived last week at the University of Florida’s Data Center in Gainesville, marking a major milestone in UF’s push to position itself as a national leader in AI education and research.   

The $24 million acquisition of the NVIDIA DGX systems is a highly anticipated step in a long-standing engagement between the two organizations that has resulted in a comprehensive push to integrate AI education and research across every academic discipline at UF.   

The new machine, known as the NVIDIA DGX SuperPOD, will propel UF’s supercomputing abilities to new heights, restore its position as home to one of the world’s top supercomputers, and support UF’s goal to provide a national model for workforce development that will advance the United States’ global leadership in AI. A team of about a dozen experts will install the supercomputer, comprising 63 NVIDIA DGX B200 systems, and powered by 504 NVIDIA Blackwell graphics processing units (GPUs).  



UF alum and NVIDIA cofounder Chris Malachowsky, a key partner and donor in UF’s AI initiative, is expected to be present for the unveiling of the new HiPerGator AI 2.0 supercomputer, which is estimated to be seven to 10 times faster than the current HiPerGator cluster. UF is one of the world’s first higher education institutions to host an NVIDIA Blackwell-powered AI supercomputer. 

UF Health transplant programs No. 1 in Florida, top 10 in the U.S. 

UF Health’s liver, kidney, and lung transplant programs are once again ranked as the best in Florida and remain among the country’s best, according to the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients, or SRTR. 

The SRTR evaluates transplant centers across the U.S. every six months using a comprehensive assessment focused on several important transplant metrics: survival on the waiting list, the time it takes to get a transplant, and one-year organ survival after surgery. 

Nationally, UF Health Shands ranked No. 2 for liver transplants — receiving the maximum points in each assessment area — No. 4 for lung transplants, and No. 7 for kidney transplants. UF Health’s transplant programs are among two nationally to achieve the top ranking in every assessment category. 



“We are honored that our program is one of the few out of more than 150 in the nation to achieve the maximum 15 bars in the five-tier system,” said Thiago Beduschi, M.D., director of the Abdominal Transplant Program. “We are committed to continuously improving and advancing our mission to help, care, save, comfort, and provide hope.” 

Accelerated nursing program at UF provides students with real-world experiences and career prep 

With a nursing shortage nationwide and an expected 59,000 more nurses needed in Florida by 2035, the University of Florida is providing immersive experiences to prepare nursing students to enter the demanding field.  

First-generation college student Nayadeth Muniz graduated in August 2024 from the College of Nursing and is now working as a neuromedicine nurse at UF Health Shands Hospital. It’s a career track she pursued through the Accelerated Bachelor of Science in Nursing program, and her learning experience was invaluable.

Life-changing study abroad experiences help students find themselves, UF research shows 

Studying abroad is about more than just enrichment for college students; it’s often about personal transformation, UF researchers have found. 

Every year, UF sends nearly 2,600 students overseas to become immersed in diverse cultures, gain international perspectives, and create social bonds with fellow Gators – experiences so profound that UF researchers recently published a study about their long-term impact in Leisure Sciences. And this week, the UF International Center is hosting a Study Abroad Fair from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 29 on the Reitz North Lawn to generate even more interest in these life-changing programs. 



“You’ve got to look at travel as not a frivolous thing because it’s part of your life story,” said Heather Gibson, Ph.D., a professor in the UF College of Health & Human Performance’s Department of Tourism, Hospitality & Event Management, who co-authored the study. “The impact isn’t just for the semester when they return; it’s now shown to be over 20 years or more. Very few studies focus on this formative phase of adult development, and these emerging adults are very malleable to be shaped. They’re searching for different sources of identity and different directions.” 

UF Health-led guidelines call for widespread Type 1 diabetes screening in children

A University of Florida Health physician-scientist led an international team of Type 1 diabetes experts who recently developed new treatment guidelines emphasizing wider screening for the disease among children and adolescents in the general population before symptoms arise. 

That would include screening the young relatives of those with Type 1 diabetes, such as siblings, because they are at higher genetic risk of developing diabetes. 

The effort was led by Michael Haller, M.D., chief of pediatric endocrinology in the UF College of Medicine’s Department of Pediatrics and a member of the UF Diabetes Institute. 

The guidelines cover screening, staging, and strategies to preserve beta cell function in children and adolescents with Type 1 diabetes. They were published last month in the journal Hormone Research in Paediatrics and are issued under the umbrella of the International Society for Pediatric and Adolescent Diabetes, or ISPAD.

Heatstroke leads to chronic heart disease, obesity in mice 

Every year, more than 100,000 people are treated for heat injury in the U.S., a number that’s been rising as the world rapidly warms. Heatstroke, the most damaging form, can make people lose consciousness, suffer organ injury, and even, rarely, die.

While most victims of heatstroke seem to recover in short order, a new study from University of Florida researchers reveals that a single exposure to heatstroke can lead to lasting, multi-organ damage and obesity in mice for months afterward — equivalent to many years in a human lifespan.

"The animals appeared to recover over a few days, but their hearts metabolically crashed two weeks later, which is when physicians often stop following human patients,” said Thomas Clanton, Ph.D., a professor of applied physiology in kinesiology at UF who led the new study.

What’s more, mice fed a high-fat Western diet after recovering from heatstroke, which further stresses the body, packed on even more weight. Both male and female mice showed this chronic deterioration after heatstroke, but male mice suffered the worst effects.

The findings show how important it is to prevent and limit heat injury before it occurs, the authors say, by hydrating and cooling down when symptoms like fatigue set in. There is no established treatment for chronic heatstroke injury. But future research could help identify ways to limit the long term damage in people.

Antarctic ice sheet faces “death by a thousand cuts” 

A recent study conducted by University of Florida geologists and geographers has shed new light on the effects of climate change on Antarctic ice shelves. It found that while there has been broad ice shelf loss due to warming temperatures, the frequency and size of major iceberg calving events has not changed significantly. 

This study was led by Assistant Professor of Geological Sciences Emma MacKie, Ph.D., and Assistant Professor of Geography Katy Serafin, Ph.D., along with a collaborator at the Colorado School of Mines.



“Our results suggest that the primary threat to our ice shelves is ‘death by a thousand cuts’ via small calving events, rather than catastrophic extremes,” said MacKie.

UF/IFAS shares prescribed fire resources promoting wildfire prevention 

While the cause of the Southern California wildfires remains unknown, the unprecedented scope of their destruction has thrust prevention into the forefront of the collective consciousness. A new Ask IFAS document describes one of the most effective fire prevention tools available to Floridians: prescribed fire. 

Florida’s ecosystems are highly dependent on recurrent fires, and many landowners rely on prescribed fire to manage their property. The document highlights resources for private landowners, including educational websites, training opportunities and a database of forest management-related service providers.

“Fires can be safely used to manage many of our natural areas, improving the health of our lands and reducing the probability of costly, catastrophic wildfires,” said document author Raelene Crandall, UF/IFAS assistant professor of fire ecology. 

The document – a collaborative effort between UF/IFAS School of Forest, Fisheries and Geomatics Sciences researchers and natural resources Extension agents, as well as regional and state fire officials – arrives as Floridians prepare to observe Prescribed Fire Awareness Week, starting Jan. 26. The annual event highlights the importance and benefits of prescribed fire.

Culture – not travel – inspires appreciation for foreign foods, UF/IFAS study finds 

The United States is home to the largest immigrant population in the world, providing its residents with ample opportunity to expand their culinary horizons. But what are the most influential factors leading to the acceptance of foreign foods consumed in this country? Sociodemographic backgrounds and culture are key indicators, according to a new UF/IFAS study. 



Eastern Asian and Black consumers, for example, are 55% and 32% less likely, respectively, to consider new cuisines compared to white consumers, according to the study, published by researchers in the UF/IFAS food and resource economics department. Students are 187% more likely than non-students to try novel foods. And consumers with a bachelor’s degree are 38% more likely than those with high school degrees to sample unfamiliar fare. 

The findings are based on responses to online survey questions posed to 1,052 individuals. In addition to collecting demographic information, the researchers queried respondents about their cultural identity, their sensitivity to cultural differences and their multicultural experiences.

A dream turned reality 

Bennett Andersen grew up dreaming of being a Gator. 

The son of two UF alumni, Andersen (MSM ’25) was the valedictorian at Jesuit High School in Tampa and being a Gator was always in the back of his mind. After pursuing some Division III basketball opportunities out of high school, Andersen instead elected to enroll in Gainesville. 



“UF always made a ton of sense because it was a great school and I grew up a Gator,” Andersen said. 

Andersen earned his bachelor’s degree in industrial and systems engineering and is currently in Warrington’s Master of Science in Management program.

New UF study seeks to understand housing issues for Alachua County pet owners 

A University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions researcher will soon embark on an investigation into the barriers faced by renters trying to find housing with their furry friends.  

Jennifer Applebaum, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Environmental and Global Health, was awarded a $75,000 grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Florida for a year-long exploration of pet-inclusive housing in Alachua County, in partnership with the Alachua County Animal Welfare Advisory Committee and Alachua County Animal Resources. 

The goal of the study is to create evidence-based recommendations for eliminating some of the reasons people may need to give up their pets to be able to secure housing, and to take those recommendations to local and state lawmakers. 

FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES CONTACT

Brittany Wise

brittany.alana@ufl.edu

(352) 273-3820

Karen Thomas

Director, Community Relations