Before Mary Oliver – winner of a Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award – spoke on Sanibel in February, volunteers passed around paper and a basket, into which audience members placed questions. After her poetry reading and commentary at the Rachel Carson Distinguished Lecture, the signature event of FGCU’s Center for Environmental and Sustainability Education, Oliver answered several of those questions. Here is an excerpt:
Recliners that massage muscles after a long day of hunkering over textbooks. Three-bedroom suites with shared kitchenette, bathroom and living area. Arcade and video game rooms, a movie theater and even a classroom where students can learn without leaving their residence hall. That’s all part of the premium package that is Osprey Hall.
That’s the problem with journalism. You’ve got to keep the Muslims happy,” a nail technician at Gulf Coast Town Center said to me.
We had been discussing my major – journalism – when her remark cut the conversation short. It also sparked my determination to bring the Hijab Challenge to Florida Gulf Coast University.
Adjusting to college life can be an uphill battle, but more veterans are using GI Bill benefits.
Byline:
Drew Sterwald
At 27, Thea Windsor often is the oldest student in her classes at Florida Gulf Coast University. Most of the time, she also is the only mother. Her two children are in day care when she’s in class.
On top of all that “weirdness,” as she calls it, Windsor usually is the only military veteran in her classes. She enlisted in the Army in 2004 and deployed to Afghanistan in 2006.
FGCU researchers delve into the murky mysteries of oil spills
Byline:
Ken Schexnayder
[Macondo, The Gulf of Mexico]
At approximately 10 p.m. on April 20, 2010, seawater erupted onto the submersible offshore oil rig, Deepwater Horizon – a geyser that shot 240 feet into the air. Within minutes, the water transitioned to a sludge of mud, gas and water. By 11 p.m., the sludge had morphed into pure gas and exploded. Two days later, with the fire continuing to rage out of control, the rig sank. On the seabed – nearly 5,000 feet below the surface – the well spewed oil into the Gulf of Mexico for the next 87 days.
Last November, Peter Bergerson stopped by an early-voting location near his Bonita Springs home to cast his ballot in the presidential election, but the lines were too long. So he tried again later. And again. And again. And again. With each attempt, he found himself with more line than time. On Election Day, he finally managed to vote. It took him more than an hour. And he was one of the lucky ones.
John L. Griffis Jr., associate professor in the Department of Marine and Ecological Sciences, has considerable insight into what it takes to secure a Fulbright. The Council for the International Exchange of Scholars (CEIS), which administers the program, awarded him grants to teach in Zimbabwe in 1996-97and in Mauritius in 2003-04. He served on a CIES review committee for scholars from Africa for three years and as a discipline reviewer in plant science for another three years. He offered these tips for a successful Fulbright proposal:
FGCU, Wells Fargo team up to help area organizations.
Byline:
Drew Sterwald and Karen Feldman
FGCU students ducked under spider webs, eyed abandoned snakeskins and stepped around piles of wildlife scat to clean up trails at Bonita Nature Place on Make a Difference Day.
None of the natural hazards ruffled Tatiana Rodriguez, a freshman business management major from West Palm Beach, who joined a team of volunteers to help rake trails, prune overgrown plants and pull weeds. Bonita Nature Place provides a setting for outdoor activities, learning and volunteerism while encouraging environmental stewardship and building awareness of local natural history.
Fulbright grants open doors to international understanding and life-changing experiences.
Byline:
Drew Sterwald
More than 10 years after spending a summer in Morocco on a Fulbright grant, Pamella Seay’s eyes still widen when she describes how young girls in the largely Islamic nation were just beginning to take classes alongside boys.
An outgoing, animated, accomplished woman, Seay had grown up with a dynamic role model in her civically active mother, who served as mayor of Trenton, Mich., a small suburb of Detroit.
Brenda Lazarus is living proof that Fulbrights change lives.
A founding FGCU faculty member, the education professor took a sabbatical to live and work as a Fulbright scholar in Qatar for the 2003-04 academic year. She taught, conducted research, led workshops and helped Qatar University develop a post-baccalaureate program to prepare teachers to work in special education settings.
In less than two weeks, the men’s basketball team has taken FGCU from virtual anonymity to the national darling with its stunning wins against two powerhouses in the NCAA Tournament.
Thea Windsor, an FGCU student and U.S. Army veteran who was featured in the spring Pinnacle article, Students Who Served, enlisted in 2004 and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2006. Due to the writer’s error, the article...
Student-athletes pitch in to raise money