We would like to extend a special thank you all of our speakers and to share what we learned with our brothers across the nation!
Our first speakers of the semester were brothers Alexandra Swets and Le’a Dawes. On behalf of the CALS Leadership institute, Ms. Swets and Ms. Dawes presented to us their campaign to raise awareness for the Oval Pigtoe Mussel. The Oval Pigtoe is a threatened yet staple organism in our freshwater ecosystems. By spreading awareness, they hope to help people know about their existence and understand their importance. They have a Facebook page if you would like to show your support!
The second speaker we had the privilege of hearing from was UF AZ Alumni, Cynthia Moreau. Ms. Moreau pledged Alpha Zeta in 2008 and was active up until her graduation from CALS in 2010. She went on to complete pharmacy school at UF and graduated in 2014. She returned to Gainesville and is currently completing a residency though the College of Pharmacy and UF Health. She spoke to our chapter about her experience going through pharmacy school and what it is like to be a resident! Hearing from Cynthia showed our brothers more of what the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences has to offer – not just animals and crops, but also medicine! Cynthia even showed us a link between the two in that there are Veterinary Pharmacists! The Florida Chapter has never ceased to be amazed by all of the opportunities CALS has to offer.
Our final in-chapter speaker of the semester was Brooke Gamewell. Ms. Gamewell is a nurse with a passion for sustainability. She is currently working on building an online farmers market along with a completely sustainable community. She wants to build an eco-friendly co-housing community with organic gardens on property, wellness center, spa, school, child-care, event center, restaurant that services, a grocery store that has locally raised sustainable foods, and a research facility! With such a big goal, and a practical and logical plan to get there, Ms. Gamewell impressed us with her humor, ideas, and her entrepreneurial zeal! Sustainability is so important within our college and the daunting task to support our ever-growing population is more important than ever. The chapter was excited to hear about new efforts toward bringing about a sustainable community!
At our Fall 2015 Initiation Ceremony, the Florida Chapter was happy to welcome Mrs. Taylor Stokes from the UF Center for Leadership and Service as our guest speaker. Mrs. Stokes spoke to us about the Social Change model and got our Sponsors and new initiates working together to decide what kinds of leaders they were!
Once again, the Florida chapter would like to say thank you to the speakers we hosted last semester! We are looking forward sharing the speakers we will have this spring!