In 2017, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is commemorating the 75thanniversary of the wildlife management area system, one of the state’s greatest natural treasures. The FWC oversees this statewide network of remote and scenic lands, managing them for conservation and recreation. To celebrate the milestone and help people discover the opportunities these public lands offer, the FWC is hosting free events throughout the year.
“Florida has one of the largest systems of public lands in the country at nearly 6 million acres, and these lands are the best of the best of what wild Florida has to offer,” said FWC Chairman Brian Yablonski. “These natural communities span a variety of habitats from longleaf pine uplands and pine flatwoods to the hardwood hammocks and sawgrass savannas of the Everglades. Not only are these areas beautiful, they are managed to provide habitat for many species of wildlife and access for people to enjoy hunting, fishing, wildlife viewing and more.”
Florida’s first WMA, Fred C. Babcock/Cecil M. Webb Wildlife Management Area, was established in late 1941 in Charlotte and Lee counties. By the 1960s, there were 28 WMAs. Today, the FWC is the lead manager or landowner of over 1.4 million acres, and works in partnership with other governmental or private landowners on another 4.5 million acres. These healthy habitats are essential to Florida wildlife – both common and imperiled species. The FWC uses its scientific expertise and a comprehensive ecological approach to manage a variety of wildlife while balancing public access to these wild lands.
WMAs provide many recreational opportunities including paddling, fishing, hiking, biking, horseback riding, photography, wildlife viewing, and target shooting at areas with a public shooting range. They also offer a wide range of hunting opportunities including special hunts for families and people with disabilities. Throughout 2017, the FWC will host a variety of events to celebrate Florida’s WMAs. Events include a statewide geocaching challenge, volunteer work days, a photo contest, guided hikes, fun opportunities to explore WMAs, and citizen science bioblitzes where members of the public help document wildlife species at WMAs.
To learn more about upcoming events or to find a WMA near you, visit MyFWC.com/WMA75. Share your visits to Florida WMAs on social media by using #WMAzing.
Featured
Florida Recycles Day at the Capitol
What: Florida Recycles Day at the Capitol
Date: Wednesday, January 11
Time: 9:30 am
Location: Plaza Level – The Capitol 404 South Monroe Street Tallahassee, Florida 32399
9:30 am – Press conference:
- Secretary Jon Steverson, Florida Department of Environmental Protection will present Recycling Recognition Awards to:
- Desoto Trail Elementary School
- Northrop Grumman
- Skanska
- Kim Brunson, Publix Super Markets Recycling & Waste Manager and Chair of the Florida Recycling Partnership
From 9:00 am until 1:00 pm there will be displays by Florida Recycling Partnership members and other non-profit organizations on the Plaza Level.
For additional information, please contact Keyna Cory at [email protected].
Gov. Scott: We Will Fight to Make Higher Education More Affordable
Governor Rick Scott announced today his “Finish in Four, Save More” legislative and budget proposals to encourage colleges and universities to continue to make higher education more affordable for students and also help students graduate in four years. Currently, only 44 percent of undergraduate students at Florida state universities graduate within four years and 71 percent of students are graduating with four year degrees within six years.
Governor Scott said, “Florida students should have every opportunity to earn a degree in four years without graduating with mountains of debt. While we have fought to make higher education more affordable by holding the line on undergraduate tuition, there is much more that can be done to help students. I am calling on the state Legislature to freeze all fees at state colleges and universities, and to also freeze state college tuition so students aren’t burdened with the constant sky-rocketing costs. I am also calling on the Legislature to expand Bright Futures into the summer term, helping students graduate in four years. In business, you are expected to create more efficiencies or more value. Our institutions need to provide more value to our students by becoming more affordable and helping students graduate in four years so they can save money and get a great job. I want to thank the trustees and presidents of Florida’s colleges and universities for helping us make higher education affordable, but we must do more.”
The “Finish in Four, Save More” legislative and budget initiatives continue Governor Scott’s goal of making college more affordable. The following will be included in legislation:
- Freezing Fees: State college and university fees will be frozen at the current rates. Currently fees at universities average almost $100 per credit hour and colleges average more than $26 per credit hour. Colleges and universities will still be able to decrease fees;
- Freezing State College Tuition: State college tuition will be frozen at the current rates. In 2014, Governor Scott signed legislation limiting state universities’ ability to establish or raise a tuition differential. His goal is to continue that with state colleges this year; and
- Cutting graduate teaching assistant fees by 25%: This allows hardworking teaching assistants to receive a more affordable education.
The following will be included in the Governor’s recommended budget:
- Expanding Bright Futures: Expanding Bright Futures to cover summer classes will give students more flexibility to graduate in four years. Currently Bright Futures only covers fall and spring semesters; and
- Cutting taxes on college textbooks: This initiative and accompanying legislation will provide a sales tax exemption for students purchasing required textbooks and instructional materials and will save students $48 million next year. A student taking five courses per semester will save a minimum of $60 per year.
Governor Scott has held the line on undergraduate tuition for three consecutive years.
Last year, Governor Scott championed and signed a sweeping college affordability bill that the Legislature passed and includes the following provisions:
- Provided greater transparency for students regarding college costs;
- Held the line on graduate school tuition;
- Informed students of required and recommended textbooks before the start of classes;
- Required colleges and universities to adopt policies that make textbooks more affordable; and
- Required the Board of Governors and State Board of Education to make annual recommendations on how to make college more affordable.
In May, Governor Scott hosted the Degrees to Jobs Summit, which focused on important higher education topics including college affordability, leadership accountability and how business leaders and education officials can better connect Florida students with meaningful jobs when they graduate.
Two more $1 million HOLIDAY MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE grand prize winners come forward
The Florida Lottery announces today that the second and third Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE™ grand prize winners claimed their $1 million prizes from the drawing held on January 3, 2017, at Florida Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. The two winners are Jeff Gottschalk, 54, of St. Augustine, and Gail Ferguson, 63, of West Palm Beach.
Gottschalk purchased his winning Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE ticket at Publix, located at 5415 North Oceanshore Boulevard in Palm Coast. Gottschalk said, “This win is even more special to me because the drawing was held on my birthday!”
Jeff Gottschalk poses with his mother and oversized check after claiming
a $1 million prize from the Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE grand prize drawing.
Ferguson purchased per winning Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE ticket at Publix, located at 828 Southern Boulevard in West Palm Beach. Ferguson said she has a dream board at work with a Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE poster on it. “When people would ask me what it’s for, I’d tell them ‘Because I’m going to win the Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE!’ and my dream came true!”
Gail Ferguson poses with her husband and oversized check after claiming
a $1 million prize from the Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE grand prize drawing.
Each retailer will receive a $5,000 bonus for selling a $1 million-winning ticket.
Along with the seven $1 million prizes, 527 other prizes ranging from $500 to $50,000 were awarded in the Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE Grand Prize drawing held on January 3. Additionally, this year’s Raffle offered five weekly drawings, in which a total of ten $10,000 prizes, 250 $1,000 prizes, and 1,000 $500 prizes were won. The Holiday MILLIONAIRE RAFFLE game generated more than $1.7 million in revenue for education.
DSC’s online bachelor’s degrees continue among nation’s best
5th year running, DSC keeps pace with prestigious national universities
Despite increasing competition, Daytona State College continues its run among the nation’s higher education institutions offering the best online bachelor’s degree programs, according to the newest rankings released today by U.S. News & World Report. DSC remains the only Florida state college in the top tier and ranks 15th among more than 300 public and private colleges and universities offering online bachelor’s degrees.
In the 2017 Top Online Bachelor’s Programs rankings, Daytona State stood with the best through its Bachelor of Applied Science in Supervision and Management (BAS), Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology (BSET) and Bachelor of Science in Information Technology (BSIT) degrees. DSC’s ranking came by virtue of a five-way tie with Colorado State University’s Global Campus, Fort Hays State University, Washington State University and the Savannah College of Art and Design. DSC was the only member of the Florida College System to place in the rankings.
“Our faculty and staff have been extraordinarily innovative in delivering curricula in the online arena and in making our students career ready,” said President Tom LoBasso. “Their success comes from a college-wide commitment to a culture of continuous improvement, one that has seen us evolve our online processes and advance our methodologies to reflect the latest best practices.”
The rankings were based on criteria such as the quality and experience of each program’s faculty; student engagement, which includes retention and graduation rates; online technology infrastructure and its cost; and student services available online such as mentoring, library services, tutoring, writing workshops, advising, tech support and career placement assistance.
“Our big push since the previous year’s ranking was the full implementation of our 24/7 online technical support system,” said Andrea Gibson, chair of online studies at DSC. “We also had our instructional designers review all online bachelor’s courses in engineering and business, and revamp them where necessary to ensure that they reflect best practices.”
Daytona State began offering bachelor’s degrees in 2006 in response to a statewide need to increase Florida’s college-educated workforce. The college now offers 11 bachelor’s programs: the BAS, BSET, BSIT, seven BS in Education degrees and the Bachelor of Science in Nursing.
Over 1,600 baccalaureate students enrolled in DSC online bachelor’s degree courses during the 2015-2016 academic year, with more than 13,100 choosing an online course in all one-, two- and four-year programs combined. This fall semester alone, 1,143 students have enrolled in a bachelor’s-level online course.
For more information on the rankings, see U.S. News & World Report 2017 Best Online Education Programs rankings. For more information on all Daytona State’s online programs, visit DaytonaState.edu/online.
Florida Supreme Court: New Postings, 1/10/2017, 10:15 a.m. ET
New material has been posted to the Supreme Court website in:
- Brian Pitts v. Joe Negron (challenge to legislative actions transferred to Leon circuit court)
- State v. Kelly Mathis (jurisdiction answer brief filed)
Follow the links at: http://www.floridasupremecourt.org.
Hollywood man claims $1 million prize playing the MONOPOLY $5,000,000 FLORIDA EDITION scratch-off game
The Florida Lottery announces that Shaune Wilson, 57, of Hollywood, claimed a $1 million prize in the MONOPOLYTM$5,000,000 FLORIDA EDITION Scratch-Off game at Florida Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. He chose to receive his winnings as a one-time, lump-sum payment of $770,000.
Wilson purchased his winning ticket from Winn-Dixie, located at 308 East Dania Beach Boulevard in Dania. The retailer will receive a $2,000 bonus commission for selling the winning Scratch-Off ticket.
The $20 Scratch-Off game, MONOPOLY $5,000,000 FLORIDA EDITION, launched on July 5, and features more than $346 million in prizes, including six top prizes of $5,000,000 and 20 prizes of $1 million! The game’s overall odds of winning are one-in-2.97.
Scratch-Off games are an important part of the Lottery’s portfolio of games, comprising approximately 65 percent of ticket sales and generating more than $734 million for the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF) in fiscal year 2015-16.
U.S. News & World Report Names UNF ‘Best Online Bachelor’s’ Program in the Nation
The University of North Florida is among hundreds of higher education institutions included in U.S. News & World Report’s 2017 Best Online Programs rankings released today. UNF is ranked among the Top 50 colleges and universities in the country for “Best Online Bachelor’s Programs,” which includes data from more than 1,300 distance-education degree programs nationwide.
UNF, ranked No. 48, is the only local higher education institution listed among the rankings in this category. The University also landed on the “Best Online Education Programs” and “Best Online Criminal Justice and Criminology Programs,” both graduate-level rankings.
“It’s very rewarding to have U.S. News & World Report rank our bachelor’s and graduate education online programs among the best in the nation,” said UNF President John Delaney. “Faculty in our online programs are committed to this form of program delivery and have developed course materials and teaching methods that are second to none.”
U.S. News assessed schools based on four general categories: student engagement (including participation in courses that allow students opportunities to readily interact with instructors and fellow classmates), faculty credentials and training (including doctoral and tenure-track faculty and formal training for faculty in distance education), student services and technology (including diverse online learning technologies, career guidance and financial aid resources) and peer reputation (including industry opinions that account for intangible factors on program quality that is not captured by statistics).
“UNF continues to support academic programs and departments as they develop online courses to meet the needs of students,” said Dr. Len Roberson, UNF associate vice president for Academic Technology and Innovation. “Our desire is to offer online courses that are not only high-quality but that provide students with greater access to the University’s excellent programs.”
The University has been offering online bachelor’s degree programs since 2013-14. The faculty provide students with personalized attention to promote success. Using the principles of community and public health nursing, students work in partnership with local community agencies on a project that is applicable to the current workplace and will promote health within the population.
UNF is leading the way in distance learning for interpreter education with distance students from around the United States and Europe. Within the College of Education and Human Services, the University’s ASL/English Interpreting graduate program offers a Master’s degree in Interpreting Pedagogy, which combines fully online courses with intensive face-to-face learning in the summer. Nationally, this program is one of only a few master’s degrees in interpreter pedagogy.
The University’s online graduate education programs include Doctor of Nursing Practice, Doctor of Nursing Practice in Psychological-Mental Health, Doctor of Clinical Nutrition, Master of Science in American Sign Language/English Interpreting, Master of Education in Special Education: Autism Track, Master of Education in Educational Leadership: Instructional Technology Track, Master of Science in Nutrition and Dietetics, Master of Science in Criminal Justice, RN-BSN Bridge Track as well as Graduate Certificates in Early Childhood Education, Sport Management, Global Health and Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages.
This latest recognition comes on the heels of UNF receiving several other national designations, including Kiplinger’s Personal Finance’s 2017, “Best Regional University” by U.S. News & World Report, “Best in the Southeast” by Princeton Review, “Best Bang for the Buck Southeast Colleges 2016” by Washington Monthly, 2017 “Best College” by College Factual and the national 2016 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from Insight into Diversity magazine, to name a few.
U.S. News & World Report rankings are based on factors such as graduation rates, indebtedness of new graduates and academic and career support services offered to students. Only degree-granting programs offering classes entirely online were considered. For more information on the “Best Online Programs” rankings, visit www.usnews.com/online.
UNF, a nationally ranked university located on an environmentally beautiful campus, offers students who are dedicated to enriching the lives of others the opportunity to build their own futures through a well-rounded education.
Longwood woman claims top prize playing $500,000 HOLIDAY MILLIONS scratch-off game
The Florida Lottery announces that Patricia Cobey, 59, of Longwood, claimed a top prize in the $500,000 HOLIDAY MILLIONS Scratch-Off game at Florida Lottery Headquarters in Tallahassee. She purchased her winning ticket from Publix, located at 301 West Road in Ocoee.
The $5 Scratch-Off game, $500,000 HOLIDAY MILLIONS, launched in October 2016, and features more than 2.9 million prizes, including eight top prizes of $500,000! The game’s overall odds of winning are one-in-4.06.
Scratch-Off games are an important part of the Lottery’s portfolio of games, comprising approximately 65 percent of ticket sales and generating more than $734 million for the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF) in fiscal year 2015-16.
Gov. Scott: Ken Lawson Will Fight for Florida Tourism
Governor Rick Scott today released the following statement on Ken Lawson being named the new President and Chief Executive Officer for VISIT FLORIDA. The VISIT FLORIDA Board voted today on Ken Lawson’s position. Announcements on leadership for DBPR will be made soon.
Governor Scott said, “I am proud that Ken Lawson has been selected as the new President and Chief Executive Officer for VISIT FLORIDA. I appointed Ken as Secretary for the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation shortly after taking office and for nearly six years, he has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to serving Florida families.
“Ken understands the responsibility we have to be transparent with every tax dollar. He has tirelessly fought to make it easier for Florida businesses to create jobs, has helped cut millions of dollars in fees and has streamlined the agency to ensure the state reduced burdensome regulations. At DBPR, he oversaw crucial parts of Florida’s tourism industry and knows that tourism is important to the economic growth of our state.
“A native Floridian and military veteran, Ken has an incredible appreciation and understanding for our great state. I know he will use his unmatched experience and love for Florida to promote tourism while bringing much needed reforms to VISIT FLORIDA so our state can break even more tourism records. I look forward to continuing to work with Ken in his new role as President and CEO and appreciate the VISIT FLORIDA Board for selecting such a strong leader.”
Ken Lawson has served as Secretary of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) since he was appointed by Governor Scott in March 2011. Previously Lawson held several senior positions with federal law enforcement agencies including Assistant Secretary of Enforcement for the Department of the Treasury, Assistant Chief Counsel for Field Operations at the Transportation Security Administration, and Assistant United States Attorney in the Criminal Division for the Middle District of Florida (Tampa). Lawson has also served as a Captain in the United States Marine Corps, Judge Advocate General’s Division. Additionally, Lawson directed international anti-money laundering, anticorruption, and counterterrorist financing projects for Booz Allen Hamilton and served as Vice-President for Compliance at nFinanSe Inc., a financial services company in Tampa. He is a graduate of Florida State University and the Florida State University College of Law.
