Election Results

First, let me congratulate all of the candidates in this most recent election.  I know first hand that the slating process is difficult and competitive, so congrats to all whose names appeared on the ballot.

I'm excited to announce that Cory Yeffet, Vivan Nguyen, and Elliot Grasso have won their races for Student Body President, Vice President and Treasurer.  I worked extensively with Cory and Elliot during my tenure in Senate and have seen Vivan's exceptional work in her current role in cabinet.  I am confident that these leaders will have a lasting positive impact on student life here at UF.  As Joselyn, Jayce, and I finish the remainder of our terms we will be working with the newly elected officers to ensure a smooth transition.

Finally, congratulations to all of the voters in this election.  Participation in the democratic process is essential to ensure its longevity.  Thank you to all who took time to cast your vote and to make your voice heard.

Vote Today!

Me and Treasurer Jayce Victor after voting

It's hard to believe that it has been a year since Joselyn, Jayce, and I ran for office!  It always amazes me at how fast time goes by.  Nonetheless, we have made it to another election season and TODAY is the last day to vote.  Regardless of which party you support, I encourage everyone to vote.  Voting is the backbone of democracy and an active electorate is the best way to ensure effective representation.

I voted early yesterday morning, but you can vote until 8:30 tonight at the following locations.  All you need is your Gator1 Card.

• Broward Hall Basement
• Bryan Hall study area on the second floor (Near Room 212)
• CSE – Main room until 4:30, then location moves to Marston Library
• Health Science Center C2-041C
• Jennings first floor library
• Law School (Bruton –Greer)- side hallway near cafeteria
• Marston Science Library Main room
• Murphree Area Commons Conference Area Room 106
• Reitz Union Computer Lab (now located on the ground floor)
• Southwest Rec Center – Café near entrance on the left side
• Springs area office room C 202
• Veterinary Medicine Academic Bldg. Education Center, Room V1-104

Young Leaders Conference

Today is the first day of YLC, a weekend-long conference that brings high school students to UF's campus to learn about themselves and how they can become better leaders.  The students participating in YLC will be spending time on campus, at Lake Wauburg, and in the areas immediately surrounding campus.

I will be speaking to the YLC participants as part of the opening ceremonies tonight.  Here is a transcript of some of the things I will say:

Welcome to the University of Florida.  My name is Christina Bonarrigo and I currently serve as the Student Body President here at UF.  YLC is an exciting weekend where high school students meet other leaders from across the state and hone their leadership skills.  Over the course of this weekend, you will learn a lot about yourself, working in groups, and becoming leaders of groups and organizations.  

Most, if not all, of you have figured out the importance of being involved with organizations and activities in addition to the work you do in the classroom.  I firmly believe that the social experiences you have during school are just as important to your education as the academic work that traditionally defines high school.  Your involvement in sports, clubs, student government, and music groups connect you to the surrounding community and the leadership skills you learn this weekend will enable you to have a greater impact in those organizations.

In case you haven't noticed, the theme of this weekend is "Superheroes."  My favorite superhero is Superwoman.  Although I don't have super human speed and can't fly, the idea of working with others for the greater good has driven my desire to serve in student government.  I hope that over the course of this weekend, you will discover how you can improve the community around you.  I know Melina and her team have worked very hard to give you all the best experience possible and I hope you will find this weekend to be fun and informative.  Enjoy your time in the heart of the Gator Nation and Go Gators!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in the Gator Nation!  Today people across the country will gather with family and loved ones to give thanks for the many blessings in life.  Thank you to all of the Gators that make UF the best university in the country.  May your holiday weekend be full of good food, good company, and a healthy dose of relaxation.

State of the Campus Address

At 7:00 on Tuesday, November 19th I will deliver the State of the Campus address in the Reitz Union Grand Ballroom.  This event will feature free food, giveaways, and important updates about all the great things that are happening at UF.

There are many people who have accomplished a lot since the beginning of my administration.  I am excited to celebrate all of our achievements and will continue to look for ways to make the Gator experience better.  

I'm looking forward to seeing everyone on the 19th!  Be sure to check out our Facebook Event and Evite!

Business Spotlight: Spin Chill

Everybody agrees that warm beer sucks. For this week's spotlight, I want to raise awareness about two UF students that hate warm beer so much that they decided to do something about it. Trevor Abbott, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student, and Ty Parker, a mechanical engineer who graduated last year, are co-founders of a company called Spin Chill that has designed a product that has the ability to chill a canned beverage must faster than a fridge or a cooler of ice.

Putting a can in a fridge or cooler of ice can take between 10 and 30 minutes to cool to an enjoyable drinking temperature. By using the Spin Chill Chill Bit, a beer can go from room temperature to 32 degrees Fahrenheit in two to three minutes. How? By spinning the container in ice or ice water, convection is introduced to both the inside and outside of the container, thus increasing the rate of heat transfer and cooling the beverage down at a rate of at least 20 times faster than otherwise possible.

Trevor and Ty originally came up with the idea during the summer of 2013 when both traveled to Atlanta, GA for the AngelHack hackathon as a part of the HackerHouse accelerator program that both were involved with.

"Typically hackathons are software based, but Ty and I, having mechanical engineering backgrounds, didn't want to do coding. We were brainstorming ideas at a bar and couldn't come up with much, so we grabbed a case of beer and headed back to our hotel. The case of beer was warm, so we cooled it the quickest way we knew how: by spinning the cans by hand in a bucket of ice water. That's when we decided we were going to invent something that could do that for us. We ended up taking second place at the the Atlanta AngelHack hackathon with it," said Trevor Abbott.

After that weekend, the two came back to Gainesville and got to work on making their idea come to life. They just launched their newest product yesterday, the Beerouette, which is a fully self-contained beer chiller. It can spin cans and bottles and runs off of just four AA batteries. For more information about the awesome new product designed by two of our very own students, check out www.spinchill.com or find the Spin Chill page on Facebook, because everyone agrees that cold beer is the best beer.