A shout of joy echoes through Idylwild Elementary School’s media center every Thursday afternoon, as anywhere from 15 to 20 kids run into the room. Fifteen minutes before the double doors burst open, Alexa Tierney, Holly Buss and the rest of Eastside High School’s ReadSquad are setting up shop. The …
Read More »US judge considers motion to block evidence in terrorism case of ex-UF student
A federal judge is considering a request by a former University of Florida student to block prosecutors from using his own statements to the FBI years ago in the Middle East in his upcoming terrorism trial. It was the latest twist in the legal case against Mohamed Fathy Suliman, 34, …
Read More »One of Florida’s popular destinations for rally racing? It’s in Starke
It may not be the Daytona International Speedway or the Sebring International Raceway, but the Florida International Rally and Motorsports Park (FIRM) in Starke is one of the only places in the nation that offers European rally racing. And that’s not all they’re up to. “Think of it like Disney …
Read More »National Merit Semifinalists begin breathing a sigh of relief
Alachua County Public Schools announced a record number of National Merit Semifinalists. Forty-five seniors — 26 from Buchholz High School, 11 from Eastside High School and eight from Gainesville High School — earned semifinalist designation.
Read More »See who won Alachua County’s 2022 midterm elections
Alachua County Commissioner District 1 Mary Alford vs. Raemi Eagle-Glenn Mary Alford took in around 58% of the vote, reclaiming the seat for commissioner of District 1, according to the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections. Alford, 61, resigned in May after an investigation from The Gainesville Sun found she was …
Read More »Meet the candidates running for Alachua County’s District 2 commissioner seat
Candidates Marihelen Wheeler and Ed Braddy are going head-to-head for the District 2 County Commission seat. Wheeler is pursuing re-election as the incumbent, while Braddy is making his return to politics after serving as Gainesville mayor from 2013 to 2016 and previously on the Gainesville City Commission. Wheeler, a 71-year-old …
Read More »The Point, Oct. 25, 2022: How to watch tonight’s Gainesville mayoral debate
WUFT and the Gainesville Sun have partnered to host the event between the two Gainesville candidates.
Read More »Parkland school shooter to get life sentence for killing 17 people
Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz will be sentenced to life without parole for the 2018 murder of 17 people at Parkland’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, after the jury said Thursday that it could not unanimously agree that he should be executed.
Read More »The Point, Oct. 6, 2022: How one man survived Hurricane Ian aboard his boat
Danny Ross says he has at least three lives after multiple close calls.
Read More »Florida Standards Assessments’ replacement increases testing time
Alachua County Public Schools began taking standardized tests with the new Florida Assessment of Student Thinking less than a month into the school year. Students in voluntary prekindergarten through 10th grade will participate in this assessment three times a year. Florida Assessment of Student Thinking replaces the end-of-the-year Florida Standards Assessments and monitors student progress in the fall, winter and spring. Each cycle tests students’ knowledge of the entire year’s material in English Language Arts and mathematics, according to the Florida Department of Education. But critics of the new assessment say more time spent testing means less instructional time.
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