Hidden Gems of Gainesville

Recently, I finished reading "The Tipping Point" by Malcolm Gladwell. Amazon gives an excellent synopsis of the book: "The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate. This widely acclaimed bestseller, in which Malcolm Gladwell explores and brilliantly illuminates the tipping point phenomenon, is already changing the way people throughout the world think about selling products and disseminating ideas." I didn't take me a long time to read it because it was so good! To me, it shows a new way of understanding how change occurs so quickly and unexpectedly without any knowledge of where it came from. Gladwell goes into such depth as to how ideas and behaviors sometimes increase and dispe

This is my last year at UF, and I'm graduating in August. I have made some great friends and colleagues. Quan McWil is a transfer student just like me, and he was one of the first people I met at UF. He has worked so hard at WUFT to get to where he is. Quan has the most creative stories and the best standup! He knows how to tell a story and cares so much about it. Lauren Staff always had the best stories of the day in the newscast. I love to read and watch her stories on Gator Gymnastics. I have only had a couple of interactions with her, but she always was so nice and has a great attitude. Abby Murphy is someone I aspire to be! She has created such a great brand for herself. Abby wants to work in the entertainment industry, and I totally see her doing that. She is the entertainment beat reporter; she has a podcast on GHQ  and so many other things. Every time I see her, she looks so put together. I can't wait to see these three strive after college!

It's always great to see my classmates working hard, and achieving their dreams and goals. There are more women in UF's College of Journalism and Communications than men. Three students including Sofia LaFrance ,   Kara Spierto  and Alyssa Bethencourt . All three girls are graduating this semester, and I couldn't be more proud of them. Sofia and Kara are aspiring sports reporters and do a ton of work with ESPN Gainesville . They shoot and write recaps and play-by-plays for college and high school sports. Alyssa hopes to work on the producing side of a network show like Ellen, The Wendy Williams Show, etc. She is also FOX's college ambassador  and worked as a production assistant there as well. I am so proud of these girls and can't wait to see them strive!