Title: Gator Day at the Capitol

Summary: Commending the University of Florida for its continued achievements in the pursuit of academic and research excellence and recognizing April 8, 2021, as "Gator Day" at the Capitol, etc.

Full Text:
WHEREAS, the University of Florida continues its upward momentum, with colleges and graduate programs ranked in the top nationally among the country s public universities, including programs ranked in the top 10, according to the 2022 U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate Schools rankings, and WHEREAS, the University of Florida s research spending reached a record $942.2 million in 2020, and the university s work continues to yield huge returns for this state, among them advances, discoveries, and inventions that address the most pressing needs of our time, and WHEREAS, the University of Florida has faculty members who are members of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and WHEREAS, through a groundbreaking partnership with leading technology company NVIDIA, the University of Florida now has the most powerful artificial intelligence computer in higher education, and the university is pursuing a strategy to become a world leader in AI education, research, and workforce development, uniquely positioning the state of Florida as a destination for AI-related industries, and WHEREAS, UF Health researchers and clinicians, faced with a year of unprecedented challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, fought this deadly disease on numerous fronts, from successfully treating thousands of patients across this state and nation to developing breakthrough treatments, such as a lung pacemaker to help severely sick patients breathe, and WHEREAS, UF Health researchers and clinicians performed numerous lung transplants on COVID-19 patients whose lungs were too compromised by the virus to be viable, while other researchers unlocked the mysteries of COVID-19 in labs and led the way in community testing, and WHEREAS, the University of Florida continues to welcome Gators through the UF Online pathway, with more than 4,500 active students earning their UF baccalaureate degrees on the pathway, in addition to the more than 3,000 who have already graduated through UF Online, and WHEREAS, UF Online is now the No. online bachelor s program in the nation, as ranked by U.S. News & World Report in 2021, and is the No. online bachelor s program in the nation for veterans, accomplishments achieved while keeping college affordable and saving Florida residents more than $22 million in tuition and fees since 2014, and WHEREAS, the University of Florida athletic program has ranked among the nation s top for consecutive years   from 1983-1984 to 2018-2019   and has attained a top overall finish in each of the last years, according to national all-sports rankings, NOW, THEREFORE, Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of Florida: That the University of Florida is commended for its continued achievements in the pursuit of academic and research excellence and that April 8, 2021, is recognized as  Gator Day  at the Capitol. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a copy of this resolution, with the Seal of the Senate affixed, be presented to University of Florida President W. Kent Fuchs, Ph.D., as a tangible token of the sentiments of the Florida Senate.