Bob Graham Center for Public Service

On Jan. 26 at 6 p.m. in the Pugh Hall Ocora, Former U.S diplomat John Caulfield examined U.S/Cuban relations, providing essential background to the normalization policy announcement, progress since the announcement, and challenges that lie ahead. In a career spanning nearly 40 years, Mr. Caulfield held a variety of positions dealing with Latin America and …

Provost Joe Glover invited UF faculty and staff to a two-day symposium on Jan. 28 and 29 at Emerson Alumni Hall which focused on UF’s strategic goals and charting the course to national preeminence.  The President’s Goal-Setting Task Force established the aspiration and seven goals for the University of Florida to be a premier university that …

In recent years, bitter partisan disputes erupted over health care reform. Democrats and Republicans continue to fiercely contest issues such as prescription drug coverage and how to finance Medicare to absorb the baby boomers. On Feb. 2 at 6 p.m. in the Pugh Hall Ocora, Jonathan Oberlander, professor and chair of Social Medicine and professor of …

Dan Barker is co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation and co-host of Freethought Radio. After 19 years as an evangelical minister, Dan "saw the light" and announced his atheism in 1984. His first public appearance as an atheist was on Oprah Winfrey's "AM Chicago." Since that time he has traveled extensively, defending atheism. On …

The forum was held Feb. 10 at 6 p.m. at the Martin Levin Advocacy Center in the University of Florida Levin College of Law (2500 SW 2nd Avenue, across from the President's House). WUFT News Anchor Marie Edinger and editorial page editor Nathan Crabbe will moderated the debate. All candidates who officially qualified were extended an invitation to participate …

Dov Waxman, a professor of political science, international affairs and Israel studies at Northeastern University, discussed his book “Trouble in The Tribe: The American Jewish Conflict over Israel” on Feb. 15 at 6 p.m. in the Pugh Hall Ocora as part of the annual Shorstein Lecture Series. During his public address, Waxman presented the central thesis of his book: …

Dr. Michael Jeffries, associate professor of American Studies at Wellesley College, spoke about his latest book, Paint the White House Black: Barack Obama and the Meaning of Race in America. Dr. Jeffries approaches Obama's election and administration as common cultural ground for thinking about race. He uncovers contemporary stereotypes and anxieties by examining historically rooted conceptions of race and …

Dr. Fredrick Harris, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center on African American Politics and Society at Columbia University, spoke about his latest book,The Price of the Ticket: Barack Obama and the Rise and Fall of Black Politics. In the book, Harris puts Obama's career in the context of decades of black activism, showing …

The "school-to-prison pipeline" refers to policies and practices that push school children, especially at-risk children, out of classrooms and into the criminal justice system.  This pipeline reflects the prioritization of incarceration over education. On March 10 at 6 p.m. in the Pugh Hall Ocora, ABA President Paulette Brown explored how inadequate resources, ineffective discipline policies …

Celebrating 100 years of excellence in journalism and the arts, the College of Journalism and Communications at the University of Florida hosted Paul Tash, chairman and CEO of the Times Publishing Company, on March 14 at 6 p.m. in the Pugh Hall Ocora as part of the Pulitzer Prize Centennial Celebration. The Tampa Bay Times is …