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The students on campus have changed as well. They’re no longer a standard type. “This is another thing that makes our campus great — there is no typical student,” Osborn says. “We have students who join us straight from high school and we have students entering USFSM with credits from dual enrollment. A large portion of our students came to us as transfers from State College of Florida and we also have working professionals and non-traditional students who earn their degrees at night or online. We have a terrific blend of all types of students, but what unites them is their thirst for knowledge and their love for this area. Who wouldn’t want to live here while they earn their degree?” Part of what made the first four-year class a success was the generosity of donors such as Drs. Richard Wharton and Lou Bertha McKenzie-Wharton, who funded a freshman scholarship to cover all the unmet needs of the first 100 freshmen from local high schools. About that commitment, they say, “When we were asked a little more than four years ago to make a contribution toward providing scholarships to the first freshman class at USF Sarasota-Manatee, we did so because we, as educators, recognized the important relationship between education and such factors as socio-economic success. Perhaps, more importantly, we looked at our contribution toward providing scholarships to the first freshman class at USFSM as an investment in persons who will hopefully make a difference in our society by contributing their talents to what is often called ‘the greater good.’” Sarah Bradtmueller, a USFSM student who is part of the May 2017 graduating class, is an elementary education major whose goal is to teach at a local ele- COY CARTER & SARAH BRADTMUELLER “We have a terrific blend of all types of students, but what unites them is their thirst for knowledge and their love for this area. Who wouldn’t want to live here while they earn their degree?” 58 SCENE | MAY 2017


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