This Week in South Florida Full Episode: March 5, 2023
On the latest episode of This Week in South Florida, host Glenna Milberg welcomes Florida state Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, President and CEO of The Everglades Foundation Eric Eikenberg, Rep. Carlos Gimenez, President of Voters of Tomorrow Jayden D’Onofrio and Ian Lares-Chacín, President of the College Republicans at Florida International University.
FIU partners with iSTAR Enterprises to form altered reality studio
In Local 10 News’ latest Technically Speaking report, anchor Gio Insignares takes us to Florida International University, where a new name and a promised “refocus” for one school plans to take future students into a great, big, beautiful tomorrow.
Analyzing potential damage done by lowering our polluted canals into Biscayne Bay ahead of Hurricane Ian
It is the weekend after Hurricane Ian ravaged the southern Gulf Coast and while South Florida was spared from the storm's devastation, scientists with Florida International University's Institute of Environment are making sure water management didn't unleash a different type of catastrophe.
In study, Biscayne Bay oysters come out on top—for toxic ‘forever chemicals’
A Florida International University study looking at the presence of toxic “forever chemicals” in Florida oysters found that oysters from Biscayne Bay contained the highest concentration of contaminants among three sites researchers tested.
‘Risks from travel will go up’: Doctor reacts to lifting of COVID testing requirements
An infectious disease specialist at Florida International University is explaining the potential ramifications of the Biden administration lifting its requirement that international travelers test negative for COVID-19 within a day before flying to the United States.
Overheated housing markets could burn buyers
A study released Tuesday by researchers at Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University finds that 15 housing markets in the U.S., including one in Florida, are overvalued by 50 percent or more and poised for potential price corrections.
Sexual harassment probe: Ex-FIU president shows ‘extremely poor judgment’
An investigator reported the former president of Florida International University admitted to asking a woman under his direct supervision if “companionship was of interest” to her in October, but she said that what he actually asked was if she wanted to become his “lover.” She said he later started to call her a “princess” and the situation escalated to her crying about her work environment.
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FIU to return to pre-pandemic scheduling
Florida International University plans to return to its pre-pandemic scheduling this summer. MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Florida International University plans to return to pre-pandemic scheduling, starting in the summer session. Provost and Executive Vice President Kenneth Furton announced the change in an email to the school’s faculty and students. Since the global pandemic began, the Miami-based university has held classes either online or with social distancing measures in place. Starting this summer, the university will schedule all courses on the three modalities it used before the pandemic: fully online, fully in person and hybrid, which is a mix of online and in person.
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Atención techies: FIU está ofreciendo maestría en ‘Internet of things’
Copyright 2021 by WPLG Local10.com - All rights reserved. Florida International University ahora ofrece una maestría en ciencia llamada “Internet of Things”. Es una expansión de un título ya disponible en la FIU College of Engineering & Computing. En 2018, la FIU se convirtió en la primera universidad en la nación en ofrecer un título como este. If you need help with the Public File, call (954) 364-2526.
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Attention techies: FIU offering Master’s degree in ‘Internet of Things’
MIAMI – Good news for techies: all that tinkering could actually earn you a Master’s degree. Florida International University is now offering a Master of Science in the “Internet of things.” It’s an expansion of a bachelor’s degree already available at the FIU College of Engineering & Computing. In 2018, FIU became the first in the nation to offer a degree like this. Students, who choose this degree, will learn how to use “smart” technologies found in homes, vehicles, medical equipment, and city infrastructure. For more information about the degree, an online information session will be held March 29.
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Attention techies: FIU offering Master’s degree in ‘Internet of Things’
MIAMI – Good news for techies: all that tinkering could actually earn you a Master’s degree. Florida International University is now offering a Master of Science in the “Internet of things.” It’s an expansion of a bachelor’s degree already available at the FIU College of Engineering & Computing. In 2018, FIU became the first in the nation to offer a degree like this. Students, who choose this degree, will learn how to use “smart” technologies found in homes, vehicles, medical equipment, and city infrastructure. For more information about the degree, an online information session will be held March 29.
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Foundation donates $15.3 million to Miami-Dade’s tech, entrepreneurship community
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation announced Wednesday that it is donating a whopping $15.3 million to invest in Miami-Dade County’s tech and entrepreneurship community. A total of $10 million of that will go to Florida International University to expand what will become the Knight Foundation School of Computing and Information Sciences. This will help the university increase talent development and research in fields such as artificial intelligence, smart robotics, bioinformatics, biodevices and digital forensics. The University of Miami will receive $4.3 million to grow its Institute of Data Science and Computing and Baptist Health will receive $1 million to launch a health care innovation fellowship. According to a news release from the foundation, with these latest investments, Knight will have donated more than $55 million to Miami-Dade’s “tech entrepreneurship ecosystem” since 2012.
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President of construction company in FIU bridge collapse: ‘We wish we would have done more’
UNIVERSITY PARK, Fla. – Munilla Construction Management was one of the companies behind the deadly Florida International University’s pedestrian bridge collapse. Daniel Munilla, the president of the family-owned company, said he wrestles with what could have been done differently to prevent the March 15, 2018 tragedy. “We wish we would have done more.”Munilla said they were aware of a crack in the structure that January. We were assured by a world-renowned designer that it wasn’t a safety concern,” Munilla said. Now with several major projects ongoing, the company is adding safety policies as it works to earn community trust.
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Feds release report on investigation of FIU pedestrian bridge collapse
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Federal investigators determined the probable cause of the deadly Florida International University pedestrian bridge collapse in 2018 was related to engineers’ calculation errors, according to a National Transportation Safety Board report released on Tuesday. The Louis Berger Group peer review failed to detect the load and capacity calculation errors by Tallahassee-based FIGG Bridge Engineers, according to the NTSB report. The calculation errors are related to the designs of the connection to the bridge deck and the main span truss, an assembly of elements that create a rigid structure, according to the report. Investigators believe the parties involved in the construction of the bridge should have closed Southwest EighthStreet to protect public safety. The bridge collapse killed six people: Alexa Duran, 18, Navarro Brown, 37, Brandon Brownfield, 39, Alberto Arias, 53, Oswaldo Gonzalez, 57, and Rolando Fraga, 60.
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This Week in South Florida: Melba Pearson and Rafael Yaniz
PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – Another busy week in the news means more great topics for discussion on the This Week in South Florida roundtable. Melba Pearson is the Director of Policy and Programs for the Center for the Administration of Justice at Florida International University. Rafael Yaniz is also an attorney in Miami and a political analyst and writer. They joined TWISF hosts Michael Putney and Glenna Milberg, and the roundtable discussion can be seen at the top of this page.
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2 FIU students receive $5,000 scholarships from Zoo Miami
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Two Florida International University students received a special surprise Thursday from Zoo Miami. “The Ron Magill Conservation Scholarship came as a product of the Ron Magill Conservation Endowment -- that’s an endowment I started here at the zoo to help protect animals in the wild,” Zoo Miami’s Ron Magill said. Magill passed out the $5,000 checks Thursday to the two students who participated in the first ever selection process. Both students are focusing on species of sea turtles and doing their field studies of hatchings. “I would love to use this money for (that) and also to support my research.”“I was trying to do a sea turtle project in Cuba.
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Former President Barack Obama campaigns for Joe Biden at FIU’s main campus in Miami
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Former President Barack Obama campaigned for Presidential Candidate Joe Biden Monday night at Florida International University’s main campus in Miami-Dade County. Ohio holds 18 electoral votes and Pennsylvania holds 20, and both are state that President Donald Trump won in 2016. South Florida is a big area that both candidates are gunning for and Florida is also one of the key battleground states that Trump won during the 2016 election. The region was once a major hub of anthracite coal mining, and the county backed Trump in 2016 after previously supporting Obama. Harris said a Biden administration will work to make the country the world’s top maker of electric vehicles.
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FIU football game vs. Marshall postponed because of COVID-19 and injuries
MIAMI – Florida International University’s football game Friday night against Marshall has been postponed because of a “lack of available scholarship student-athletes,” the school announced. FIU says the decision follows Conference USA’s guidelines for dealing with the virus “which require a threshold for the game to be played safely. The shortage is due to quarantining of COVID-19 positive tests and contact tracing, as well as injuries.”A new date for the game will be announced at a later time, the school says. FIU is 0-3 this season and also had its Oct. 17 game postponed because of coronavirus cases within the football program. The next scheduled game is Nov. 7 at UTEP.
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This Week in South Florida: Kathryn DePalo-Gould and Sean Forman
PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – A favorite part of This Week in South Florida has always been the roundtable discussions, where some of the sharpest political minds are brought together to analyze the week’s top stories. Kathryn DePalo-Gould is a professor of politics and international relations at Florida International University. She has had hands-on experience running a political campaign. Sean Forman is a professor of political science and chair of that department at Barry University. The full roundtable discussion with This Week in South Florida hosts Glenna Milberg and Michael Putney can be seen at the top of this page.
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UM and FIU join UF and FSU on Spring Break 2021 cancellation
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Spring break is an institution in South Florida, but two South Florida institutions of higher learning won’t be having it in 2021. The University of Florida and Florida State University previously said they will also cancel spring break this school year. University of Miami President Julio Frenk said his school’s spring semester will begin a week later than initially scheduled, on Jan. 25, and students will also get two “Wellness Wednesdays” off. “I know it hasn’t been easy, and I can’t promise that it will become any easier anytime soon. FIU has proposed a calendar in which classes would end a week earlier rather than taking a week off for spring break.
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REPLAY: ’Saving Biscayne Bay’ special plus Q&A with Louis Aguirre and FIU experts
Local 10′s special “Saving Biscayne Bay” aired Wednesday night, followed by an online Q&A featuring Louis Aguirre and environmental experts from Florida International University. The discussion centered on how to help the bay after the recent fish kills and algae bloom. A replay of the special broadcast and Q&A can be seen below:
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Man killed in barbershop dispute near FIU identified by police
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. Police have identified the man killed in a shooting Thursday near Florida International University as Jose Luis Contreras Carmona, 39, of Hialeah. Miami-Dade detectives say Carmona was shot multiple times after an argument inside a barbershop spilled into a shopping center parking lot along Southwest 8th Street and 107th Avenue, not far from FIUs main campus. Carmona had been taken to Kendall Regional Trauma Center, where he died from his injuries. Investigators say a suspect in the shooting fled in a white vehicle. A Be on the Lookout was issued for a white Mercedes-Benz SUV that was spotted leaving the scene Thursday afternoon.
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FIU assistant coach Aubrey Hill dies after battle with cancer
MIAMI An assistant coach on the Florida International University football team passed away Sunday. FIU announced that wide receiver coach Aubrey Hill died following a battle with cancer. "It was a shock to learn of Aubrey's passing tonight after his long battle with cancer," FIU Head Coach Butch Davis said. Before joining the FIU coaching staff, Hill spent four years as the head football coach at Miami Carol City High School, winning a Class 6A state title in 2016. His coaching resume also includes stops at the University of Miami, University of Florida, Marshall University, the University of Pittsburgh and Duke University.
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FIU scientists join search for culprit of dead-fish sightings in Biscayne Bay
NORTH MIAMI, Fla. Researchers from The Institute of Environment at Florida International University have joined the group of scientists who are investigating the recent dead-fish sightings in Miami-Dade Countys Biscayne Bay. Witnesses reported thousands of dead fish washed ashore as far north as 135th Street in North Miami and as far south as Miamis Museum Park area. FIU researchers are focusing on the area off of Morningside Park where the fish kill appears to have started. Miami Waterkeeper, an advocacy group, reported a high level of bacteria in the area. Miami Waterkeeper researchers have warned about algae blooms and seagrass die-offs due to pollution.
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Infectious disease expert stands against reopening schools in Miami-Dade County
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. As discussions about whether or not to reopen public schools in Miami-Dade County continue, some experts are concerned about how a rush to reopen could potentially worsen the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and cost more lives. Dr. Aileen Marty, an infectious disease expert at Florida International University, is one of Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez most outspoken advisers. That means theyre just as contagious as anybody else.Marty believes it would be completely unwise to reopen schools with the current 20% testing positivity rate. She is among the experts who believe it will only be safe to do so when the positivity rate is below 10%. Without a vaccine, Marty said hospitalizations should be lower and Miami-Dade should have more efficient testing and contact tracing.
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Local hospitals seeing younger people with coronavirus, but does that mean no reason for concern?
PLANTATION, Fla. With 30,196 cases in Miami-Dade County, up 25 percent in one day and 13,320 coronavirus cases in Broward County, up 11 percent since the previous day, local hospitals are expressing concern. In Miami-Dade County, hospitalizations in the same time period were 3,887, which is 13 percent of all cases of people who presented with COVID-19 symptoms. In a period of ten days, Jackson Health System in Miami has doubled the number of patients they have seen coming through their doors. Carlos A. Migoya, president and CEO of Jackson Health System, says there are some challenges. Theyve ended up in a car accident or other things, and as we test every patient that comes in, we have found them to be (COVID-19) positive.
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I-95 shooting victims mother announces $5,000 reward still available
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. Shiela Nez is still grieving and she needs closure. Her 22-year-old daughter, Melissa Gonzalez, was the victim of a Jan. 3 shooting and there havent been any arrests. On Thursday, Nez announced the $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in the fatal shooting is still available. Miami-Dade police are searching for the driver of this car who was in the area of I-95 and NW 79th Street the night Melissa Gonzalez was fatally shot. Nez and Cortina want anyone with information about the shooters or shooters who are responsible for Gonzalezs death to call Miami-Dade County Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477.
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Experts say rushing to reopen South Florida could result in rapid rise in coronavirus cases
Rushing to reopen, she said, could result in another rapid rise in cases, so it’s better to do it right the first time. She said the reopening needs to come with people wearing masks and social distancing. Hialeah, Hollywood, Fort Lauderdale, Orlando, Jacksonville and Miami Beach, Tampa, West Palm Beach and Homestead followed, according to the Florida Department of Health’s Wednesday afternoon report. Dr. Deborah Birx, the response coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force, also said testing asymptomatics is key. Monroe County Mayor Heather Carruthers said leaders in the Florida Keys will be waiting for testing to ramp up before reopening.
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Florida officials direct public universities to transition to online classes
MIAMI – The State University System of Florida directed public universities on Wednesday to start transitioning to online classes “immediately.”“This directive will be reevaluated as the situation continues to develop,” the state education officials said in a statement about the new strategy to help prevent COVID-19 cases in Florida. The directive includes state universities with students who have returned from spring break, which includes Florida Gulf Coast University, Florida International University, Florida Polytechnic University, and the University of Florida. Public university officials will be encouraging students from other public schools to return home for at least two weeks or to not return to campus. This includes students at Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, Florida Atlantic University, Florida State University, New College of Florida, the University of North Florida, the University of Central Florida, the University of South Florida, and the University of West Florida. Miami Dade College and 27 other public colleges in Florida are following the recommendation of the Florida Department of Education to remain open.

Vehicle crashes into liquor store at University Office Center
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - A vehicle crashed into a liquor store Tuesday in southwest Miami-Dade County. Sky 10 was above the University Office Center at Southwest 107th Avenue and Southwest Eighth Street, near Florida International University. An SUV could be seen completely inside the liquor store. Firefighters said the SUV crashed into the store, causing its engine to catch on fire, creating a thick cloud of smoke. Witnesses who work nearby in the same plaza said a woman and her daughter appeared to be trapped inside the SUV.

VIDEO: FIU student robbed by armed suspect inside on-campus garage
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - A Florida International University student was robbed Friday inside a parking garage on the Southwest Miami-Dade campus. Police say the male student had left campus to go to the bank and was followed back to campus. Security video shows the student parking his white sedan inside Parking Garage 6 as the suspects block him in from behind. One of the suspects gets out of his vehicle and approaches the victim and robs the man. One of the suspects then gets out of the car and pulls the victim off the hood.

FIU student robbed by armed suspect inside on-campus garage
SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - A Florida International University student was robbed Friday inside a parking garage on the Southwest Miami-Dade campus. Police say the male student had left campus to go to the bank and was followed back to campus. Once the student drove back inside Parking Garage 6, the victim was approached by one of two suspects who attempted to rob the man. The student was injured in the robbery, but the extent of his injuries is not known. Police advised students and staff to avoid the area near the garage, but have since given the all-clear signal to resume normal activities.

Former FIU professor killed by train in Massachusetts
Moses Shumow, who spent nearly a decade at Florida International University, was struck and killed by a commuter train in Massachusetts. PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. - A former Florida International University professor was struck and killed by a commuter train Tuesday in a Boston suburb. Moses Shumow was riding his bicycle through the pedestrian cut-through at a train depot in Beverly, Massachusetts, when he was fatally struck by an outbound train, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority police said. Shumow recently joined the faculty at Emerson College after nearly 10 years at FIU. "We are deeply saddened by the sudden and tragic passing of our friend and colleague Dr. Moses Shumow," Brian Schriner, dean of FIU's College of Communication, Architecture + the Arts, said in a statement Wednesday.

NTSB says FIU part of 'massive oversight failure' in bridge collapse
WASHINGTON - Federal investigators looking into the deadly bridge collapse at Florida International University confirm that a flawed design is to blame for the disaster that killed six people. Additionally, the National Transportation Safety Board determined, during a public meeting held Tuesday, that the failure of all concerned parties to recognize and take action on the threat to public safety led to the deadly pedestrian bridge collapse at FIU on March 15, 2018. There were "failures at all levels" of the collapse that killed six people and injured ten, the NTSB stated. FIU president Mark Rosenberg was at the meeting as the NTSB revealed the university was part of that oversight failure. "All parties had the authority to close the bridge and did not act on that authority," stated Robert L. Sumwalt, chairman of the NTSB.

NTSB report indicates signs of trouble days before FIU bridge collapse
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - New information has been released regarding the deadly bridge collapse at Florida International University last year. Hundreds of photos to go with thousands of pages of evidence and observations make up a newly released report, as the NTSB nears the end of its investigation. Six people were killed when the newly built pedestrian bridge crashed down without any warning onto the pavement below. The report indicates that there were signs of trouble days before the deadly incident. The NTSB has made changes to some policies in road closure and project oversight as Southwest 8th Street should not have been open on the day the bridge collapsed.

Florida International University cancels Friday classes
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - Florida International University canceled Friday and Saturday classes. According to Maydel Santana, a spokeswoman for FIU, the campuses in Miami-Dade and Broward counties will remain open, including the libraries, food services and the recreation centers. "Our goal is to keep our campuses safe and get them up and running as soon as possible after the storm," Santana wrote in an e-mail Thursday night. The students who live on campus at University Park and North Miami Beach are receiving instructions from the department of housing and residential life. FIU will continue to provide updates on their social media channels.

Officials aware of social media threat at FIU
SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, Fla. - Florida International University police say they are aware of a threat made on social media that features a photo of a semi-automatic weapon. Word of the social media post circulated through campus Wednesday morning and afternoon. The threat with the gun photo appears to have been made in response to comments from another person. "I can walk into class with this energy if you keep pissing me of u coward lil kid," the post reads. In a statement, campus police say they believe the threat is not imminent, but that a plan is in place "to ensure the safety of our FIU Community."

6 South Florida Hispanic students awarded college scholarships from McDonald's
MIAMI - Six Hispanic students from South Florida have been awarded McDonald's HACER National Scholarships. A total of 30 Hispanic high school seniors from around the country were awarded the scholarship to pursue their dreams of higher education. Below is a list of the well-deserving seniors from South Florida: Kendra Da Silva, of Coral Glades High School, who is attending Harvard University. Kimberly Ramos, of Palm Beach Gardens Community High School, who is attending the University of Central Florida. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Hispanic college enrollment is at a record high.

Florida International University mourns football player killed in car crash
FIU head football boach Butch Davis described Lubin, who enrolled at FIU on Aug. 28, 2015 and wore No. "Our football program is mourning his loss and we will honor Emmanuel every day moving forward," Davis said. Biggers, play football for the Miami Xtreme Youth Football League. They both played for the North Miami Beach Sundevils youth football program. Miami-Dade Officer Rich Raphael, the president of the Miami Xtreme Youth Football League, was in tears Sunday.

Florida International University mourns football player killed in car crash
MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. - Emmanuel Lubin, a Florida International University football player and graduate of North Miami Beach Senior High School, died in a Saturday night car crash. Biggers, play football for the Miami Xtreme Youth Football League. They both played for the North Miami Beach Sundevils Youth Football program. Miami-Dade Officer Rich Raphael, the president of the Miami Xtreme Youth Football League, was in tears Sunday. He said he remembers Lubin as a "fun loving kid" who wore his North Miami Beach Sundevils Youth Football program uniform with pride.
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Body pulled from lake at FIU's Biscayne Bay Campus
NORTH MIAMI, Fla. – The body of man was pulled from a lake Tuesday morning at Florida International University's Biscayne Bay Campus in North Miami, university officials confirmed. The body was discoverd by FIU police in a lake near the entrance of the campus. Sky 10 was above the scene as a green tarp covered the body on the bank of the lake. Miami-Dade police are investigating the death, which led to a heightened police presence on campus Tuesday. According to a letter sent to students and faculty, school officials said there was no known potential of any threat to the campus.