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High school seniors and incoming and current college students interested in getting assistance with the Free Application for Federal Student Aid can attend a workshop on Thursday, Feb. 13, from 3-5 p.m. at the College of Central Florida Jack Wilkinson Levy Campus, 15390 N.W. Highway 19, Chiefland.

Students under the age of 24 are strongly encouraged to attend with their parent or guardian. Required documents to bring include the student’s photo identification, parents’ and student’s 2018 income tax returns and all W-2s, Social Security numbers, and birth dates of parents and student, and records of all 2018 untaxed income.

Space is limited. Register at . For more information, call 352-658-4077.

Brown will read from his collection at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 5, in the Dassance Fine Arts Auditorium, and at 12:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 6, in the Humanities and Social Sciences Building 8, Room 110, at the 91��Ƭ Ocala Campus, 3001 S.W. College Road. Tickets are not required and entry is free at both readings.

Brown is the author of three collections of poetry: “The Tradition” (2019), a finalist for the 2019 National Book Award; “The New Testament” (Copper Canyon, 2014), winner of the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award and named one of the best collections of the year by Library Journal, Coldfront, and the Academy of American Poets; and “Please” (New Issues, 2008), which won the 2009 American Book Award, according to the author.

Brown’s daring new book, “The Tradition” details the normalization of evil and history at the intersection of the past and the personal. Poems of fatherhood, legacy, blackness, queerness, worship, and trauma are propelled into stunning clarity by Brown’s mastery. “The Tradition” is a cutting and necessary collection, relentless in its quest for survival while reveling in a celebration of contradiction.

Brown grew up in Louisiana and worked as a speechwriter for the mayor of New Orleans before earning his doctorate in Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Houston. He also holds a Masters in Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of New Orleans. He is an associate professor and the director of the Creative Writing Program at Emory University in Atlanta.

The Debra Vazquez Memorial Poetry Series honors 91��Ƭ English and creative writing professor Debra Vazquez, who died as a result of domestic violence in 2004.

For more information, contact Sandra Cooper at 352-854-2322, ext. 1361, or coopersa@cf.edu.

The College of Central Florida will host a conference for black males in grades seven through 11 and their families, Thursday, Feb. 20, from 6-8 p.m., in the Ewers Century Center, 3001 S.W. College Road, Ocala. The event is free.

Participants will hear success stories from black men from outside our community who have ties to Ocala, learn about opportunities for higher education as well as resources to help them in their growth toward college. Dinner and refreshments will be provided.

Conference speaker and Forest High School alumnus Anthony D. Thomas, managing partner of Thomas Thomas Law LLC in Tallahassee, will share his personal journey from growing up in Ocala to becoming a corporate lawyer. Thomas wants to help black male students and their parents create a vision for success and make their dreams a reality. Group facilitators are attorney Michael Mills of Graham and Mills, Attorneys At Law in Orlando, and Major Earl Filmore Jr., 91��Ƭ and Lake Weir High School alumnus and director of Military Services and Affairs for Bethune-Cookman University. They will promote higher education, career exploration and self-development.

The conference is funded by a 91��Ƭ Foundation New Initiative Grant.

Seating is limited. To RSVP visit 91��Ƭ.edu/DaretoDream, or for more information contact Dr. Lisa Smith at 352-873-5800, ext. 1243.

The College of Central Florida will host its annual Preview Night open house Tuesday, Feb. 25, from 5-7 p.m. at the Ewers Century Center, 3001 S.W. College Road.

Students who submit an application on site will have their $30 college application fee waived and may enter a drawing to win a scholarship to pay for one three-credit undergraduate class at the in-state rate.

The college will showcase the many career and educational opportunities it offers. Prospective students can attend workshops on Dual Enrollment and Financial Aid. They may also interact with faculty and staff to learn about workforce and certificate programs, and advanced degrees, including 91��Ƭ’s baccalaureate programs.

Preview at the Levy Campus will be held on Saturday, Feb. 29, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Jack Wilkinson Levy Campus, 15390 N.W. Highway 19, Chiefland, and at the Citrus Campus Thursday, March 12, from 5-7 p.m. at the Citrus Learning and Conference Center, 3800 S. Lecanto Highway, Lecanto.

For more information about the free event at the Ocala Campus, call 352-873-5800 or visit www.91��Ƭ.edu/PreviewNight.

The College of Central Florida will host Dr. Jean Twenge, a researcher on Generation Z or iGen, Monday, Feb. 10, at 7:30 p.m., in the Ewers Century Center, 3001 S.W. College Road, Ocala. The event is free and open to the public.

Participants will learn why today’s young people are growing up more slowly, spend more time online and less time with friends face-to-face, and are more likely to experience unhappiness, anxiety, depression and sleep deprivation. Twenge will talk about ways to find a balance with technology, leaving time for activities that are more beneficial for physical and mental health.

Twenge is a professor at San Diego State University and is the author of more than a hundred scientific publications and three books based on her research. Her research has appeared in Time, USA Today, The New York Times and The Washington Post, and she has been featured on Today, Good Morning America and CBS This Morning. She holds degrees from the University of Chicago and University of Michigan.

For more information, contact Dr. James Meier at 352-854-2322, Ext. 1485 or merierj@91��Ƭ.edu.

The Appleton Museum of Art, College of Central Florida, will present the exhibition “At Home in the World: Photographs by Billy Joe Hoyle.,” Jan. 25-June 21, 2020.

Photographer Billy Joe Hoyle has spent the last two decades traveling the world and documenting diverse customs, beliefs and lifestyles. Every country has its own identity and the collection of environmental portraits in “At Home in the World” explores these differences.

Hoyle is a traditionalist who adheres to the philosophy that photographs are never altered or cropped. His “decisive moment” technique is evident in his photographs. In his typical street photographer style, Hoyle’s photographs are unexpected encounters that give an accurate and authentic look into the lives of his subjects.

Artist Talk
Thursday, Feb. 27, 2 p.m.

Join us for a talk with photographer Billy Joe Hoyle and Appleton Curator of Exhibitions Patricia Tomlinson as they discuss the work in Hoyle’s solo exhibition “At Home in the World.” Free for Appleton members; included with museum admission fee for nonmembers.

Owned and operated by the College of Central Florida, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit 

The Appleton Museum of Art, College of Central Florida, will hold its annual Arbor Day observance with a presentation and tour on Thursday, Jan. 30, 11 a.m.

Arbor Day is a nationally-celebrated observance that promotes the benefits of trees in the urban environment and encourages tree planting and care. Most states observe Arbor Day on the last Friday in April, but some states differ to coincide with the best tree-planting weather — from January and February in the south, all the way to May in the far north. This year, Florida will celebrate Arbor Day on Jan. 17.

Arbor Day Presentation and Tour
Thursday, Jan. 30, 11 a.m.

From 11 a.m. to noon in the Appleton auditorium, Rachel Slocumb, City of Ocala Water Resources Conservation coordinator, will give a talk about the soon-to-open Ocala Wetland Recharge Park and how the existing oak hammocks have been influential to the park’s ecosystem. A docent-led tour of flora-themed works in the collection will be available after. Free for Appleton members; included with museum admission fee for nonmembers.

This presentation is organized by Steve MacKenzie, professor of Environmental Sciences at the College of Central Florida. For the past nine years, the College of Central Florida has earned Tree Campus USA recognition for its dedication to campus forestry management and environmental stewardship. Tree Campus USA is a national program of the Arbor Day Foundation that honors colleges, universities and their leaders for promoting healthy management of their campus forests and for engaging the community in environmental stewardship.

“The Arbor Day Foundation requires we have a tree-care plan,” said MacKenzie. “We also report on the service activities we do with trees to qualify as a tree campus.”

Owned and operated by the College of Central Florida, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit 

The Appleton Museum of Art, College of Central Florida, and TJM Promos are collecting children’s shoes to benefit the Pearl Project.

Through Jan. 19, the Appleton and TJM Promos will help stock the Pearl Project’s Kid-2-Kid closet by collecting new and like-new shoes for children of all ages. Donate two or more pairs of shoes and receive a one-year individual membership to the Appleton and an insulated Appleton thermos featuring a work of art from the Appleton’s collection. Limit one membership and thermos per person; memberships will be processed after Jan. 2.

Only have one pair of shoes to donate? The Pearl Project and the families they support are appreciative of all donations.

The Pearl Project is a nonprofit organization that provides services for foster and adoptive families. Like pearls, many children’s stories begin in hard places. The Pearl Project offers hope and practical help to these families through educational opportunities and support groups. To learn more about the Pearl Project, visit .

If you have questions about making a donation, contact AppletonMuseum@cf.edu.

Drop-Off Locations

Shoes may be dropped off at either location.

Appleton Museum of Art
4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd. Ocala
352-291-4455
Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Sunday, noon-5 p.m.

TJM Promos
511 NW 48th Terrace, Ocala
888-677-4799
Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.

Owned and operated by the College of Central Florida, the Appleton Museum of Art is located at 4333 E. Silver Springs Blvd., Ocala, east of downtown on SR 40 (exit 352 east off I-75 or exit 268 west off I-95). Parking is free. For more information, call 352-291-4455 or visit 

The College of Central Florida presents the “Contradictions” exhibition featuring the work of the Florida Artists Group beginning on Jan. 8 at the Webber Gallery, 3001 S.W. College Road. The public is invited to the opening reception on Thursday, Jan. 23, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. The exhibit and reception are free to attend.

The show is a visual response to a culture that is becoming increasingly fractious. The artworks, which are presented in pairs, set up internal dialogues between the two halves. But more significantly, visual discussions are created between artists across gallery walls comparing what are their deemed priorities. The goal is to present to the public a template for visual thinking, a way of moving forward. To embrace contradiction in a constructive manner through visual thinking can often slip the bounds of verbal constraints, grammatical restrictions, and lead to new interesting combinations and ultimately new ideas.

The Florida Artists Group, a statewide artists organization, was founded in 1949 in the absence of solid cultural institutions. It continues its activities, holding multiple exhibitions across the state yearly. FLAG artists form the core of the show along with prominent Duval County artists who were individually invited. The goal was to create a group of artists with different backgrounds, ages and experiences.

The exhibit will continue through Thursday, March 12. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Thursday. The gallery is closed Friday through Sunday and college-observed holidays. For additional information, call 352-873-5809.

All College of Central Florida campuses will be closed for winter break Thursday, Dec. 19, through Wednesday,  Jan. 1. The 91��Ƭ Post Office and Print Shop on the Ocala Campus will also be closed.

The Ocala Campus Bookstore will be open Dec. 16-30, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., and Dec. 31, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The Ocala Bookstore will be closed Dec. 24-26 and Jan. 1. The Citrus Campus Bookstore will be open Dec. 16-20, 10 a.m.-4:30 p.m., and Dec. 31, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. The Citrus Bookstore will be closed Dec. 21-29 and Jan. 1.

The college will re-open Thursday, Jan. 2. Spring 2020 classes begin Wednesday, Jan. 8.

For more information, call the Ocala Campus at 352-873-5800, Citrus Campus at 352-746-6721, or Jack Wilkinson Levy Campus at 352-658-4077.