June 2019
Governor Ron DeSantis Signs Autonomous Vehicles Bill
On June 13, 2019, Governor Ron DeSantis signed CS/HB 311: Autonomous Vehicles, which will expand testing of autonomous vehicles. The bill signing took place at the SunTrax facility in Polk County, Florida.

“Signing this legislation paves the way for Florida to continue as a national leader in transportation innovation and technological advancement,” said Governor DeSantis. “I would like to thank the bill sponsors, Senator Jeff Brandes and Representative Jason Fischer, for their work in making Florida the most autonomous vehicle-friendly state in the country.” 
Senators and Representatives stand around Governor Ron DeSantis who holds up the signed HB 311.
Governor Ron DeSantis holds up the signed House Bill 311. Photo Credit: Governor’s Press Office
For more information on the House Bill 311, Click Here.
STRIDE Hosts Teacher Workshop on Exploring Transportation & STEM
Ondine Wells presents to teachers on learning through the engineering design process
Ten teachers from Alachua County in Florida attended a one-day workshop on June 6, 2019 at the University of Florida that focused on science and technology concepts for grades levels 4th through 7 and explored transportation as a career option for their students.  

The teachers heard about the latest in transportation research taking place at UF from faculty and student researchers who spoke about their work in the areas of planning, human factors, occupational therapy, civil engineering, and computer engineering. The workshop also included a trip to the Gainesville-Alachua County Traffic Management Center where teachers saw first-hand how traffic engineers and technicians work together to ensure that traffic is flowing smoothly and that traffic lights are working properly. STEM activities were the focus of the afternoon session, and were led by the STRIDE Center’s K-12/Technology Transfer coordinator, Ondine Wells, who was also the organizer of the workshop. Standards-based activities included building a bridge and testing reaction time. Teachers also learned about a variety of transportation-related community and on-line resources they can incorporate into their classroom. 

For more information on the STRIDE Center’s K-12 program, contact Ondine Wells, M.S., STRIDE 12/Technology Transfer coordinator, owells@ufl.edu, (352) 294-6952.
UF ASCE Student Chapter Wins Concrete Canoe Championship
The University of Florida concrete canoe team won the 2019 National Concrete Canoe Competition championship, June 6-8, on the campus of the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, FL. The team had decided to honor Gainesville icon Tom Petty with its theme this year, naming their canoe “Free Floatin’.”

California Polytechnic State University (San Luis Obispo) finished second, followed by the Universite Laval (Quebec, Canada) in third, Tongji University in fourth (Shanghai, China), and Western Kentucky University (Bowling Green) in fifth.

Click Here to read the full article.
The University of Florida concrete canoe team navigates the co-ed sprint race on its way to the 2019 championship. PHOTO: Phelan Ebenhack/Associated Press for ASCE
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