The Oracle

🚨Help wanted!🚨 The Oracle is looking for summer 2026 correspondents for news, sports, opinion and multimedia! Applications will open on April 27. Be on the lookout for the link in the bio!

USF’s on-campus stadium is one of the most ambitious developments in university history. But, concerns over unstable ground have followed the development from the start. USF Emergency Management reported the formation of two potential sinkholes at Sycamore Fields in October 2024, weeks before USF broke ground on the same site for its planned $407 million stadium project. One formation was reported to be three feet wide and two feet long, while the other was reported to be three feet wide and one foot long, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection’s Subsidence Incident Reports map. The sinkholes did not cause any structural damage, but led to practice delays for USF intramural teams, according to The Oracle. Still, the discovery of the sinkhole formations and surrounding unstable soil prompted developers to pump thousands of cubic yards of grout into the earth to fortify the stadium’s construction. ✍️ by Noah Vinsky 📸 by Mithil Vyas (@mithil.vyas ) 🎨 by Dylan Sabol (@dylansabol ) 📲Click the link in bio to read more.

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Zamil Limon and Nahida Sultana Bristy were Omer Hossain’s best friends. But instead of playing soccer and cooking together after classes like they usually did, Hossain was mourning his friends’ deaths. Hossain, a 27-year-old graduate student studying environmental science and policy at USF, said he always dreamed of the three remaining best friends through and after their studies — but now has to learn to live without them. “Both of you are my family,” Hossain said to a memorial of Limon and Bristy. “We shared our food together, we stayed most of our time together, we have had joy together, we have loved together.” Hundreds of USF students, faculty and community members gathered for a vigil at USF’s Crescent Hill Patio on Friday to mourn Limon and Bristy, who were both 27-year-old doctoral students from Bangladesh.  Limon studied geography and environmental science and policy, while Bristy studied chemical engineering. They were last seen during the morning hours of April 16 and were reported missing the next day. Limon’s body was found in a trash bag on the Howard Frankland Bridge on April 24. Two days later, kayakers discovered Bristy’s body in a similar bag along a shoreline south of the bridge, according to HCSO. The vigil began just after 4 p.m. with a short prayer for both students in Arabic and English as USF community members and friends exchanged words of sympathy and calls for students to unite.  USF staff handed out white roses — matching a wreath of white flowers between Limon and Bristy’s pictures — for attendees to place at the foot of a sprawling oak tree. A line of mourners, each with flowers and bouquets in hand, wrapped around Crescent Hill Patio following a 40-minute ceremony that prayed for and celebrated Limon and Bristy’s lives. Most paid their respects through short, whispered prayers and silent bowed heads. Those who worked with Limon and Bristy remember them as quiet, kind students who were dedicated to their studies. ✍️ by Noah Vinsky (@noah.reports ) 📸 by Keaton Duke (@keatography_ ) 📲 Click the link in bio to read more.

I have lost count of how many times I have logged into Canvas, skimmed a discussion post and written a response just to meet the requirement. Discussion posts are meant to create a space where students can talk to one another, build understanding of topics and share ideas, replacing interaction in an in-person classroom with an online setting, according to USF. But I feel discussion posts often fall short and don’t seem genuine. After scrolling through dozens of discussion posts that sound identical, I have come to feel that the whole process is more about checking a box than engaging with the material being taught. That disconnect makes it hard for me to see the value in continuing the assignment. When participation feels forced, the quality of the discussion suffers. I am left skimming posts instead of actually learning from them. Alan Hevner, a professor in the Muma College of Business, has found ways to make discussion posts more productive by grading on meaningful conversation and encouraging engaging responses. “In my discussion, there is a capability where you are not allowed to read what other people have written until you make your first post,” Hevner said. “So they are not going to repeat what they have already seen. They have to provide an extensive discussion before they can look at what other people have posted.” Unlike many classes I have taken where students post brief replies just to meet a requirement, Hevner’s approach creates more thoughtful discussions and makes the assignments feel more worthwhile for students. ✍️ by Emily Rodriguez 🎨 by Dylan Sabol (@sabol_photography ) 
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Former football coach Alex Golesh left USF one day after the regular season ended, following a nine-win campaign that marked the program’s most wins in nearly a decade. Months later, men’s basketball coach Bryan Hodgson left three days after the Bulls’ NCAA Tournament loss and season that tied the program record for wins. The exits came at different times, yet followed the same pattern — coaches in mid-level conferences that leave for higher-paying jobs at bigger programs. And in programs outside the power conferences, that kind of success can attract attention that is difficult to sustain. Golesh and Hodgson’s departures could spur the belief that USF can now develop winning programs, but struggles to keep the coaches behind them. Those exits bring the issue into focus — of USF rejecting the stepping-stone label it currently has, even as it works to move beyond it. And for Athletics CEO Rob Higgins, the phrase is the wrong way to frame it. Higgins said the department is focused on changing that perception through hiring proven coaches, investment in its future and long-term planning. “I think we’re ultra-focused on changing that narrative,” he said. “USF deserves to be a destination and not a pit stop.” ✍️ by Mithil Vyas (@mithil.vyas ) 📸 & 🎨 by Dylan Sabol (@sabol_photography ) 
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USF Student Government Vice President Caio Esmeraldi presented two activity and service fee 2026–27 allocation bills to the Senate floor on Tuesday. At USF Tampa, A&S fees are collected from students via a $7 flat fee and a $12.08 per-credit-hour fee per semester, according to SG. SG chairs the university’s A&S fee allocation committee, which allocates that funding to 12 Student Success Departments and 460 student organizations at USF Tampa. Student Success Departments include the Recreation and Wellness Center, the Marshall Student Center and the Center for Student Involvement. Within these departments, A&S fees help fund building hours, faculty and professional staff payroll, equipment fees and amenities. Esmeraldi presented two A&S allocation bills for the 2026–27 year, which passed unanimously — one with overhead and one without. Although they each total the same amount — $21,548,016 — Esmeraldi said the overhead bill allocates 9% of that money exclusively to the Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President and the Office of the President. Ethan Walsh, the Tampa Lieutenant Governor and the Campus Allocation Funding Committee’s vice chair, said SG does not know specifically what the 9% is used for, but believes it is for “HR operations.” The bill with no overhead means that 9% would be allocated to other areas, including Student Success Departments. Both bills will be sent to USF President Moez Limayem for approval or denial. Esmeraldi said the university will “most likely” choose the bill with overhead. ✍️ by Isabella Oefelein (@isa.bella._.2882 ) 📸 & 🎨 by Dylan Sabol (@sabol_photography ) 
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Mosaic, a Tampa-based fertilizer and agricultural company, is seeking federal approval to expand one of its waste piles by 180 acres — raising concerns among Tampa Bay environmental advocates and USF students. Mosaic’s Riverview East Stack waste pile is a hundreds-feet-tall phosphogypsum stack that contains radioactive waste left over from fertilizer production, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It is located about 20 miles south of USF’s Tampa campus. In February 2026, Mosaic requested a Clean Water Act permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to fill nearby waters west of its Riverview facility, according to WUSF. The phosphogypsum stack was expected to reach capacity around 2030 — but the proposed expansion would extend operations at the site to about 2046, according to The CLEO Institute. Phosphogypsum is a waste byproduct from fertilizer production that contains radioactive materials, including radium, which can decay and increase cancer risk, according to the EPA. Mosaic has also supported USF in the past — donating $100,000 in 2025 to expand Feed-A-Bull’s main Tampa campus facility, now known as the Mosaic Pantry, according to USF. Patricia Spellman, an assistant professor at USF, focuses on research topics including groundwater hydrology and agricultural sustainability. Spellman said there is “no good way” to dispose of phosphogypsum, which is cancer-causing, adding that it must be contained and regulated for public safety. She added that several environmental concerns and questions come with the expansion — including how phosphogypsum will be handled in the future, how it can be reused or recycled and what to do about the increasing piles of waste in the area. “This could just be a never-ending process, and I think that the proximity to the coast, the vulnerability of that area, it could increase risk for human health and wildlife,” Spellman said. “So I’m not a huge fan of it.” ✍️ by Mariana Deters (@marianadetersreporting ) 📸 by Violet Vasquez Pimentel (@shots.byviolet ) 🎨 by Thomas Marrs (@tom_marrs_photo ) 
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USF will hold an on-campus vigil at Crescent Hill at 4 p.m. Friday to honor the lives of two doctoral students who were found and presumed dead last week. Zamil Limon studied geography and environmental science and policy at USF since fall 2024, and Nahida Sultana Bristy studied chemical engineering since fall 2025, USF President Moez Limayem said in a campus-wide email “I cannot begin to comprehend the pain that Nahida’s and Zamil’s families are enduring, but I want them — and all of you — to know that we are holding them close in our thoughts, and that their grief is shared across this university,” Limayem said in the email. Limon and Bristy were last seen during the morning hours of April 16 and were reported missing the next day.  Last Friday, Limon’s body was found trash bag on the Howard Frankland Bridge.  The same day, police arrested Limon’s roommate, 26-year-old Hisham Abugharbieh, after a brief standoff at a neighborhood about two miles north of USF’s Tampa campus.  Abugharbieh is facing two first-degree murder charges for the students’ deaths, and will also face charges of domestic violence, simple battery, false imprisonment, tampering with evidence, failure to report a dead body and unlawfully moving a dead body, according to HCSO. Bristy’s body has not been recovered, but police said she is presumed dead due to the amount of blood found in Abugharbieh and Limon’s apartment.  On top of the vigil, Limayem said USF Athletics will hold a moment of silence with a video board tribute for Limon and Bristy before baseball and softball games on Thursday and Friday. Limon and Bristy’s names will be added to an on-campus memorial honoring students who’ve died, and will be honored during a memorial ceremony next January, Limayem said. “Please join me in keeping Nahida’s and Zamil’s families, friends and loved ones in your thoughts and prayers,” Limayem said in the email. ✍️ by Noah Vinsky (@noah.reports ) 📸 by Isabella Cruz (@izzy_cruz13 ) 🎨 by Rachell Ross (@rachell__ross ) 
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USF President Moez Limayem inducted 34 new members into the university’s Student Ambassadors program on March 10. USF Student Ambassadors, established by the university’s Alumni Association in 1979, is one of the longest-standing leadership programs at USF and aims to link students to alumni and the community, according to its website. Inducted ambassadors serve as official student representatives of the university, assisting at campus events, donor engagements, presidential functions and community outreach programs, according to the USF Ambassadors. LaToya Wider, director of student relations for USF’s Alumni Association, said the ambassador program is designed to give students consistent exposure to professional environments. Wider said ambassadors represent all USF campuses and serve until they graduate. There are about 60 student ambassadors across the three campuses. Each year, student ambassadors are selected in the spring after going through a competitive process, she said. Wider said that applicants must have at least a 2.9 GPA and submit all required materials, including a resume and two letters of recommendation, to be considered for the program. She said applicants are also expected to have strong communication skills, be involved on campus and understand USF’s history and resources. Then, candidates follow a three-part interview process to be selected — a group interview, an individual interview and a final interview with the university president. USF leaders and newly inducted student ambassadors said the program offers valuable leadership opportunities while promoting school pride across the university’s campuses. ✍️ by Mariana Deters (@marianadetersreporting ) 📸 by Violet Vasquez Pimentel (@shots.byviolet ) 🎨 by Thomas Marrs (@tom_marrs_photo ) 
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The Florida Board of Governors voted to remove introductory sociology courses from the general education curriculum in the state’s public university system starting in August. The BOG approved the change during a March 26 meeting, reclassifying 1000- and 2000-level sociology general education courses as electives. In November 2023, the BOG advanced a rule to remove Principles of Sociology from general education core options as part of Senate Bill 266’s overhaul. SB 266 went into effect on July 1, 2023, and restricts diversity, equity and inclusion programs while giving the state more control over general education courses. In 2024, the BOG removed Principles of Sociology from core courses required for graduation and replaced it with a history class. At USF, the class was substituted for Introductory Survey to 1877. Following the March 26 meeting, sociology’s removal from the core curriculum applied to all 12 public universities, preventing students from taking it to fulfill a general education requirement. On April 17, this decision was expanded to include Florida’s 28 public colleges, and the State Board of Education eliminated the course from its general education requirements, according to the Tampa Bay Times. At USF, Introduction to Sociology — SYG 2000 — is the only course in the discipline that fulfills a general education requirement. USF spokesperson Althea Johnson said the Introduction to Sociology class can still be taken as an elective starting in the 2026-27 academic year, in accordance with state policy. Johnson added that the university had already planned to remove the course from its general education curriculum before the statewide vote, but did not say when. ✍️ by Mithil Vyas (@mithil.vyas ) 📸 by Maria De Abreu Pires (@mariaapiress_ ) 🎨 by Rachell Ross (@rachell__ross ) 
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