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at USF St. Petersburg

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Author: Brianna Rodriguez

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  • Brianna Rodriguez
Opinion

Column: It’s time to test the wings

May 11, 2020May 11, 2020 Brianna Rodriguez

Illustration by MK Brittain By Brianna Rodriguez My first weekend on campus as a student was spent attending Week of Welcome events and interviewing students while still unpacking my dorm

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Campus News News

Students weigh in on graduation options

April 20, 2020April 20, 2020 Brianna Rodriguez

Pictured above: Students will have the opportunity to attend a virtual commencement in May and an additional ceremony in August to celebrate finishing their degree. Courtesy of USF By Brianna

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Campus News News

Staff member wins award for helping veterans on campus

April 22, 2019April 20, 2019 Brianna Rodriguez

By Brianna Rodriguez Milton White, assistant director of the Military and Veterans Success Center, won the grand prize of the “AARP Honoring Our Heroes” contest after being nominated by a

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Campus News News

University hires new fitness coordinator

April 15, 2019April 15, 2019 Brianna Rodriguez

By Brianna Rodriguez After more than eight months, the search for a new Campus Recreation fitness programming coordinator is over. But the university will not name them until their May

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Arts and Life Community

A night of music, art and coffee

January 28, 2019January 28, 2019 Brianna Rodriguez

By Brianna Rodriguez Black Crow Coffee Co. is known for funky art hanging on the walls, welcoming local musicians to play in its space and booking weekends with events overflowing

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Campus News News

Adventures await Campus Rec

January 14, 2019January 14, 2019 Brianna Rodriguez

By Brianna Rodriguez USF St. Petersburg’s Campus Recreation aims to inspire spontaneity with upcoming adventure trips led by Dan Marshall, coordinator of adventure and aquatics. This semester there are six

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Arts and Life Community Feature

Homemade holiday gifts on a budget

November 26, 2018November 26, 2018 Brianna Rodriguez

Share the gift of sweetness with fresh baked cookies. Brianna Rodriguez | The Crow’s Nest By Brianna Rodriguez The holidays are filled with cheer, cocoa and gift giving. But, as

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Feature

“100 Things to Do in Tampa Bay Before You Die Second Edition” has readers searching for new places to explore

November 19, 2018November 19, 2018 Brianna Rodriguez

The Vinoy, a mediterranean revival-style hotel situated on the edge of the Tampa Bay, also hosts Marchand’s Bar & Grill. For $10 per person the hotel offers a hour-long tour

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Campus News News

Commencement time change causes confusion

November 13, 2018November 12, 2018 Brianna Rodriguez

USF St. Petersburg students graduate Dec. 9 at The Mahaffey Theater, 401 First St. S. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons By Brianna Rodriguez When the time comes to finally walk across

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Opinion Opinion Columns

Homecoming: Where oxygen costs big bucks

October 22, 2018October 22, 2018 Brianna Rodriguez

Students were provided with an oxygen bar at homecoming to smell a variety of scents with high doses of oxygen. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons By Brianna Rodriguez In a world

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Posts pagination

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Recent Posts

  • Annual USFSP night walk aims to improve campus safety 
  • USFSP alumna’s anthology explores Florida’s history through fiction 
  • The Tampa Bay Journalism Project takes local news to the next level 
  • Álex Palou powers past field for dominant win in 2026 St. Petersburg Grand Prix 
  • Local driver Nikita Johnson wins Indy NXT St. Petersburg Grand Prix  

usfcrowsnest

Social media and protests are some of the main way Social media and protests are some of the main ways that people get involved in activism today. 

However, not everyone does this with selfless intention. 

Performative activism is when one involves themself with a social movement in a way that benefits them but not the movement they claim to support. 

“When it’s performative, it can come off a lot more like self-serving, or it can come off a lot more like you’re just here for the flashiness, but there’s no real work happening after,” said Harrison Lundy, the public policy director for Voices of Florida and a volunteer for 5051 Florida.  

It’s like putting on a mask, Elise Prophete, junior political science and sustainability major and Governor of the University of South Florida St. Petersburg’s student government, told The Crow’s Nest. 

When engaging in performative activism “we’re not allowing ourselves to be vulnerable and be at risk for the things we care about,” Prophete said. “We’re not allowing ourselves to truly care about them.” 
Performative activism has the effect of boosting one’s own social credit while devaluing a social movement.

✍️Story by Julia Birdsall
The poet laureate usually holds their position for The poet laureate usually holds their position for the mayor’s term and Johnson-Greene will join a distinguished body of poets who previously held the role, including Peter Meinke, Helen Wallace, and more recently, Gloria Muñoz.  

His reaction was one of surprise and astonishment.  

“I think I began to babble something like Courage the Cowardly dog,” Johnson-Green told The Crow’s Nest.  

Johnson-Green’s experience with poetry began about eight years ago, but he still considers himself new to it. He stayed away from the art form for a long time because of the sad connotations it carried.  

This changed when he attended a poetry open mic at Studio@620, a local visual and performing arts venue in downtown St. Petersburg.  

“The walls were a passionate red, the seating was cool and raised up like a theatre, and the poets were everyday people; the oldest around sixty-three and the youngest was about seven,” said Johnson-Green.  

✍️Story by Julia Ferrara
February was a month full of fun festivities. Here February was a month full of fun festivities. Here’s a look back at all the great events that happened on and off campus.

📲 Click the link in our bio to view all the photos.
The Nascar Craftsman Truck Series came to the stre The Nascar Craftsman Truck Series came to the streets of St. Petersburg for the first time this weekend and the on-track action did not disappoint. 

Layne Riggs started the race 28th after rain cancelled the practice and qualifying sessions that were scheduled for Friday afternoon. At the end of the first 20-lap stage, he already gained 21 positions and was 7th at the beginning of the second 20-lap stage. At the end, he was first. 

However, it was a three-way battle between Riggs, Ty Majeski, and Ben Rhodes in the closing laps of the race. Riggs wasn’t sure that he’d have enough fuel to even finish the race, let alone defend against Ty Majeski who finished in second. 

Riggs held on and captured his first win of the season. The Nascar Craftsman Trucks Series picks up again on March 20 for the Buckle Up South Carolina 200 in Darlington. 

📸 Photos by Makenna Wozniak and Irena Mesa | The Crow’s Nest.

#usf #usfsp #grandprix #nascar
Dom and Irena stopped by the GP Party in the park Dom and Irena stopped by the GP Party in the park and asked some questions to the drivers! 

#gpstpete #usfsp #usf  #indycar
Day 1 of the St. Petersburg Grand Prix brought pra Day 1 of the St. Petersburg Grand Prix brought practice and qualifying sessions to the downtown street course.

The Crow’s Nest will be covering the event all weekend. More coming soon.

#usfsp #usf #grandprix #gpstpete
Hearing Depeche Mode’s “Black Celebration” i Hearing Depeche Mode’s “Black Celebration” in a crowded room was something pre-graphics arts sophomore Kea Shindel never thought she would experience.  

She was raised on goth and industrial music and partakes in the style. 

“It was crazy hearing that with a room full of people that were all liking the same thing,” Schindle said. “Which I’ve never experienced before.” 

It’s an experience that many students from the University of South Florida St. Petersburg can recall — walking into The Castle for the first time and feeling like they belong.  

The Crow’s Nest decided to take students’ word for it.  

✍️ Story by Julia Birdsall
Basketball has been a recreational activity for Un Basketball has been a recreational activity for University of South Florida students at the St. Petersburg campus since 2006. Twenty years later, the courts are more often hosting pickleball.   

Over a hundred USF St. Petersburg students have played the recent phenomenon since the Pickleball Club began in 2024

Club meetings have provided students four extra hours a week to play, while basketball still shares the regular time of 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday with pickleball.   

A few students organized this semester to help USF St. Petersburg basketball reach overtime. Senior business analytics and information systems major and club president, Gabriel Lopez and his friends have considered creating the St. Petersburg Basketball Club since last April. 

We knew that USF [St. Petersburg] needed a basketball club, we wanted the courts a little later, and we want to start building a consistent community with basketball,” Lopez said. 

The club gives basketball its own four additional hours, scheduling meetings every Friday and Saturday from 6 to 8 p.m.

✍️Story by Dominic Feo
Giving RHO the landlord special! If you are a stu Giving RHO the landlord special!

If you are a student and interested in submitting your art or poetry to be featured in a print issue of The Crow's Nest, please reach out to us!

🎨 Comic by Kaila McEwan

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