Alligator Alumni Association
In 1978, several of The Alligator alumni gathered to form the Alligator Alumni Association. Although many alumni have stayed in touch with The Alligator, maintaining the Alumni Association proved to be difficult with all hands focused on the daily deliverance of the paper.
In 2016, when The Alligator relocated from 1105 W. University Ave. to the current offices at 2700 SW 13th St., Gainesville, FL, alumni responded on social media with their memories, accomplishments and gratitude for the institution that launched so many careers. Executive Director Ed Barber, the Alumni Association board of directors, and alumni volunteers redoubled their efforts to build a network of past, present and future staffers of The Alligator — from the newsroom to advertising to promotions to production to business and circulation.
We hope you’ll join us as we launch the next section of the Alligator Alumni Association!
Board Members
Ed Barber, Chairman and President
President Emeritus, Campus Communications, Inc.
inductee, The Alligator Hall of Fame
Jean Chance, Vice President and Secretary
Professor Emerita, UF College of Journalism and Communications
Chairman, Board of Directors, Campus Communications, Inc.
inductee, The Alligator Hall of Fame
Trish Carey, Vice President and Treasurer
President, Campus Communications, Inc.
General Manager, The Independent Florida Alligator
Margo Pope, Director
former chair, UF College of Journalism and Communications Advisory Council
inductee, The Alligator Hall of Fame
Ron Sachs, Director
President and CEO, Sachs Media Group
former EIC, The Alligator
inductee, The Alligator Hall of Fame
Alligator File / Andy Marlette / © Campus Communications, Inc., 2016, All rights reserved.
About The Alligator
Founded in 1906 as The University News, an independent, student-owned newspaper created to serve the University of Florida, the The Alligator has been delivering important local, state and national coverage for more than 100 years.
In 1912, the newspaper became part of UF’s administration and was renamed the Florida Alligator. The Faculty Committee on Student Publications first governed the newspaper on campus, being replaced in the early 1930s by a committee of students and faculty, the Board of Student Publications.
For many years, the editor of the newspaper was elected in campus-wide elections. Editors and other staff members ran for “office” — they slated to a particular party, ran advertisements and spoke before groups of students to seek votes.
In 1973, the paper became independent from UF, was renamed The Independent Florida Alligator and moved off-campus, where it remains today. Since independence, the selection of the editor has been determined by the Board of Directors of Campus Communications, Inc.
The history of The Alligator is its stories and its stands on issues. But it is also in the caliber of the people who were once students here, free to put into practice at the newspaper what they were learning in class at UF. In journalism alone, our alumni include at least four staffers who went on to win Pulitzer Prizes.
Alumni of The Alligator are at almost every daily newspaper in Florida, and many of the weeklies. From university classrooms to the White House to National Geographic to ESPN to the Washington Post and Newsweek, they have a history of breaking through traditional print journalism and the digital media frontier. In addition to those and many other journalists and media executives, there are prominent attorneys, authors, educators, business leaders, judges and public servants throughout Florida and the nation who once served as staff of The Alligator.