The Big Story

Florida State University moved up five places in the U.S. News & World Report rankings to No. 38 among all public national universities. FSU had the greatest gain of all of the Top 50 public universities. The rankings appear in U.S. News & World Report’s “Best Colleges 2017” guidebook.

A team of researchers from Florida State University, Johns Hopkins University and the National Institutes of Health has found existing drug compounds that can both stop Zika from replicating in the body and from damaging the crucial fetal brain cells that lead to birth defects in newborns.

Florida State University welcomes about 42,000 students as classes begin for the 2016-2017 academic year Monday, Aug. 29. About 6,200 academically talented students make up one of the most diverse incoming freshman classes in the university’s history.

Florida State University’s Center for Advanced Power Systems has been awarded a five-year $35 million grant by the U.S. Navy’s Office of Naval Research to bring together researchers to spur innovation and advance the Navy’s efforts to build an all-electric ship. View the newsletter.  

Florida State University alumna Nancy McKay, now CEO of Nest Fragrances, delivered the commencement address Saturday, Aug. 6, at the Donald L. Tucker Civic Center. President John Thrasher presided over the ceremony as the university awarded degrees to nearly 2,500 graduating students. View the newsletter.

Members of the successful Apollo space program are experiencing higher rates of cardiovascular problems that are thought to be caused by their exposure to deep space radiation, according to FSU Dean of the College of Human Sciences and Professor Michael Delp. View the newsletter.

FSU will receive $10 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to create a new Energy Frontier Research Center focused on accelerating scientific efforts needed to support nuclear waste cleanup. The center will be led by chemistry professor Thomas Albrecht-Schmitt and will focus on developing technologies for recycling nuclear fuel and cleaning up Cold War-era weapon production sites. […]

Florida State University has been ranked No. 44 among the nation’s public universities in Forbes’ recent Top Colleges ranking, up from No. 50 in 2015. View the newsletter.  

Fifteen years after enrolling its first class, the Florida State University College of Medicine has emerged as one of the nation’s most diverse medical schools, ranked in the top six for enrollment of both black and Hispanic students by the Association of American Medical Colleges. View the newsletter.

A group of 10 Florida State University graduate students and recent alumni will study or teach English around the world during the 2016-2017 academic year as part of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program. View the newsletter.

Eight Florida State students are traveling abroad to bolster global relations through language thanks to prestigious national scholarships. View the newsletter.