Student government at FGCU is looking to erect two memorials on campus this year, one to honor veterans and another to honor students who have passed away during their time on campus.

The veterans memorial, according to student body president Peter Cuderman, would recognize students, faculty and staff who have served in the military.

“When we have Veterans and Memorial Days, and for all those big events, we can have a place where we can rally around this fountain and really appreciate what they’ve done for our country,” said Cuderman, who is pursuing a master’s in business administration.

The memorial for fallen students would be directed toward families of students who died to “show them this university cares a lot for their sons and daughters and family,” Cuderman said. School officials estimate about 50 FGCU students have died since the university opened in 1997.

Expect more sculptures and artwork to rise on campus. In 2010, Florida legislators approved a law requiring colleges to spend a small portion of their state-provided construction funds on public art. The university’s facilities planning department lists seven current projects with a total contract cost of $352,550. See below for a breakdown of current projects:

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It’s never good when the friendliest face in the room is a reporter. At FGCU’s final faculty senate meeting of the academic year, provost Ronald Toll was surrounded by professors who weren’t keen on a plan to eliminate the College of Professional Studies. Although the university spent months researching the move, he was accused of having his mind made up long before an announcement was made.

“There was no plan that sat in my drawer,” Toll told them.

Then the provost mentioned something odd, perhaps a failed joke meant to ease the tension. Toll said he has no drawers in his desk. So, therefore, he couldn’t possibly hide anything, right? Toll actually does have one small drawer in his desk, but it’s not big enough to hide anything (except maybe some paper clips).

The dissolution of professional studies is only a structural change. Degree programs will be shifted to other academic colleges, so professors and department chairs will have to report to new deans.

“I understand the pain of reorganization,” Toll told professors. “I’ve been reorged myself. Things change. That’s expected. We deal with it.”

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FGCU kicks off another graduation season on Sunday, and that got me thinking. It’s been 15 years since I finished my journalism degree at Kansas.

I remember my graduation ceremony like it was yesterday, although I have no recollection of the commencement speaker’s words of wisdom, the chancellor’s message or the weather that day. I do, however, remember walking under the Campanile and down the hill leading into Memorial Stadium. As graduates filtered into the grandstands, I spotted a couple guys that lived in my apartment building during my sophomore year. So I plopped down next to them. I had the aisle seat, and Jacque, Scot, Jerod and B.J. were to my right.

Immediately, fellow graduates, students, parents and children began streaming toward our row, cameras in tow. They gently brushed me aside to fawn over my former building mates, who politely posed for pictures and signed autographs before and during the ceremony. Much like my four years of college, the ceremony ended in the blink of an eye.

Here we are, 15 years later, and I’m still working hard, carving out what I hope is a successful career. Meanwhile, two of the four guys that sat next to me at graduation already have retired. Jacque (Vaughn) had a 12-year run in the NBA, earning $11.3 million over 12 years before retiring in 2009. Scot (Pollard) earned $38.1 million over 11 years before retiring in 2008. Jerod (Haase) briefly played hoops in Europe and was an assistant coach at Kansas and North Carolina before being named last month as head coach at University of Alabama-Birmingham. I’m not sure what B.J. (Williams) ended up doing, though.

Yeah, well my byline gets in the paper all the time, so ha!

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FGCU’s student body president doesn’t just guide students. He or she guides the university as a member of the Board of Trustees, having a say on tuition increases, construction projects and other initiatives. One student leader even served on a committee that helped screen presidential applicants in 2007.

But once they graduate, their campus involvement often ends.

FGCU President Wilson Bradshaw, however, plans to stay connected with former student body president Brad Piepenbrink now that he’s in a high place. Piepenbrink, a 2008 communications graduate, is personal assistant to Gov. Rick Scott. His name doesn’t just appear in a phone directory; he’s the third name you’ll see on a state organizational chart, right below “The People” and Rick Scott.

“If you want access to the governor,” said FGCU trustee Ed Morton, “you have to go through Brad.”

Piepenbrink previously was a legislative analyst within the Majority Office of the Florida Senate. He’s also served as a legislative aide with the Senate and worked on John McCain’s presidential campaign in 2008.

At a time FGCU is lobbying for more state funds, Bradshaw is almost giddy with the university’s new-found presence in the governor’s office, and the president expects Piepenbrink to continue his rapid political ascension. Mark his words.

“Brad is an up-and-coming young man in politics in Florida,” Bradshaw said.

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