Gators Reaching Out With Botany (GROW Botany) is a student organization associated with the Botanical Society of America’s UF student chapter. The purpose of GROW Botany is to encourage and facilitate the learning of botanical knowledge for interested UF students and the greater Gainesville community. We welcome students from any major!
What Do We Do?
- General Body Meetings
We meet regularly and have stimulating talks and presentations on botany-related topics, work on upcoming events, and eat! - Community Outreach
GROW Botany is involved in bringing fun and insightful plant-based activities to local elementary school classrooms.
We also recently participated in the Great Air Potato Round-Up! - University Outreach
GROW Botany provides the opportunity for students in Plant Diversity (BOT 2011) to review and ask questions about material covered in class prior to exams.
How Can I Get Involved?
- Send us an email at growbotany@gmail.com and we will inform you about upcoming meetings and opportunities for GROW Botany!
- Check us out on Facebook! https://www.facebook.com/pages/GROW-Botany/496737197083151
Officers
 | Blake Geraci President GROW Botany and President BSA UF Student Chapter — I am a fourth year Biology student. A love of plants germinated after many trips to the outdoors where the magnificence of the plants around me captivated both my mind and imagination. My interests include studying molecular genetics, plant systematics, and random bouts of cooking. I’m presently researching chromosomal variation in the recently formed allopolyploids Tragopogon mirus and Tragopogon miscellus. For the future, I plan continue my studies by attending graduate school, but before doing so I intend to do conservation work with the Americorps. |
 | Sarah Carey Vice-President GROW Botany and Vice-President BSA UF Student Chapter — I am a senior biology student and have found throughout my studies that I am most curious about plants. I am particularly interested in the molecular aspects of plants. I plan to pursue graduate studies in botany with the hopes of becoming a university professor. |
 | R. Shawn Abrahams Treasurer GROW Botany and Treasurer BSA UF Student Chapter — I am a fourth year Botany major interested in molecular and community ecology of plants. I’ve been doing plant based research since my days in high school as a part of the Fairchild Tropical Gardens’ “Fairchild Challenge” and so I knew I wanted to continue that at the University of Florida. I’ve work on projects from cucumber herbivory to moss polymorphism and can’t get enough! I also am engaged in leadership and STEM based organizations with the personal goal of increasing minority participation in the natural sciences. |
 | Michael Burns Secretary GROW Botany — I’m a biology senior in love with zoology and genetics. I study the phylogenetics of little plants but I like to pretend they are animals. I’m an aspiring amateur scientific illustrator and an avid technology/bicycle/music geek. My favorite plant is the sunflower, Helianthus annuus. |
