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Caps and Gowns, An ExplanationThe academic costume worn by graduating students and faculty at today'scommencement ceremonies evolved from a style of dress worn by membersof guilds and religious orders in medieval times. The black academic gown isworn by individuals who have earned a degree in higher education. In addition,hoods are worn by graduate degree candidates, but not by undergraduatedegree candidates.At the University of Florida, the lining of the hood has a blue chevron onan orange background to represent the university colors. University facultymembers who hold degrees from another college or university wear the colorsof their alma mater.The velvet edging on the academic hood is the color that represents theparticular degree held by the wearer. Agricultural and Life Sciences and ForestResources and Conservation share maize edging; Design, Construction andPlanning and Building Construction are blue violet; Audiology degrees havecolonial blue edging; Business Administration and Accounting are drab;Dentistry is lilac; Education is light blue; Engineering degrees are representedby orange edging; Fine Arts degrees have brown edging; Health and Human Performance is sage green; Journalismand Communications is garnet; Law is purple; Liberal Arts is white and Liberal Sciences is gold yellow; Medicine isgreen; Music is pink; Natural Resources and Environment is antique gold; Nursing is apricot; Doctor of Pharmacy isolive; Philosophy is royal blue; Public Health degrees have salmon pink edging; Rehabilitation Counseling degreeshave Nile green edging; and Veterinary Medicine is gray.Distinctions among sleeves indicate the type of degree held by the wearer. A long, pointed sleeve indicates a bachelor’sdegree, while a long, closed sleeve with a slit near the upper part of the arm designates a master’s degree. A round,open sleeve identifies a doctoral degree.The doctoral costume also has velvet running on the rest of the gown, including cross bars on the sleeve. Thetrimming may be black or it may match the color of the velvet hood edging. Colored tassels on the degree candidates’caps indicate a candidate’s school or college.Decorating the platform today are ‘Gator Glory’ coleus plants. These are anew variety of garden plant developed and provided by the UF/IFAS Institutefor Plant Innovation.The 2012-2013 academic year was been spent celebrating the 150 th anniversaryof the Morrill Act. This federal legislation, signed by President AbrahamLincoln on July 2, 1862, established a nationwide network of public landgrantuniversities with a new mission. They would not only offer traditionalsubjects such as medicine, theology and law, they would also teach agricultural science, military tactics andengineering. Moreover, these institutions were created with federal financial support, designed to make highereducation affordable to people from modest backgrounds.UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) is dedicated to furthering the tripartite land-grantmission of teaching, research and extension. The idea for developing a Gator-orange coleus originated in ORH 1030,Plants Gardening and You. Taught by Dr. David Clark, professor of environmental horticulture, the class studiesthe art and science of plants and makes students more aware of the plants they eat and the plants in theirsurroundings. Students in the course receive plants of their own each week. In the last four years, more than25,000 plants have been given to the 2,000 students who have taken the class and to friends they have broughtwith them from every major on campus.2014 SPRINGCommencement62Working with research colleagues in the UF/IFAS Institute for Plant Innovation, Dr. Clark used novel breedingtechniques to develop this variety. The gold band around the bright orange leaves symbolizes the color traditionallyused for agricultural disciplines in academic regalia. This new variety has proven to be tough in the warm Floridasunshine and is now given to the people of Florida for their continued support of the Gator Nation.