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A retired University of Florida professor has donated $1 million to support UF鈥檚 Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars program so students from low-income backgrounds can follow his path to higher education.

The gift from Paul Nicoletti, D.V.M., will create graduate-level scholarships in , a part of 网红黑料. He made the gift during a four-month fundraising drive that collected $15 million for the Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars program. Donors rallied to support the program after an anonymous donor gave $10 million in October to rename it in honor of Bernie and Chris Machen, UF鈥檚 president and first lady.

Nicoletti鈥檚 own life experience inspired his gift. A $150 Sears Roebuck scholarship took him from his family farm in Missouri and helped pay his way through the University of Missouri. He later obtained a master鈥檚 degree in epidemiology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

鈥淚 have a very special place in my concerns for scholarships and for the support that scholarships give, financially and psychologically, to students by giving them the opportunity to go to college,鈥� Nicoletti said.

A professor emeritus of infectious diseases at UF鈥檚 College of Veterinary Medicine, he spent 28 years at UF as a faculty member and adviser to many students. While there, he endowed a scholarship for students with financial need who are interested in public health. After retiring in 2003, he endowed another need-based scholarship for students interested in careers in food animal medicine.

President Machen praised Nicoletti鈥檚 commitment to students.

鈥淒r. Nicoletti is a wonderful role model for aspiring veterinary medicine students, and with this gift he鈥檚 really raised the bar,鈥� Machen said. 鈥淭he next generation of veterinarians will include his great legacy.鈥�

Throughout his career, Nicoletti received recognition nationally and internationally for his work on public health, including in 2010 the Meyer-Steele Gold Head Cane Award, the highest honor from the American Veterinary Epidemiology Society. It is given to scientists who have made significant contributions to improve human health through their work in veterinary epidemiology and public health. In February, Nicoletti was inducted into the Florida Agricultural Hall of Fame.Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars are for Florida high school graduates from families earning less than $40,000 a year in households where neither parent holds a college degree. The average annual household income for families of Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars is $18,759. Machen鈥檚 goal when he established the program was to open UF鈥檚 doors to all qualified Florida high school seniors regardless of their families鈥� incomes. Scholarship recipients are among the state鈥檚 brightest and most talented high school graduates, and are accepted to UF on their academic merits. Only after acceptance to UF are they considered for the Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars program. Since its inception in 2006, the program has supported more than 2,600 students.

Machen believes that UF, the state鈥檚 flagship university, has a responsibility to all Florida鈥檚 citizens, and that all academically deserving students should have an opportunity to attend UF. National studies show that students from low socioeconomic backgrounds can be deterred from enrolling in college because of fear of debt and concern that working while in school could hinder their chances for academic success. UF鈥檚 Machen Florida Opportunity Scholars program addresses this problem.