SUMMER 2014
I n d i v i d u a l s a n d g i f t s t h at a r e t r a n s f o r m i n g U C F
Big Program,
Based in a borrowed beach cottage since 2005, UCF’s renowned Marine Turtle Research Group is slated for a badly needed new home
I
t came as something of a surprise when UCF sea turtle researcher Kate Mansfield turned up in Glamour magazine. Sure, her first-of-its-kind data about where endangered marine turtles go during their so-called “lost years” — the time between when they hatch and head to sea and when they return to near-shore waters as large juveniles — also garnered coverage in National Geographic and Smithsonian Magazine and an interview on NPR’s Science Friday, but those were more or less expected. Apparently it was her methods, rather than her data, that caught Glamour’s interest. For years, Mansfield and her colleagues had been trying to figure out how to attach satellite tracking devices to the hard, slippery shells of fast-growing young turtles. The solution, it turned out, was manicure
acrylic (turtle shells are made of keratin, just like fingernails) and hair-extension glue. Which goes to show that groundbreaking science isn’t entirely dependent on the latest technology and facilities; sometimes you make do with what you’ve got. For better or worse, that’s exactly what UCF’s Marine Turtle Research Group has been doing since 2004, when its headquarters at the Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge in southern Brevard County were destroyed by a hurricane. The next year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service generously loaned UCF the small “beach house” that has served ever since as the group’s base of operations. But now the old house is bursting at the seams, almost literally, without enough space for the research group’s boats, ATVs and other equipment;
How Did You Spend Your Summer Vacation? COME FALL, nine Burnett Honors College students will have a ready answer to the timeworn summer vacation question: They tracked cheetahs on South Africa’s Nambiti Game Reserve, worked on a sustainable energy project in the rural township of Pomolong, and upgraded facilities at a nearby school. Such service-learning programs, which rely in large part on the support of private donors, turn what students learn in the classroom into the kinds of experiences that can permanently change lives — not just their own but also those of the people they help.
inadequate data connections; poor insulation leading to high energy costs; and cramped sleeping and showering quarters for the students and faculty who often spend days at a time there. In response, the UCF Foundation has committed to helping raise funds to construct a new home for the renowned program, which, despite its challenges, has amassed one of the largest and most valuable sea turtle datasets in the world, based on more than 30 years of observation along the southern Brevard coastline, among the planet’s most important nesting areas. Plans for the new facility — and designation of numerous naming opportunities — are still being finalized, but additional details are available from Director of Development Ray Allen at 407.823.1952 or ray.allen@ucf.edu.
THE BIG NUMBER
$5,100,000 Approximate contribution to UCF’s budget in fiscal year 2014 from the university’s endowment, a new record
As of May, the university’s endowment, the total of all endowed gifts plus their earnings, stood at roughly $152.3 million. An endowed gift is a donation that is kept and invested by the foundation, rather than spent. Each year, a percentage of the earnings — the spendable amount — is used to help meet whatever needs the donor has designated, while the remainder is re-invested. Growing the endowment — which, due in part to the university’s young age, is relatively small on a per-student basis — is among the foundation’s highest priorities.
PHOTO CREDIT: Jim Abernethy, NMFS permit 1551
Small House