IMPACT T H E M A G A Z I N E O F T H E U C F F O U N D AT I O N
FULL STEAM AHEAD
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UCF’s collaborative programs in STEM and STEAM are powered by philanthropy
plus UCF receives $40 million gift — the largest in university history S E E PA G E 2
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Inside Fall 2021 | Volume 5, Issue 2
Creativity on Display UCF artists spent 2020 making theater in front of web cams, painting in empty art studios and dancing in kitchens. After being forced to cancel last year’s event due to the pandemic, UCF Celebrates the Arts safely returned with gusto this year to showcase creativity, innovation and collaboration at Dr. Phillips Center in downtown Orlando. The annual event, which started in 2015, brings together UCF musicians, theater practitioners and visual artists from the UCF campus to the Orlando community in an array of offerings. This year’s festival featured both in-person and virtual events that provided UCF students a chance to showcase their incredible talent and ingenuity.
ON THE COVER — A solar-powered sculpture created by engineering students for a challenge sponsored by the Orlando Utilities Commission in partnership with Orlando City Stadium.
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“POTENTIAL IS UNIVERSAL, BUT OPPORTUNITY IS NOT.” Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon, whose family foundation partners with UCF to support STEM learning for underserved high school students.
2 FLASH POINTS Transformational investment / Joshua Goodridge ’17 / young alumni create scholarships / sports medicine boost / day of giving
4 TEN MINUTES WITH… Carolina Cruz-Neira, Agere Chair Professor, Department of Computer Science, College of Engineering and Computer Science
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5 PERSPECTIVE Beverly J. Seay on becoming the world’s leading metropolitan research university
6 FULL STEAM AHEAD Powered by philanthropy, UCF’s collaborative programs in science, technology, engineering, the arts and math (STEAM) help make Knights virtually unstoppable
13 GIFT SPOTLIGHT The EXCEL program prepares students for soaring success in STEM Correction: In the article “Investing in Success” by Carrie Callahan (now Carrie Daanen) in the Spring ’21 issue, there was an error in Daanen’s graduation year. The year should have been noted as 1992 not 1994.
IMPACT is published three times a year by UCF Advancement for alumni, friends and partners of the university who have made philanthropic commitments. Please direct correspondence and address changes to foundation@ucf.edu or Impact Editor, 12424 Research Parkway, Suite 250, Orlando, FL 32826. ACTING VP FOR ADVANCEMENT AND ACTING CEO Karen Cochran MANAGING EDITOR Susan Watkins
STAFF WRITER Charlene Eberly
ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT FOR COMMUNICATIONS Patrick Crowley ART DIRECTOR John Sizing | jspublicationdesign.com
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Setting the Stage for Future Knights
Largest Gift in History MacKenzie Scott Makes $40 Million Transformational Investment Philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott and her husband, Dan Jewett, gave a $40 million unrestricted gift to UCF in June, the largest gift to UCF in its 58-year history. This transformational investment will fund new programs that foster student success, provide faculty funds to conduct groundbreaking scholarship and research, and amplify the impact of established and future partnerships. “We are honored by Ms. Scott and Mr. Jewett’s trust and confidence in the University of Central Florida,” says UCF President Alexander N. Cartwright. “Their transformational gift validates the work our faculty and staff do to foster student success, and we are thankful these funds will enable us to increase our impact for generations of students. This unrestricted investment will accelerate our trajectory toward becoming the world’s leading public metropolitan research university and inspire others to invest in building a better future for our students and society.” In 2019, Scott — one of the world’s wealthiest women — pledged to give away most of her wealth. She gathered a group of nonprofit investors to help her identify and assess organizations that have a major impact on a number of causes, including economic mobility, positive social change and equity. Through her donations, she has taken a “data-driven approach to identifying organizations with strong leadership teams and results.” “While our resources are finite, our impact can be amplified with the help of others. I hope our alumni and friends will join Ms. Scott and Mr. Jewett in helping to provide a foundation for UCF’s future,” says Cartwright. “Because every new dollar allows us to make new discoveries on distant planets and to solve problems here on earth. Because every new investment creates opportunities for students to be the first in their families to earn a degree, creating generational change for their families and their communities. And because every gift helps create an impact that can only be rivaled by our dreams of what we can achieve together.”
“WE CHOSE TO MAKE RELATIVELY LARGE GIFTS [TO 286 ORGANIZATIONS], BOTH TO ENABLE THEIR WORK, AND AS A SIGNAL OF TRUST AND ENCOURAGEMENT.”
“My time at UCF was one of the best times of my life,” says Joshua Goodridge ’17. “UCF prepared me so well for the real world. This is why I like to give back.” Goodridge became a donor early on. When he was a freshman, he started working at Knight Line, the UCF call center. “I quickly learned that the majority of the funds it takes to run UCF come from from donors,” he says. “Once I heard that, I never stopped telling people — and I’ve donated every year since.” Besides philanthropy, he and wife Jessica (LaVigne) ’18, who received her degree in experimental animation in the College of Arts and Humanities, continue to stay connected in other ways to their alma mater. “I hope to continue to be able to mentor future and current UCF students,” says Joshua, who holds degrees in business and theater and has served on two alumni boards. The Goodridges hope to one day make a significant gift to help build a new theater on campus. “A lot of small gifts from alumni is what keeps the university going, along with the big gifts that come along occasionally,” he says. “So if my $5, $10 or $50 can help UCF continue to grow and be great — then that’s a plus!” The Goodridges
– Philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott
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Opportunities for All 10 Young Alumni Team Up to Create Scholarships at UCF Bortles (l) and Murray ’12 (r).
Football Greats Blake Bortles and Latavius Murray ’12 Make $500K Pledge Their generous gift commitment will be used to help renovate the sports medicine center and other components of the Wayne Densch Center, home of UCF football. In recognition of their gift, UCF Athletics will name the sports medicine center the Bortles and Murray Athletic Training Room. “Latavius and Blake obviously are UCF legends [and] exceptional young men,” says UCF football coach Gus Malzahn. “Their combined gift shows how important this program and this university are to them.” Murray played running back at UCF from 2008–12. “My time at UCF made me the man and athlete I am today,” he says. “My hope is that this gift will help leave an impact on the next generation of UCF Knights.” Bortles, who played quarterback for the Knights from 2010–13 and was the American Athletic Conference offensive player of the year as a senior, is excited about the direction the program is headed. “I’m honored to have played a small part in making this an elite college football program for our current and future student-athletes.” UCF vice president and director of athletics Terry Mohajir says, “I believe this gift commitment has illustrated their desires to see more student-athletes who benefited from their time here follow their direction by giving back to our school. We sincerely appreciate their heartfelt support to continue building our athletics program.”
Bianca Deslouches ’11 understands the impact that the kindness of strangers can have on a person. After graduating from UCF — where she received scholarships on the way to her finance degree — she vowed to pay it forward one day. Deslouches, along with Neola Occenad ’11, Kersten Busche ’11, Elisabeth Brown ’11 ’16MPA and Katrina Cesaire ’10 ’14MBA, all made their first gifts to UCF in a big way: They created the Kayak Friends and Family Fund with the intent of helping advance historically underrepresented communities. The $1,000 scholarship annually will be awarded to students who are in the John T. Washington Honor Society or Black Student Union. Once the scholarship was formalized in the spring, Deslouches shared the news on social media, and it happened to catch the eye of Sean Bryant ’12, who knew Deslouches while attending UCF and shared a similar desire to give back in some way. He reached out to his friends and wasn’t surprised when Dedrix Daka ’08, Evan Easterling ’12, Ronnie Weaver ’11 and Michael Pazmino, who earned his associate degree in 2009, immediately said they were also interested in creating a scholarship. Their Sons of T3 Scholarship will award a $1,000 scholarship annually to students in one of the nine National Pan-Hellenic Council fraternities or sororities on UCF’s campus. “We wanted it to be something awarded to people like us — people who are striving and doing things, but realistically we know there is a gap between what you can afford and what you need,” says Pazmino. “I would like this scholarship to help bridge that gap.” Deslouches agrees. “We want the money to get into the hands of people who tend to have access to fewer financial opportunities,” she says. “We don’t want that to stand in the way of living out the full potential of what was the greatest four years of a learning experience for so many of us.”
Bianca Deslouches ’11
THE KAYAK FRIENDS AND FAMILY FUND AND SONS OF T3 $1,000 SCHOLARSHIPS WILL EACH BE AWARDED ANNUALLY.
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Sean Bryant ’12
3,166
THE NUMBER OF UCF FRIENDS AND ALUMNI WHO TOGETHER RAISED MORE THAN $843,000 IN 24 HOURS to support more than 343 different areas during UCF Day of Giving, a one–day philanthropic challenge that took place earlier this year.
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10 MINUTES WITH...
Carolina Cruz-Neira Agere Chair Professor in Computer Science
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arolina Cruz-Neira, a computer scientist known worldwide for creating a fully immersive virtual reality environment within a room-sized cube called the CAVE system, joined the faculty of the University of Central Florida in early 2020. She is a pioneer in the areas of virtual reality and interactive visualization, having created and deployed a variety of technologies that have become standard tools in industry, government and academia.
At UCF we often say: “We believe that if there’s a better way, we should do it.” How does that relate to the development of the CAVE system and your pioneering work in projected virtual environments? This saying aligns perfectly with the way I have always approached my work. When I first experienced Virtual Reality back in 1991, I was captivated by the power of this emerging technology but felt that the implementation through bulky and heavy headsets was not a practical route into the virtual worlds — there had to be a better way to create these experiences. I envisioned a virtual stage that uses the surrounding environment as the display instead of mounting
a display on the user. People could then share the virtual experience face-to-face and have similar social interactions as they have in real life. The CAVE was an instant success when it debuted in 1992 and remains popular today. In recent years there has been a strong push to revisit the original CAVE concept, which has led me to the development of the vDen, a new type of CAVE. We thought that with today’s technology there had to be a better way to realize the concept of the CAVE in a much simpler and more cost-effective manner. The result was a new set of patents and much easier to use immersive projection systems.
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level headsets to high-end immersive projection systems, to custom-build immersive displays. Our research focus is on the underlying systems and software infrastructure to support individual and teamwork in varied virtual and augmented reality environments. Needs and interfaces may be different even if everyone is sharing a common virtual environment. For example, in a virtual surgery scenario, a doctor may be interested only in the specific area of a patient’s body where the surgery will take place, a medical student may want to have more of a bird’s eye view of the operating room, and an anesthesiologist may be more interested in getting the patient’s vital signs. A core part of my research is to make sure we understand all the alternative ways of ensuring that each individual’s work is adequately supported. How has the pandemic affected your work at UCF or the field of VR generally? Most of my work is experiential, so I need the ability to bring people into the lab and immerse them in the different technologies that we have. So, in a sense, I am right now where I was hoping to be a year ago: We now have the lab operational and are able to start bringing people in to experience our work and discuss collaborations. The students in our team have also been impacted — to some extent they have been working “blind” in their homes without really grasping how their projects look and feel in VR. I think this situation has been similar for many colleagues in the field since it is nearly impossible to recreate a remote VR experience without VR equipment. On the other hand, the pandemic has increased the urgency to develop immersive collaborative spaces that enable teams
I LIKE TO CREATE OPPORTUNITIES FOR STUDENTS — ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO DO NOT REALIZE THEIR OWN POTENTIAL YET.
’’ What are your plans for the new state-of-the-art research lab at UCF? Our new lab, the VARLab, houses a wide range of virtual and augmented reality technologies, ranging from consumer-
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to work together when they are not co-located. We hope that this urgency opens and expands opportunities to investigate effective models for teamwork in VR, which is one of the core areas of my group’s research. Throughout your career, you have worked to expand opportunities for others. How does this relate to what you are doing for UCF’s students? I like to create unique opportunities for students — especially those who do not even realize their own potential yet. Students have always been at the core of all my activities. They are the ones who make the projects happen, contribute their own vision and ideas, and disseminate their work after graduation. I like working with students who have entrepreneurial aspirations, and I have helped several groups of students to build their startups and transition them to successful companies. I am positively impressed with the quality and commitment of UCF students and I hope to continue being a catalyst for opportunities and professional growth for them to be successful once they graduate. What role has philanthropy played in your work throughout your career? Philanthropy has been integral in most of my activities as donations from individuals as well as foundations have enabled me to pursue bold new initiatives that would have been challenging to fund through competitive grants or industry contracts. I have always taken that support very seriously and use the philanthropic donations in manners that created opportunities and visibility for students and faculty as well as for the university. I do not think I could have gone this far in my career without the generous support of the many philanthropic individuals and organizations that I have had the privilege to work with.
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PERSPECTIVE / BEVERLY J. SEAY Immediate Past Chair, UCF Board of Trustees
Becoming the World’s Leading Metropolitan Research University Three decades ago, I first saw UCF’s exceptional impact on students and the community up close as a business leader in Orlando. While leading SAIC’s local modeling and simulation office, as we won contracts, we turned to UCF to develop our workforce. UCF was graduating students with the expertise we needed to successfully deliver on our contracts and strengthen what became our niche in the market. As our business grew, we directly funded faculty and students in research that prepared us and them for the future. My experiences as both an advisor and a mentor, along with both of my daughters’ choices to study at UCF, laid the foundation for me to become a donor. In addition, my husband, Steve, and I decided to retire to this area and both of my daughters’ families are here as well. Given the importance of UCF to this region, it is imperative to all of us living here that UCF is a thriving research university. I eagerly invest in the many talented people who work and study here, and in a university committed to helping to transform Florida’s economy and to making our community a better place. Contributing to student scholarships means helping them succeed on the path to life-changing degrees — and investing in our community, where many of them will pursue their careers and raise their families. My support of UCF includes the College of Engineering and Computer Science, home to exceptional academic programs and faculty and to talented students who are among the nation’s best in cybersecurity and computing. I’m a strong believer in the Girls EXCELling in Math and Science (GEMS) and WISE Mentoring @ UCF programs because young women need role models to navigate the challenges they face in STEM fields. I have two daughters who graduated with degrees in computing, and if I hadn’t been so involved with STEM, they might not have pursued promising STEM careers. The generosity of our donors will be important as our Board of Trustees works closely with President Cartwright to achieve his vision of making UCF the world’s leading metropolitan research university. We can achieve this goal together with strategic investments in our academic mission, talented faculty who are leaders in their disciplines, and partnerships within and beyond our community. To all of you who already give to UCF, thank you so much for your generosity. We appreciate you investing in UCF when we know there are so many worthy organizations and causes that you can choose. For anyone considering a gift to UCF, I encourage you to help us make a difference on our campuses, in our community and beyond. Help us become the world’s leading metropolitan research university. Go Knights, Charge On!
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Beverly J. Seay is immediate past chair of the UCF Board of Trustees. She serves on the dean’s advisory board in the UCF College of Engineering and Computer Science.
Notes of Gratitude In this space, we feature excerpts from thank-you letters the foundation receives from students and others whose lives have been changed by donors like you. This one came from Joshua Brooks, a civil engineering major in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, due to graduate in 2023. He received the Skura Family Endowed Freedom Scholarship.
I am extremely grateful for thi s money because it will help me have no student debt. I apprecia te my father’s time serving in the military and am thankful yo u are rewarding him through his son, me. I cannot thank the donors of this scholarship enough for recognizing my fathe r’s hard work in the military and lifting a financial burden off my shoulders.
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The mission of the GEMS (Girls EXCELling in Math and Science) program is to increase the success of young women in STEM by providing an inclusive environment that enhances personal support, builds confidence and incorporates strategies for thriving in college through connections with female role models. Students pictured include Cierra Word, Rebecca Vollman and Anabelle Levin, who participated in the program and later became mentors. ucffoundation.org
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FULL STEAM AHEAD
UCF HAS ALWAYS EMBRACED GROWTH and change because we believe that if there’s a better way, we should do it. The university opened in 1968 as Florida Technological University (FTU), with the mission of providing personnel to support the growing space program at the Kennedy Space Center and Cape Canaveral on Florida’s Space Coast. FTU later expanded the academic scope beyond engineering and technology to serve a more diversified local economy, and developed strong business, education and liberal arts programs. Even though the acronyms STEM and STEAM (science, technology, engineering, math, plus the arts) weren’t introduced until the early 21st century, many years after UCF’s founding, the university has long emphasized a well-rounded education, nurturing creative, out-of-the-box thinking in not only STEM fields, but all fields of study. And it’s not hard to find examples all over campus. STEM and STEAM in action can be found
in UCF’s “maker spaces” in the College of Engineering and Computer Science and Nicholson School of Communication and Media — collaborative environments that foster innovation and creativity, using science, technology, art and design — and through the work done by Limbitless Solutions, where technology is infused with artistic design to create bionic arms for those in need, to name a few. UCF’s commitment to STEM is evidenced by the high retention and graduation rates of students enrolled in EXCEL, a program that aims to increase student success in science and math by creating a learning community to support discovery and engagement — and more. UCF continues to prepare all Knights for success in an ever-changing world thanks to the generosity and vision of our friends, alumni, corporate partners and employees — people like you — who believe that if there’s a better way, we not only should do it, but we will do it.
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The inaugural 2019 {CodeOrlando} class, 14 of whom are now in college.
TEEN SPIRIT UCF and the Gordon family team up for {CodeOrlando} The Gordon Family Giving Foundation (GF2), founded in 2018 by Orlando Magic forward Aaron Gordon and his family, has partnered with the University of Central Florida’s College of Community Innovation and Education to deliver the STEM-focused {CodeOrlando} program on the UCF Downtown campus each summer through 2025. The foundation’s generous philanthropic commitment will support the development of the program, which provides hightech educational opportunities for underserved and underrepresented Orlando high school students, and also will be used to award scholarships to program mentors. The program is free
to students and based on need. “We look forward to seeing eighth through 12th graders jump into STEM learning through participation in the GF2 Coding Camp and in the important longterm follow up with mentors that it will provide. The College of Community Innovation and Education is excited and fortunate to partner with the Gordon Family Foundation to offer this opportunity,” says Pamela “Sissi” Carroll, dean of the College of Community Innovation and Education and Mildred W. Coyle Eminent Scholar and Endowed Professor of Education. {CodeOrlando} students participate in a series of handson visits to Orlando-based
companies and organizations that design, develop and use cutting-edge technologies, especially those that help better the world. Visits include working with specific technologies, touring engineering sites and having individual meetings with employees who share similar demographic backgrounds and circumstances. Students intern at these organizations and create projects using coding tools. “UCF is the perfect partner to grow and deepen the program,” says Shelly Davis Gordon, CEO of GF2. The foundation provides scholarships, ongoing support and opportunities for every {CodeOrlando} student
through college to reach their educational goals. Aaron Gordon, GF2’s president who has played for the Orlando Magic since he was drafted in 2014, works alongside students and gives them instruction on mindfulness, presentation and life skills. He says the Gordon Family Giving Foundation’s goal is to ensure that students are able to not only go to college, but to graduate in a STEM-related field. “Potential is universal, but opportunity is not,” says Gordon. “We partner with local schools, industries and technologists to provide opportunity, support and encouragement for our students, and we are proud to have UCF as a partner for this important program.” I
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EMPOWERING CHANGEMAKERS David and Thais Vogel nurture and inspire future math and science leaders
David and Thais Vogel
David S. Vogel and Thais Lopez Vogel are the visionary leaders and philanthropic force behind VoLo Foundation. The couple’s relationship with UCF traces back to when they met and raised six children in a home located behind the main campus. “UCF has always been a large part of our lives and being donors shows our confidence in the school’s high impact education and innovative research,” says Thais, co-founder and trustee of VoLo. As a mathematician, David finds solutions to problems through data research, and for that reason the Vogels love to help nurture and inspire future mathematicians. The couple donates extensively to mathand science-based initiatives across the university, including Women in STEM, GEMS (Girls EXCELling in Math and Science), undergraduate research, PhD students studying financial mathematics, first-generation scholarships, inclusive education services and the College of Business’ Joust competition — just to name a few. They have also hired many talented UCF grads at their private investment company and see firsthand the impact of their giving on students and the community. Additionally, three years ago VoLo Foundation teamed up with UCF’s Sustainability Initiatives to establish and fund the Climate Correction Conference, which has since become a worldwide renowned annual event focused on climate action and solutions. It is no surprise to hear Thais talk about the importance of being a positive example for future generations. “The young changemakers of today must be inspired and stay that way,” she says. “We are evolving toward a better future, and with our donations, UCF can continue our shared mission to impact positive change and empowerment through knowledge and opportunity.” I
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GRATITUDE & GREATNESS Bionic arm inspires academic excellence and generous planned gift Cynthia Falardeau remembers her son Wyatt’s reaction the first time she told him about the 3-D printed arms being created by UCF’s Limbitless Solutions: enthusiastic joy. “I want one of these robot arms! That is super cool! How do I get one? I could ride a bike! I might even be able to paddle a kayak!” Wyatt, whose arm and hand
its functionality and, with his new blue bionic arm, he became a celebrity among his friends. But the arm did more than suddenly catapult Wyatt into the spotlight. “Receiving this arm was a turning point for me. Before 2015 [when I received the arm], I was a good kid but I was not an outstanding student like
velopmental delays and was nonverbal until the age of 7, is now 18 and getting ready to enter his senior year in high school. He is in the top 10 percent of his class and plans to become an exceptional student education (ESE) teacher. He’s got a soft spot for UCF but is considering other local colleges too. He wants to make a difference in the lives of
Wyatt with his mom today and in 2015 when he received his Blue Man Group-themed arm.
were amputated due to amniotic banding, was in fifth grade at the time and had, of course, learned to adapt to his missing limb. The family reached out to the UCF team and was lucky to get on a waiting list to receive a limb for Wyatt. The team designed a Blue Man Group-themed arm, which was presented to him by the group onstage during a show. Wyatt was fascinated with the technology and mechanisms that gave the arm
I am now,” says Wyatt. “The experience taught me how to overcome obstacles and knock down the barriers of my challenges.” Cynthia says the arm gave Wyatt hope to imagine who he could become. “He became so inspired in his academics that he earned the Silver President’s award for the highest academic gains in the entire fifth grade of his elementary school.” Wyatt, who experienced de-
other children who experience challenges. To say his family, friends and teachers are proud of him and what he has accomplished would be an understatement. “No one was prouder than his late grandmother,” says Cynthia. “She was over the moon [when he received his arm] and told Wyatt, ‘Now you can accomplish anything!’” “Grandma told me how
scared she was regarding my future [missing a hand and arm],” says Wyatt. “Limbitless gave her such hope for my future.” Wyatt and his grandmother were very close and spoke several times a week about everything from politics to Broadway. In 2019 they saw Tony Bennett at the Hollywood Bowl together. “She loved Wyatt so much that she promised to take him to the Hollywood Bowl the following summer — to see Ozzy Osbourne,” says Cynthia. When Wyatt’s beloved grandmother recently passed away, she chose to leave her legacy by including the organization in her will. “Limbitless is so appreciative for her gift and trust in Limbitless to pay it forward to more children,” says Albert Manero, ’12 ’14MS ’16PhD, Limbitless co-founder and CEO. “Our team will continue to empower children to reach for their big dreams with our support every step of the way. The team honors [her] memory in the smile of every bionic kid.” The gift will be instrumental in Limbitless’ efforts to scale the program to include adults’ bionic limbs, enabling a future where the team can support children with limb differences through every growth spurt and milestone. “Grandma believed that if you are born differently, you can still achieve great things — and organizations like Limbitless will help you get there,” says Wyatt. I
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Woody Walker receives the UCF College of Business 2020 Hall of Fame Award from Dean Paul Jarley.
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HELPING STUDENTS THRIVE Mentor establishes endowed scholarships in STEM and Business “It is important for you to have a mentor when you start your career but to also turn around and do that for others as they start out in their careers,” says Woody Walker ’92 ’94. “We have to be there for the next generation to pass on learnings; we are all in this together, and the more we support each other, the more we can create positive impacts on our world.” Walker established the Walker STEM Scholarship Endowment with her husband, Christopher ’94, to do just that — to be there for the next generation of Knights. Their scholarship supports Burnett Honors College Scholars seeking to pursue STEM careers. The couple also recently established
a second endowed fund to support underrepresented students in the College of Business who are members of organizations that focus on woman and minorities in business. The STEM scholarship is particularly important to Walker, who wants to ensure that women have the same opportunities as men to get into STEM and IT fields. With more than 20 years of experience in the tech industry, she understands well the lack of diversity in the field. “Women earn only 28 percent of computer science degrees and only 25 percent of computing jobs,” she says. “We need to do more for women and minorities to ensure they
have the opportunity to thrive and contribute to these critical fields.” Walker also gives her time to her alma mater as a mentor for current Knights, as a member of the UCF Alumni Board and as an active volunteer with the College of Business. She was fortunate to have had the benefit of strong mentors throughout her career and is passionate about her role. “Behind every successful person is a collection of supporters, encouraging, challenging and pushing,” she says. “It is our responsibility to ensure young people are thriving, charging into life and taking ownership of their development.” In her role as a mentor and as a donor, she is supporting
Knights who are eager to make a difference in the world, yet Walker benefits deeply from the relationship too. She is impressed with the STEM majors’ passion, creativity and commitment. She also gives her alma mater praise: “[The students] are at a school that truly cares about them and wants them to succeed not only while they are enrolled, but beyond graduation. I am happy to help in any way that I can.” I
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Duda, with late husband Bud Weber and then Interim UCF President Thad Seymour, received her honorary doctorate of humane letters in 2019.
LOVERS OF THE ARTS UCF champion supports music and theater in husband’s memory Judy Duda H’19 has made an indelible impact on UCF and the College of Arts and Humanities for decades, fostering a long relationship with the UCF Symphony Orchestra and serving as the chairperson of the executive council for the dean of the UCF College of Arts and Humanities. This year, Duda further demonstrated her commitment to supporting the arts with a gift that honors the memory of her husband, Colonel Howard (Bud) Weber: a generous donation to the Performing Arts Center and the establishment of a fund to help create a library of string instruments for the UCF School of Performing Arts. Duda was inspired to create the fund for the string instruments in part by Chung
Park, director of the UCF Symphony and Chamber Orchestras, head of string music education and assistant professor in the Department of Music. Park shared with Duda his observation that many promising students were still playing on the same string instruments they had played prior to coming to UCF — some were using instruments they had acquired in middle school. Park’s words reminded Duda of her own music lessons in her youth, for which she was loaned a viola to play for free. She was inspired to help provide current students with the same opportunities she once had, which led her to explore the possibility of starting a fund for a library of string instruments.
When she discussed the idea with her late husband, he was equally enthusiastic — and she made a gift to start the fund. Following her husband’s passing in early 2021, Duda was inspired to revisit the fund with an additional gift as a way to honor his memory while giving back to the arts community. Weber also served as the inspiration for Duda’s generous donation to the Performing Arts Center. Thanks to Duda’s generosity, the Performing Arts Center will continue to shine a spotlight on music, theater and community, and students will no longer be limited by whether they can afford a new instrument to accompany them on their educational journey. I
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GIFT SPOTLIGHT
Ready to Excel Program prepares students for soaring success “If I could choose one word for what EXCEL means to me, it’s probably opportunity,” says Loubensky Baine, an aerospace engineering major in the UCF College of Engineering and Computer Science who hopes to become a commercial airline pilot. “There are a lot of things that I’m doing now that I probably would not have gotten into without the EXCEL program.” At UCF, ensuring that science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) majors achieve success is a top priority. The fast-paced nature and technical curricula of the STEM majors are challenging but EXCEL, with its comprehensive and well-planned support structure to bolster science and math skills, prepares students to succeed, starting with the most critical first two years of college. Since its inception in 2006, the EXCEL program has recruited more than 4,000 students and has increased student success — measured by graduating in a STEM major — by 52 percent, compared to STEM majors who were not in EXCEL. To meet the goal of increasing underrepresented graduates in the STEM workforce, EXCEL later established a women’s mentorship network consisting of GEMS (Girls EXCELling in Math and Science) and WISE (Women in Science and Engineering) about a decade ago. These programs pair students with upper division students and STEM professionals. WISE has successfully paired 120 students and professionals for mentoring and for many, the partnerships can be “life changing,” according to Leah D’Agostini ’09, who received her degree in Information Technology. “Because of my mentor’s guidance, I learned how to effectively talk to recruiters at job fairs and how to have a successful interview. When I was a student, I applied for three different internships and received offers from all three.”
EXCEL was created for and originally funded by the National Science Foundation. After the award period, the university institutionalized funding of the student support and instructional elements of the program. Mentoring programs, undergraduate research and learning assistants are supported by the private philanthropy of industry partners and generous donors. “Being an EXCEL student means that someone is willing to invest in you,” says Baine, who believes that participating in the program has helped him rise above his peers. “The program serves as a parent almost, to help guide you through your first couple years in university,” he says. “EXCEL gave me the opportunity to find myself and really discover who I am.”
Loubensky Baine
To support EXCEL and GEMS/WISE, please visit: www.ucffoundation.org/excel or www.ucffoundation.org/gems-wise.
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