Pegasus Magazine Fall 2017 by University of Central Florida

The Magazine of the University of Central Florida

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WHAT IS CREATIVITY?

In Their words 1.5 million veterans live in Florida. Each one has a story.

PHOTO BY BRAD HELTON, UCF ATHLETICS

BETTER TOGETHER

From the big win of our football season opener to hurricane prep and cleanup, camaraderie is everywhere at UCF. After all, working together to better ourselves and our community is an essential part of being a Knight.

Inbox

PEGASUS VICE PRESIDENT FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND MARKETING Grant J. Heston ’13

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ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT FOR MARKETING Patrick Burt ’08

University of Central Florida July 11, 2017

MANAGING EDITOR Laura J. Cole

Creativity. A powerful word that has various definitions. Describe what creativity means to you in

words.

Comment and check your email inbox tomorrow for the latest Summer 2017 issue of Pegasus.

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Eric Michael ’96 CREATIVE DIRECTOR Ron Boucher ’92 ART DIRECTORS Lauren (Harr) Waters ’06 Steve Webb DESIGNERS Mario Carrillo Adam Smajstrla ’11

I LOVE SEEING PEGASUS MAGAZINE with all the married Knights and babies section! It makes me happy to see the legacies continuing. I just married my UCF sweetheart. We met in the alumni center. We both got jobs right after graduation and are so happy with our alma mater. We had the opportunity to find love, jobs and a bright future! #goknights

» JENNA MARTUCCI ’16

COPY EDITOR Peg Martin

What Is Creativity? UCF professors, artists, artificial intelligence experts, video game designers, engineers, entrepreneurs, composers and teachers define creativity. UCF.EDU

PRODUCTION MANAGER Sandy Pouliot

34 people like this.

16 comments

Carrie Saites Thinking outside normal

WOW, WHEN I ENTERED FTU IN 1968 and graduated with an engineering degree in 1970, I’m sure none of us on campus envisioned what direction the university would take over the years and the kinds of diverse subject matter that would be encouraged. I was captured by the offerings on creativity (Summer 2017). They were thought-provoking, especially the piece “Your Brain on Music.” Kudos on another great issue.

» TIM ACKERT ’70

Clara Moll Create out of nothing Jay Elliott Blissfully unbounded imagination Karen Huff-Cylc Freedom to Explore Eileen Fehr Duffy Original thought. Period! Emily St Pierre Tolbert Problem-solving method George H McCollum III One’s inner being! Rita Maldonado Inspiration for others

CONGRATULATIONS TO THE MANY VERY CREATIVE PEOPLE who made this issue (Summer 2017) the most entertaining to date. UCF has come a long way toward providing quality education and quality graduates. I am proud to say I graduated from this university when it was FTU.

Sondra Kennett Abstract pattern recognition Tamaleah Oviatt imagination innovation communication Annie Cohen-coles Always be You

» MARGUERITE TOTKA ’72

TWO YEARS AGO, I MOVED BACK TO FLORIDA after living for several years in London and was wondering how things are at UCF. I joined the Alumni Association and was delighted to see that the school was doing well and has grown. Living in Sarasota, I find the magazine has kept me in touch and informed on what is new at UCF. I enjoy reading it.

» THOMAS TUCKER ’05

Pegasus is published by UCF Marketing in partnership with the UCF Foundation, Inc. and UCF Alumni. Opinions expressed in Pegasus are not necessarily those shared by the University of Central Florida.

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Email:

pegasus@ucf.edu

Mail: UCF Marketing P.O. Box 160090 Orlando, FL 32816-0090

PHOTOGRAPHERS Nick Leyva ’15 Austin Warren Bernard Wilchusky

CORRECTION: In the Summer 2017 issue, we reported the incorrect ranking of the UCF wrestling club, which placed seventh in the nation. Student Justus Griffith was the national champion in the 133-pound weight class.

COVER ILLUSTRATION BY TIM MCDONAGH

ONLINE PRODUCER Roger Wolf ’07 WEB PROGRAMMERS Jim Barnes Keegan Berry ’12 RJ Bruneel ’97 Jo Dickson ’11 CONTRIBUTORS Bree Adamson ’04 Jeffrey C. Billman ’01 Matt Chase Anai Colyer ’14 Nicole Dudenhoefer Maureen Harmon Ginny Justice Gene Kruckemyer ’73 Tim McDonagh Susan Watkins Paige Wilson ’17 PEGASUS ADVISORY BOARD Barb Abney ’03 Chad Binette ’06 Richard Brunson ’84 Cristina Calvet-Harrold ’01 John Gill ’86 Michael Griffin ’84 Mike Hinn ’92 Gerald McGratty Jr. ’71 Michael O’Shaughnessy ’81 Dan Ward ’92

INBOX SUBMISSIONS Emails to the editor should be sent with the writer’s name, graduation year, address and daytime phone number to pegasus@ucf.edu. Letters may be edited for length and clarity, and may be published in any medium. Due to volume, we regret that we cannot reply to every letter.

MOVED RECENTLY? NEED TO UPDATE YOUR INFO?

Phone: 407.882.1238 Cert no. SW-COC-002556

Update your contact information:

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Contents

6 In Focus 10 On Campus 12 Briefs 14 The Feed 15 Suitable Tradition 16 Going Big 18 Building a Village 20 Drive On

A MOMENT IN THE SUN

24 All the Buzz

The first day of classes was marked by a historic event — the "Great American Eclipse," which was the first coast-to-coast total solar eclipse in 99 years. To mark the occasion, nearly 2,000 members of the UCF community gathered around the Reflecting Pond and looked toward the sun — with the proper glasses, of course.

26 In Their Words 32 In Defense of Title IX 34 Meeting Students Where They Are 38 AlumKnights 46 Why I Swim with Sharks

In Focus A BIG ANNOUNCEMENT On October 24, John C. Hitt announced he was stepping down as president of UCF, effective June 30, 2018. Hitt and his wife, Martha, arrived on campus in 1992 and have since dedicated their lives to making UCF one of the largest and best universities in the nation. For 26 years, Hitt fostered partnerships to expand UCF’s offerings and inclusion to increase students’ opportunities to earn college degrees. In turn, his vision not only transformed the UCF community, but the entire Central Florida region. Hitt will continue to be a part of the Knight family even during retirement, helping to advance philanthropic, community and partnership goals as president emeritus.

“When we first visited campus, [Martha and I] had a powerful feeling that UCF was a special place. We never could have imagined then how very special it would become.” — President John C. Hitt

$2.23 billion 30,477 Earned in research funding since 1992

Minority students enrolled at UCF in Fall 2017. This is more than the total enrollment in 1991–92, which was 21,267 students.

850 71 4.06

National Merit Scholars enrolled since 2002

New degree programs

Average GPA for this year’s freshmen. The average GPA for freshmen in 1995 was 3.34.

Consecutive years UCF has had the highest studentathlete graduation success rate in the nation o see more behind-the-scenes T photos and watch a video of Hitt’s announcement, visit ucf.edu/pegasus. Look for more about Hitt’s legacy as well as UCF's presidential transition in upcoming issues of Pegasus.

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U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

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In Focus A SPECIAL VISIT Bill and Melinda Gates visited campus in October. The Gates Foundation has been looking at UCF as an example of what the future of higher education could look like. As part of their visit, they learned about UCF’s efforts in digital learning, which are focused on making a high-quality education available to as many students as possible; met with students from UCF’s national champion computer programming and cyber defense teams; and saw firsthand the innovative work being created at Limbitless Solutions, which encourages students to find new ways to improve the world around them.

“UCF has chosen to be a growing university, and one of the key tools they’ve used is online [learning]. It’s taken years to review feedback and to get these things right, but now a lot is known about how to do this well, and UCF has been a leader in [this area].” — Bill Gates

1982

Year UCF Computer Programming Team began competing

100+

Students, faculty and staff who met with the Gates while they were on campus

Percent of all UCF students who take at least one online course each semester

Individuals who have received a 3-D printed arm from Limbitless Solutions

6.5 3

Hours the Gates spent on campus

Consecutive years UCF’s Collegiate Cyber Defense Club, Hack@UCF, has won a national championship

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

1ON1

SEPT.

Student Austin Warren checked on his order at the new Amazon Campus Pickup Point location near the CFE Arena.

AUG.

President John C. Hitt cut the ribbon at the official opening of the new Marching Knights band practice building.

AUG.

UCF womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s soccer achieved its biggest win yet with a 2-1 double overtime victory against the No. 4 University of North Carolina.

The Marching Knights performed the March to Victory before the football team defeated Florida International University 61â&#x20AC;&#x201C;17 at the opening game of the season.

SEPT.

Students involved in the Canine P EGASUS Companions for Independence program held a meetup for their pups at the Reflecting Pond.

OCT.

Michael Manglardi â&#x20AC;&#x2122;84, Carey Sobel â&#x20AC;&#x2122;09, Loretta Corey and Michael Corey were recognized for their outstanding service and philanthropy at the Shining Knights Alumni Awards.

AUG.

The fall semester kicked off with a Knight Wars-themed pool party as part of Pegasus Palooza.

OCT.

Student Tyler Brooks rode a skateboard through the Nike and Hercules housing communities, located behind the Recreation and Wellness Center. PHOTO BY JOSH LETCHWORTH

Briefs RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS

SAVE THE RANGERS, SAVE THE WORLD PHOTO COURTESY OF ROHIT SINGH

UCF has partnered with the World Wildlife Fund to learn about the daily realities of wildlife rangers in Asia, Africa and Latin America. This research aims to provide scientific data that will help bring policy changes to improve ranger conditions.

“This is a completely new area of investigation for the WWF and really a new topic within conservation sciences and policy.” — Will Moreto, UCF assistant professor of criminal justice

Together with our partners at the Hospital Corporation of America, we look forward to strengthening our community’s health, training more doctors and powering economic growth through research.” — President John C. Hitt, after the state’s Agency for Health Care Administration approved UCF Lake Nona Medical Center. The 100-bed medical and surgical hospital is scheduled to open to patients by the end of 2020.

Gaming for All AFFORDABLE SOLAR UCF received a $3.1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s SunShot Initiative to help make solar energy more efficient and affordable.

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A team of video game designers from UCF's School of Visual Arts & Design partnered with Limbitless Solutions to create Smash Bro, an accessibilityfriendly video game that uses electrical impulses from the user’s muscles to play. The team visited the Smithsonian American Art Museum this summer to showcase the game and met with White House staff interested in accessibility technology.

GIVING BACK

$81,000

Donated to Knights Helping Knights Pantry to provide food and other necessities to UCF students in need after Hurricane Irma. UCF Foundation board chairman Nelson Marchioli ’72 and his wife, Carole, ultimately contributed $32,000, after initially pledging to match up to $25,000.

Patients treated at UCF RESTORES clinic who no longer have PTSD as a result of the program’s intensive three-week virtual therapy program

1,065,391

Amount UCF’s fraternities and sororities donated to local and national charities, such as St. Jude’s Hospital and the American Cancer Society during the 2016–17 academic year. This marks the largest amount raised by UCF’s Greek life in a single year.

KNIGHTS ON TOP TOP

25 MOST

2,728

Teachers who signed up for “Adopt a Classroom,” a Facebook initiative launched by Briana Beverly ’12 in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey to help Houston teachers and students in need. The initiative paired teachers with donors who will provide requested supplies.

INNOVATIVE

UCF is the only school in Florida to rank alongside Harvard, MIT, Stanford and Duke as one of the most innovative universities in the nation. (U.S. News & World Report) Supplier of engineers to aerospace and defense industries in the nation, for third consecutive year (Aviation Week)

1,000

Hospitality and hotel management school in the world (CEOWorld Magazine)

National Guardsmen who were stationed at UCF’s Spectrum Stadium before, during and after Hurricane Irma. The facility provided the reserve military force with a place to store their supplies and equipment, as well as a safe place to rest between missions.

Student counseling and personnel services graduate program in the nation (U.S. News & World Report) Optical physics graduate program in the nation (U.S. News & World Report)

Nonprofit management graduate program in the nation (U.S. News & World Report)

Special education graduate program in the nation (U.S. News & World Report)

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

The Feed

Find more @

ucf.edu/today

@UCF

@University of Central Florida

Turtle Health

Two UCF professors teamed up to find out how and why so many green sea turtles have tumors. bit.ly/ucf-turtlehealth

Smart Move

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ORLANDO SENTINEL

Uber recently acquired UCF professor Ken Stanley’s artificial intelligence and machine learning startup, Geometric Intelligence. bit.ly/ucf-smart-move

Inspiring Knight

Cherie Carr ’17 walked across the commencement stage only three weeks after being diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. “We are Knights, and we charge on,” she said. bit.ly/ucf-inspiring-knight

(Black and) Gold Plated

With more than 17,000 plates on the road, UCF now ranks third among Florida public universities for specialty license plates. bit.ly/ucf-black-and-gold-plated

This fall, UCF welcomed its largest and most diverse student body. bit.ly/ucf-66000-and-growing

WHAT’S TRENDING ON... UCF TODAY Genes and Depression

A UCF study discovered a gene, carried by nearly 25 percent of the population, that increases the risk for depression. bit.ly/ucf-genes-depression

Dream Kitchen

The J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation committed $1.5 million to construct a 3,500-square-foot food service lab at the Rosen College of Hospitality Management. bit.ly/ucf-dream-kitchen

Growing Success

The UCF Business Incubation Program helped an alum’s nursing business grow revenue from $300,000 to $6 million. bit.ly/ucf-growing-success

The Magazine of the University of Central Florida

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WHAT IS CREATIVITY?

DOWNLOAD the digital edition of Pegasus at: bit.ly/ucf-pegasus

In Their words 1.5 million veterans live in Florida. Each one has a story.

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66,000 and Growing

TWITTER

FACEBOOK

Aug 9 @UCF A research team led by Professor Zenghu Chang beat its own record for the fastest light pulse ever developed. Sept 15 @WUCFTV On 9/14/1814, Key penned the Star-Spangled Banner! Videos + support materials help students explore symbolic icons. pbslearningmedia.org Oct 1 @KnightfanNeal Despite the blowout victory from @UCF_Football yesterday, I think I still walked away the biggest winner. Oct 21 @ESPNCFB For the first time in school history, UCF is 6-0! The Knights’ best start before this year was in 1988 as a Division II program (5-0). Oct 24 @Bpernell6271 Thanks, Dr. Hitt. Proud to have your signature on my degree.

UCF Provides In-state Tuition Rate to Puerto Rican Students Displaced by Hurricane Maria UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA · September 27, 2017

2.6K

124 comments

Taylor Johnson I’m unbelievably proud to tell people I went to UCF. Keep setting the bar for what higher education is meant to be. September 27 James Potts UCF keeps doing the right thing! September 27 Jose Quinones Thanks to the UCF Board of Trustees for that unanimous vote. Your actions bring hope to my country and set a high standard on how to care for others. Un abrazo desde Puerto Rico. September 28

Artifact

Suitable 2

Here are some fun facts about the original Pegasus’ knight: 1. STITCHED INTO HISTORY Walt Disney World designed the

TRADITION

sketches depicted two options, each with different visors for the helmet and placement of the Pegasus insignia. “It had to be designed in such a way that

A look into the origin of the knight’s costume

original costume for the knight. Their

BY PAIGE WILSON ’17

the person wearing the costume could both walk around and look natural while riding the horse,” Walsh says.

2. THE WOMEN BEHIND THE MASK The original knights were members

There’s more than one knight on UCF’s campus. While students and alumni are used to seeing athletics mascot Knightro everywhere from sporting events to pool parties, there’s another masked knight who only appears during football games. Established in 2001, this knight rides onto the field atop Pegasus, the winged horse. The partnership between the knight and his trusted steed came about after members of the UCF Alma Mater Society, including Roger Pynn ’73 and Rick Walsh ’77 ’83MS, wanted to create a tradition for fans. They thought Pegasus needed to be better represented at games, and naturally a knight would be the one to ride him. “It has achieved our goal of creating a tradition,” says Pynn. “People love seeing that horse and knight come out during the game." And while this particular knight was retired in 2016, the legacy lives on. UCF is working on redesigning the costume to better represent Scott Frost’s era as head coach.

of the Equestrian Club at UCF, and all but one have been female students — a little-known secret, says Carla Cordoba ’94 ’00MBA, who has advised the Pegasus Mascot Team since 2001. “As with Knightro, nobody knows who’s in the costume,” she says. “But the riders were typically girls because they were small enough to fit.”

3. KNIGHT TO THE RESCUE “The objective in creating the costume was that we wanted our knight to have the same impact as a superhero,” Pynn says. And, according to Walsh, they wanted to be able to make subtle improvements to the costume over the years, similar to the evolution of Batman’s costume, so it could better reflect the times.

4. A HISTORIC RIDE On January 1, 2014, Amanda Gonzalez ’14 suited up for the last time as the knight during the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl in Arizona. “It’s a different experience seeing the world through just those little slits of your knight helmet,” says Gonzalez. “You don’t get to see everything, but it gives you the feeling that it’s game day.”

5. THE PERFECT PAIR Cordoba emphasizes the importance of the unbreakable bond between the knight and Pegasus. The two were never intended to be seen separately; nor was the rider ever to be seen without a mask. Protecting the anonymity of the knights’ identity was a way to foster tradition and represent UCF in all its glory. “It’s all those little details that make game day really special,” she says.

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S | 1 5

t’s true. UCF is big. But being big is about more than our size. It’s

how we think and how we act. Because at UCF, we do things differently.

Instead of following the traditional model for higher education, which considers exclusivity a virtue, we forged a new path. Guided by President John C. Hitt’s belief that “nothing transforms lives so much as a college education,” we continue to meet the demand for higher education in Central Florida. A large enrollment — topping 66,000 this fall — was never the goal. It is the result of the desire to improve the lives of as many qualified students as possible. That’s because we believe in the transformative power a college education wields and the lifelong impact it has on individuals, their families, our community and beyond. And we’re not alone. A recent report by the Brookings Institution analyzed 342 four-year, public universities to see which institutions were successful in facilitating social mobility and in producing research that positively impacts society. UCF was among the select 20 percent of universities found to do both. While most institutions boast that smaller enrollments result in greater outcomes, we’re proving the opposite is true. Bigger means connecting more people to excellent academics, to thought-provoking viewpoints, to diverse cultures, to rewarding careers, to lifelong friends and to life-changing opportunities. It means making college degrees possible for more first-generation and low-income students, who are often left out of schools with smaller enrollments. In a recent blog post for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, postsecondary director Dan Greenstein wrote, “This is critical at a time when we urgently need more capacity in higher education rather than less. By 2025, our workforce will require that 60 percent of all adults have some education after high school.”

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With more than 15,000 degrees conferred each year, we graduate more students than any other institution in the nation. But being inclusive does not mean lowering standards. In fact, this fall, we welcomed an additional 88 National Merit Scholars, as well as a freshman class with a university-record 4.05 average GPA. UCF ranks 11th among U.S. public universities for the number of new National Merit Scholars, proof that our efforts to be inclusive are also attracting the brightest young minds.

ut if being big is more than a number, why do we care about these

facts and figures? It’s not so we can break records — it’s so we can break boundaries.

When we boast that 44 percent of our students graduate without educational debt — better than the national average of 34 percent — we consider it a milestone, not a stopping point. And we are hard at work to help the other 56 percent achieve the same financial freedom. When we mention that one in four of our undergraduates is a first-generation college student, and that more than 45 percent are minorities, we acknowledge that our mission to make higher education more inclusive is working but not complete. When we rank as one of the nation’s 25 most innovative universities by U.S. News & World Report, alongside Harvard and MIT, we are honored to be recognized by our peers in higher education. But instead of resting on that laurel, we are motivated to continue pursuing new ways to reach more students, including through online degree programs. And when we announce groundbreaking research grants and

pioneering advances in technology, they aren’t just points of pride; they’re proof that what we’re doing is making a difference on campus, in our region and all around the world. So yes, having more than 66,000 students makes us a big university. But our size is our strength. By prioritizing opportunity and excellence rather than exclusivity, UCF proves that bigger is better — for our students today and for generations to come.

P EGASUS

BY BREE ADAMSON â&#x20AC;&#x2122;04

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

adjoining two-story Boys & Girls Club

on-site counseling services

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preschool - 8th grade school

after-school programs health center

A NEW SCHOOL IN PA R RA M O R E A I M S TO R E V I TA L I Z E T H E C O M M U N I T Y. For the first time in 46 years, Orlando’s Parramore neighborhood has its own school for children in preschool through eighth grade. Since the early 1970s, when court-ordered integration efforts closed the two all-black schools in the area, children in the Parramore neighborhood have been split up and bused to eight different schools. That all changed on August 14, when the new Orange County Public Schools Academic Center for Excellence (OCPS ACE) opened its doors to

nearly 1,000 students. Located across from the UCF Downtown campus, the school is based on an innovative model created by UCF and other partners that envisions the 251,812-square-foot campus as a place to both educate children and improve the community. The Parramore school is the 13th school in Florida to be built on a successful design — the Community Partnership Schools (CPS) model — developed by UCF and the Children's Home Society of Florida (CHSFL).

food pantry

NICOLE DUDENHOEFER

P EGASUS

“The opportunities here [at OCPS ACE] are just phenomenal because we have services for parents and families,” says Superintendent Barbara Jenkins ’83 ’86MEd ’96EdD. “There will be activities to draw in these families who have had to go out to other schools previously. Now they have their own community school.” Community schools aim to remove social, economic and health barriers that prevent children in underserved communities from gaining access to the best education possible. There are currently more than 5,000 community schools across the nation. “The CPS model is unique among community schools because it embeds directors into the school who bring in community resources that benefit the students, parents and community,” says Amy Ellis, director for UCF’s Center for Community Schools. “In some parts of the country, only a nonprofit and a school district partner come together to develop their community schools. In the Community Partnership School model, four partners commit to the development and long-term sustainability of the community school, making it one of the most comprehensive models I’ve seen.” Those four partners are the school district, a health care provider, a nonprofit organization, and a college or university — all of which must commit their services to a school for at least 25 years. The aid given by these partners is not just for the students. Parents, other family members and residents in the community are encouraged to use the resources offered at their CPS. Azsile Harrison, who lives on the same block as OCPS ACE, says she looks forward to using the school’s health services center because of its convenient location. Harrison, a mother of five, has lived in Parramore for 43 years. While her adult children all live in the Pine Hills neighborhood, she insisted her seven grandchildren, from preschoolers to first-graders, attend OCPS ACE. She wants them to use the newest technology the school provides and also have access to the adjoining Boys & Girls Club, which provides a safe space for students to play and receive assistance with their homework. UCF and CHSFL began testing the CPS model in 2010 at Evans High School in Orange County’s Pine Hills neighborhood. It was renamed the Evans Community School two years later. The additions of a food pantry, on-site counseling services, a health

center and after-school programs have proven successful. In the past six years, graduation rates at Evans have increased from 64 percent in 2011 to 88 percent in 2017. Overall crime rates in the neighboring area decreased 17 percent in the first six months of this year. The people working with OCPS ACE are borrowing ideas from Evans’ successes and hope to replicate the improvements made in Pine Hills. For both Evans and OCPS ACE, the common partners are OCPS, Orange Blossom Family Health, CHSFL and UCF. The Harris Rosen Foundation is providing more than $1 million dollars in funding and services for the preschool located on the campus. “The children growing up in the community surrounding OCPS ACE have tremendous potential — and so do their families,” says Shannon Currie, CPS director for CHSFL. “We’re excited to provide a strong, solid foundation for children and their families involved with OCPS ACE, and we know the education, services and programs they receive at the Community Partnership School will lay the groundwork for a strong future.” Just as no two neighborhoods are alike, no two Community Partnership Schools are the same. Ellis says the services and assistance offered at

adjoining two-story Boys & Girls Club

on-site counseling services

“The CPS model is unique among community schools because it embeds directors into the school who bring in community resources that benefit the students, parents and community.”

each school based on the needs of preschool - 8thare developed the community. And while the partners, staff and teachers at OCPS ACE work to find their footing after-school grade school in Parramore, the school has already made an programs impact on the community. “The school has certainly beautified the area and caused a lot of cleanup to make it even better than it was looking before,” says Nancy Lightner, who lives across the street from the school and is a minister at the nearby Livingston Street Church of God. “It’s also added more security with the police being here, and the lighting too. It just seems like everybody has a better attitude [since the school was built]; they’re more friendly. I think it’s made people feel a little bit better about the area that they are living in.”

A NEW SCHOOL IN PA R RA M O R E A I M S TO R E V I TA L I Z E T H E C O M M U N I T Y.

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

KNIGHTS RACING ISN’T THE NO. 1 ENGINEERING CLUB IN THE COUNTRY, BUT THEY’RE NOT LETTING THAT STOP THEM.

BY JEFFREY C. BILLMAN ’01 ’10MA

P EGASUS

oyt Hicks is exhausted. You can’t blame him, really. The days and nights before competitions are long; sleep is hard to come by. There’s much to worry about: whether the spark plugs are clean, whether the gear ratio will give you the thrust you need, whether the car’s agility is what you imagined it to be. As the team leader of the formula side of Knights Racing, UCF’s Engineering Motorsports club, Hicks will be driving the team’s car this morning. It’s a Friday in early August, and he and his team are in Homestead, Florida, competing in a Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) invitational against Florida Atlantic University and Florida International University. It’s a relatively low-key event — friendly and almost quiet, taking place in an empty speedway that smells of sunblock, gasoline and burnt rubber — unlike the larger, more strenuous national competition in Michigan they’ll compete in next May, the prize they have their eyes on. In between events, Hicks is often hunched over, his orange racing suit unzipped in the morning heat, resting in the shade, gulping bottled water and pushing his hair out of his face. He’s calm and focused, occasionally laughing and joking with his teammates, then returning his attention to the car.

“YEARN TO WIN. IF YOU DON’T HAVE THAT COMPETITIVENESS, YOU PROBABLY AREN’T GOING TO STICK AROUND. PEOPLE ARE WORKING INCREDIBLY HARD.” Today, they’re testing acceleration, maneuverability and handling. A few minutes before the acceleration test, Hicks jumps in the UCF team’s car, which is smaller than you’re probably imagining, almost resembling a souped-up go-kart, only faster and louder and plastered with sponsor stickers. He turns the ignition, but the car doesn’t start. Hicks jumps out and begins sorting out what’s wrong — but time isn’t his friend. The event is supposed to start in mere moments. With the clock ticking down, he and his teammates finally arrive at an answer: a sensor

was dislodged, and the spark plugs got wet. But an answer isn’t a solution; they’ll have to MacGyver something, using only what’s around them. A team member grabs a water bottle and quickly cuts the bottom half off. Hicks places the spark plugs in it while he frantically uses a toothbrush to clean them. Then he lets the plugs dry in the warm morning sun. A few minutes later, and just in time, he replaces them and the car is ready to go. Now, wide awake, Hicks jumps in and drives the car to the starting line. There, he revs the engine, a loud, piercing roar, and then floors it. It’s over in a few seconds — 4.76 seconds, to be precise, a half-second behind the victorious FAU. “The car actually did really well,” Hicks says. The team was able to predict its performance almost exactly, within 2 percent, and the car dominated in skid pad. But he’s racing last year’s car — and every year, the team designs a new one, if not from scratch then with large chunks of new material, using the previous model to figure out what to do better. The design for this year’s car is already underway. Over the fall and winter, it will be welded into place. “We’ll fall in love on Valentine’s Day,” he says.

broke. But fixing things — finding a better way to do something — is why many students join Knights Racing in the first place. And so the second year, that’s exactly what they did. They scrapped the old design and started over, building the car they raced at Homestead. They saw a substantial improvement, but it still wasn’t good enough. For this year’s car, they’ll build a new frame, finish the car earlier and take more time testing it. Hicks is hopeful they’ll have more success in Michigan, where they finished 59th out of 109 teams last year. His team members, he says, “yearn to win. If you don’t have that competitiveness, you probably aren’t going to stick around. People are working incredibly hard.”

icks grew up around cars, as did many members of the UCF formula team. His father owned a Sprint Cup car years ago. When he and his twin brother, Harley — who is also on the Knights Racing formula team — turned 16, they both got manual V-8s and began tinkering with them. The brothers came to UCF to study engineering. Hicks says he knew immediately that he wanted to get involved with SAE, both because he loves cars and because SAE offers an almost unassailable gateway to the automotive profession. At first, he found the formula side disorganized, the result of a team who had all graduated at once. In his first year with Knights Racing, 2015–16, everything

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3.5

.08

coefficient of lift and 1.3 coefficient of drag. This car could drive upside down in a tunnel at 70 mph.

seconds upshift/ downshift with paddleshift system

But the next year, “the car came together really well,” Brooks says. The team finished 32nd at the national competition — a big improvement, especially considering that the team made some mistakes during the event. “We already built a top-20 car,” Brooks says. In June, Brooks was the Baja leader, and the team saw even more improvement, placing 17th overall out of 108 teams and 10th in the endurance race. “We actually completed the race, something only 20 cars can do,” Porcar says. “We weren’t very happy with the performance and dynamics events. We didn’t have enough time to test. If we had a little more time to practice, we would have been in the top 10.” “The quality of the car itself was obviously a top-10 car,” Brooks says. “I’m excited to see what happens this year.”

elissa Tropeano has her own goal for 2017: to make Knights Racing a little less of a boys’ club. She’s the club’s public relations lead, which means she’s in charge of — among other things — handling social media, arranging must-have sponsorships and recruiting new members.

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gravitational force while cornering and 1.5 G-forces while braking

That’s true on the Baja side of Knights Racing as well. The Baja team — which races off-road — has a longer and much more storied history than the formula team does. While the formula team began in 2000, the Baja team has been around since the 1970s, and for a time was one of the top Baja teams in the nation. UCF, in fact, hosted the annual competition several times between 1978 and 1996. That last year, 1996, the Baja team came in second at the Mini Baja East competition, recalls Donald Minderman ’88, a former Baja team leader who has worked for NASA since graduating.

“THE QUALITY OF THE CAR ITSELF WAS OBVIOUSLY A TOP-10 CAR. I’M EXCITED TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS THIS YEAR.”

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base horsepower and 45 foot-pounds torque produced by a 2006 Suzuki GSX-R600 engine

Vicente Porcar, the current Baja team leader, wants to recapture that former glory. Born in Venezuela, Porcar says he was “always interested in, maybe not cars, but vehicles — motorcycles, off-road, getting dirt on you.” The mechanical engineering student was also drawn to Baja’s hands-on aspect, to figuring out how things work in a tangible way: “The lawn mower went bad. How can I fix it? Where are things going wrong? How can I possibly improve them?” Whereas formula cars are built for speed and maneuverability, Baja vehicles survive uncertain courses and strange obstacles. To win, your vehicle has to be reliable. “Our courses are almost meant to destroy a car that is not well-designed,” Porcar says. “[Formula is] basically fast. In our case, if we don’t do it well, our car is gonna wreck.” A few years ago, the Baja team was in a tough spot. In 2014, the team competed in national events but didn’t perform particularly well. In 2015, Wyatt Brooks’ first year, things stayed about the same; UCF was ranked somewhere in the middle of the national pack.

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Right now, she’s one of only a handful of women in Knights Racing. But maybe not for long. “The most recent new member days had several girls come out,” she says. “I tried to convince them it’s not so bad. I told them not to be intimidated.” Tropeano, too, grew up around cars; her father owns a repair and restoration shop. A sophomore, she spent her first year on the team learning the basics. This year, she’s more involved, learning how to weld and mill. Eventually, she says, she wants to land a job on a Formula One team. That’s not a pipe dream. Talk with a dozen or so current and former Knights Racing members, and a central theme emerges: SAE opens doors to many engineering and car-related jobs, including Altec and General Motors. In fact, nearly all of the club’s active members get jobs within a few months, and the graduates often credit Knights Racing with their success.

"I’VE HIRED A LOT OF PEOPLE, AND GENERALLY WHAT I LOOK FOR WHEN I HIRE AN ENGINEER IS SOMEONE WHO REALLY ENJOYS WHAT THEY DO."

o watch a video and learn T more about Knights Racing, visit ucf.edu/pegasus.

Minderman, now a construction chief for Kennedy Space Center, says being president of Knights Racing helped land him a job at NASA despite mediocre grades. “I’ve hired a lot of people, and generally what I look for when I hire an engineer is someone who really enjoys what they do,” he says. “ ‘Do you feel passionate about it? Do you have any experience that would back up what you’re doing?’ To me, that means a lot because it shows you have an interest in your field.” Participation in Knights Racing demonstrates both of those elements: passion, in that the students dedicate 25 hours a week or more to their cars; and experience, because they’ve progressed beyond the theories that they’re taught in class and learned how to apply practical engineering. “In school, you get handed a problem, you go through a step process, and there’s one exact answer,” explains Harley Hicks, Hoyt’s twin. “In real engineering, it’s the complete reversal. You know the answer, but the steps are unknown on how to get there.” But that’s only part of why they’re here, why they devote so much of themselves to not just building and maintaining these cars, but also to seemingly endless fundraising. After all, even though Knights Racing does receive funding from the Student Government Association, it doesn’t cover the full cost to build a car. Members have to be scrappy, selling concessions at Daytona International Speedway and making deals with manufacturers for parts. And, sure, they’re competitive, but it’s not like they’re in it for glory. No, what keeps them in the shop is something else. For some, cars are in their blood. They couldn’t not do this if they tried. But for all of them, the camaraderie — the sense of fraternity that extends into the SAE professional world — is what really matters. It’s why Hoyt Hicks and the rest of the Knights Racing team regularly push through their exhaustion. That, and the thrill of figuring out how to fix whatever might be broken.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT CAMPUS’ BUSIEST RESIDENTS AND THE PLACE THEY CALL HOME. BY NICOLE DUDENHOEFER In late 2006, U.S. beekeepers began noticing a collapse of honeybee colonies. Large numbers of worker bees were leaving the hives with plenty of food but not enough bodies to care for the queen and young bees. Experts attributed the loss to a number of causes, including parasites and pesticides used in farming. This phenomenon, known as Colony Collapse Disorder, sparked worldwide concern for these insects that play a vital role in crop pollination. To combat the issue, UCF is working to attract and support pollinators, including honeybees, native bees, wasps and butterflies. Students and faculty recently planted two pollinator gardens on campus and placed three honeybee hives in the UCF Arborteum. Led by arboretum director Patrick Bohlen, UCF is also working on becoming an official Bee Campus USA, which recognizes universities that raise awareness and create sustainable habitats for pollinators.

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WINGS

Honeybees have four wings that beat about 230 times a second, allowing them to fly an average of 15 mph.

STOMACHS

Bees have two stomachs. One digests food. The other stomach stores nectar until worker bees return to the hive, where they can feed it to other bees or put it in honeycomb cells for honey production.

EYES

With their five eyes, bees can detect ultraviolet light, leading them to nectar.

STINGER

Worker bees die after stinging mammals with thick flesh, such as humans, because their barbed stingers lodge in the victim, along with their digestive material, muscles and a venom sac.

LEGS

Honeybees have six legs arranged in three pairs. The rear pair have stiff hairs that hold pollen as they fly.

ABDOMEN

Four pairs of glands on the underside of young worker bees’ abdomens secrete beeswax. It is later used to construct honeycomb.

LOCAL FLOWERS THAT ATTRACT POLLINATORS

2 3

1 GOLDEN ASTER Chrysopsis

PURPLE CONEFLOWER Echinacea purpurea

ORANGE BLOSSOM Citrus sinensis

4 BLACK-EYED SUSAN Rudbeckia hirta

6 INDIAN BLANKET Gaillardia pulchella

TUPELO TREE FLOWER Nyssa

7 ASTER Symphyotrichum

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HONEY IN CONTEXT

POLLINATORS ON CAMPUS

POLLINATION ACTIVITY

2 MILLION

Over the summer, senior biology student Yvelande Raymond studied pollinators’ flower visitation rates on campus in landscape beds; pollinator gardens, which have plants and flowers specifically selected to attract bees; and edge habitats, which are where two different environments — such as woods and a field — intersect. Here are some of her findings:

FLOWERS THAT MUST BE TAPPED BY ABOUT 556 WORKER BEES TO MAKE ONE POUND OF HONEY

11,880 POUNDS OF HONEY PRODUCED IN FLORIDA, THE NO. 4 STATE FOR PRODUCING HONEY IN 2016, FOLLOWING NORTH DAKOTA, SOUTH DAKOTA AND MONTANA

AVERAGE FLOWER VISITS PER MINUTE

44 POUNDS OF HONEY COLLECTED FROM UCF’S HIVES AFTER THREE MONTHS

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LANDSCAPE BED

PERCENT OF ALL FOOD AND BEVERAGES CONSUMED IN THE U.S. THAT ARE DEPENDENT ON POLLINATION

OF A TEASPOON IS THE AMOUNT OF HONEY A SINGLE HONEYBEE WILL PRODUCE IN A LIFETIME

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*For the safety of our campus community, hives should not be approached without authorization.

EDGE HABITAT

POLLINATOR GARDEN

“HAVING HONEYBEE HIVES ON CAMPUS PROVIDES A HANDS-ON EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR STUDENTS TO LEARN ABOUT SOCIAL INSECTS.” — PATRICK BOHLEN

ROOF

Protects the hive from water and insulates from heat and cold.

HIVE BODY AND HONEY SUPERS

The hive body houses the queen, female worker bees and male drones. The honey supers, which rest on top of the hive body, store honey.

FRAME

Provides a foundation for bees to build an evenly spaced comb.

QUEEN EXCLUDER

Prevents queen from going into the supers while allowing the workers to pass through.

To watch a video and learn more about the hives on campus, visit ucf.edu/pegasus.

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In Their words Since 2010, the UCF history department has been collecting stories of veterans living in the Central Florida area. Here is part of the rich legacy they’re preserving.* BY LAURA J. COLE

The Department of Veteran Affairs reports that more than 1.5 million veterans live in Florida, making it the thirdlargest veteran population in the nation, following California and Texas. It’s a big number, but one that Barbara Gannon, an associate professor of history, sees as a big opportunity. Since 2011, she has been in charge of the UCF Community Veterans History Project, which records stories of Central Florida veterans. So far, they have recorded nearly 600 stories from veterans in every branch of the military, spanning from World War II to the Iraq War. “We feel that listening to veterans’ stories is a way to show we appreciate them,” says Gannon, an Army veteran. “The effect on students who don’t know anything about or have any personal connection with the military is amazing. It really opens their eyes to a world they know nothing about.” And sharing their stories — experiences that are often so removed from most civilians’ — is the driving force behind the program, which is an offspring of the national Veterans History Project. Launched in 2000 by the Library of Congress, the national project is focused on collecting, preserving and making

accessible “the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.” The national program came to UCF in the fall of 2010. Gannon, who specializes in military history, oral history and memory studies, was hired to oversee the interdisciplinary project. Each semester, Gannon offers an oral history workshop, teaching students how to conduct interviews properly; how to research the branches of the military, the missions, the wars, even military language to prepare themselves; and how to conduct mock interviews to prepare the veterans. “We ask questions and allow the veteran to tell his or her story,” says John Grande, a graduate history student and former Marine. “Each story is so important for its own reason,” says Tiffany Rivera, who oversees the project’s outreach. “Many times, veterans don’t realize the importance themselves until they stop and think about it and share their experience with someone else.” The reality is that there are so many stories to collect — a good problem to have, but a problem nonetheless. Students and staff are only able to collect and record so many. “You can’t tell a 95-year-old World War II veteran to wait,” Gannon says. “Vietnam veterans are aging.

We have an entire generation of veterans, including veterans of our 21st-century wars, who have come home with stories to share. We need to hear them. We always have more work to do here.” To put it in perspective, there are 1,300 student veterans at UCF alone. “We wouldn’t be able to get through all of our student veterans, but we like to think about partnerships as our force multiplier effect, which is a good military term,” Gannon says. To reach more veterans, UCF partners with volunteers in places such as the Village on the Green senior community in Longwood and the Learning Institute for Elders (LIFE) at UCF to implement peer-topeer programs. “We trained the volunteers the same way that we teach oral history workshops here on campus,” Rivera says. “They did the mock interviews and were able to practice and become comfortable, but they also were able to relate to their veterans in a different way than our students.” Those partnerships have resulted in 50 interviews. All of the interviews recorded so far are available through the UCF Special Collections website. We selected five interviews from the collection, so you can see for yourself the kind of work Gannon and her students have done and learn why these stories are so powerful — and such a valuable part of our nation’s history.

To learn more about the project and watch some of the interviews, visit riches.cah.ucf.edu/veterans. *Original interviews have been edited for length and clarity, but we opted to maintain the original voice of the interviewees. As such, transcripts may include language and situations that may be inappropriate for some audiences.

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY TIM MCDONAGH

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in Their words

On Losing His Best Friend “On December 22, 2003, we got hit with an IED, and it took the life of my best friend Stuart Moore as well as our lieutenant, Matthew Saltz. That’s a story that’s taken me years to tell without getting emotional, but now I am able to look back on it and say as long as we are able to keep these memories of these guys alive, then they didn’t die in vain.” On Fighting “There’s something that happens out in the battlefield, it’s kind of primal. A warrior spirit gets awoken, and if you’re given that, then you have no fear of combat.”

specialist Jose Belen u.S. army Served: 3 years war: Iraq

On His First Experience in Iraq “I remember as clear as day crossing over [from Kuwait to Iraq] and chief giving the order, ‘Lock and load that .50-caliber machine gun.’ No safety on it. And I just remember, immediately, a gang of kids running over toward our vehicles, and the order was if they were armed or posed a threat, I had to kill them. That was the grim reality.”

On Good Memories “There were some good times because we did really try to help the people and reconstruct neighborhoods and things of that nature. There would be times that we would get bags of candy or care packages from home and instead of keeping them for ourselves, we’d distribute them to the children. I remember we got some soccer balls and gave them to the kids. Those were the positive memories. We cared. I cared for those people.”

On Talking to Family While at War “I purposely didn’t call home sometimes because of all the stuff I was engaged in. I would lie to my mom, and that was hard. I’d be just finished coming back from some crazy op or ambush, sitting there covered in blood, all messed up, and she’d ask how I’m doing. ‘I’m fine.’ ‘Did you see combat?’ ‘No, I’m in an office.’ I kind of shied away from calling home a lot because where I’m at, they have no idea.” On Coming Home “There was nothing left, man. I was a shell of who I was before. I’ve battled

On Why She Enlisted in the Navy “There was no real conscious thought about enlisting — I just did it. I really wanted to go into the Marine Corps, but I didn’t like their cover [a military term for hat] and I looked terrible in green, so I joined the Navy.” On Expectations “I wanted to learn something that was outside of what I grew up with. I had never been outside of the state of Texas. Going from there to boot camp to my first command — airplanes, helicopters, jets, men, noise, bombs — it was a learning experience. And I embraced it.” On Training “My first week, we had to learn about marching, how to dress, how to fold our clothes, make the beds, all the little important things. The big thing they wanted was to break us down. They wanted us to learn to work with everyone as a team, to depend on each other, and to learn to speak military and understand military. That first week was very intense.”

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On Life After the Military “I’ve given my life to speaking, to bringing awareness to PTSD, to hopefully bringing the suicide numbers down to zero one day. If no one speaks up on a major scale, no one is going to hear us.”

On Returning Home for the First Time “I was afraid to get up and get something to drink without permission. For eight weeks, I had someone telling me what to do every second, and now I didn’t. Being home seemed foreign. All of a sudden, my brother didn’t understand me. My friends thought I was a little strange. That was an adjustment for me, realizing we weren’t the same anymore. I had changed.”

yeoman martha (Sue hernandez noe) Blair u.s. navy Served: 16 years war: vietnam

On Being Among the First Women in the Military “It was hard, very hard. The men did not want us there. I’m not saying they were abusive — they weren’t. Once they realized we were good guys, and that we could not only take it but dish it out, the relationships with the men in my unit improved and we became very good friends. But it was a rough haul.”

suicide because of PTSD the entire time [I’ve been back]. People need to realize that we have the war that we fight over there, but we have an internal fight, a mental one essentially when we come home.”

On Being Pregnant in the Military “They didn’t have maternity uniforms for my first child, and they didn’t really know what to do with us. You had 30 days from the day you had the baby to be back at work, in uniform, at weight. We couldn’t let being pregnant interfere with what we did, our jobs. I was at work for all three of my children when I went into labor.”

On Her Son Entering the Military “My oldest son was in the Marine Corps. When he joined, I was like, ‘OK, bye, see ya!’ My second child went to a civilian college, and I was a snot-nosed mess. The Marine Corps I understood. College I didn’t, and that was traumatic for me.” On Breaking the Concrete Ceiling “There are still glass ceilings, but they’re easier to break. That’s why they’re called glass ceilings. We hit the concrete, and it wasn’t easy to break, but many of us managed to put a lot of cracks in it.”

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a dent in the enemy. It got so bad that RPGs were getting stuck under smokestacks.” On the Aftermath of Battle “Those moments of quiet are what got me. Some guys it didn’t even affect. Some guys are just the epitome of a war fighter. I was more sensitive, but still proud to serve next to them and be one of them.” On the Significant Lesson Learned “When going through hell, just keep going. Keep moving.” On Medals “The Marine Corps doesn’t do that unless you’re a god.”

Corporal robert Glasgow u.s. marine Corps Served: 4 years war: Iraq

On Drill Instructors “They were the first and last men I will ever fear.” On September 11 “Sergeant came out and said the two towers were taken out. I used to live in New York. I thought it was a joke. Later that night, they showed us a video of the twin towers and a plane slamming into them one after the other. They said, ‘This is why we’re going to war. Oorah.’ Everyone was like, ‘Oorah.’ I was like, ‘Shit. We’re going to war.’ ” On a Typical Day “Sleep, get up, get your gear, have breakfast, look around, change out the watches, look at people, try to win hearts and minds even though we knew we weren’t doing anything good, and occasionally get shot at, wait for bigger orders or something else to do.”

On Adjusting to Civilian Life “It’s been a horrible transition. I didn’t know the VA existed. … I thank my lucky stars my uncle and my family were strong and were able to get me connected. I don’t know where I’d be without them right now, actually. I eventually went to a program where they said they would get me tools to help me handle who I was, but really it was just a guise to get numbers and put me on a bunch of medications, and say, ‘Here, you’re healed.’ I didn’t want that. I wanted to actually deal with who I was, not lose who I was.”

On the Most Memorable Day in Iraq “A day that was particularly memorable was the third day on the assault on Fallujah. We had tanks on point flanking light armored reconnaissance (LAR) assets, a platoon of tracks [tanks], and three platoons of infantry Marines on the ground. Weapons platoon (my guys) were scattered throughout the platoons and tracks as well. We ran into the middle of their defense, and they stopped all of us dead cold. RPG after RPG. Machine guns’ fire everywhere. Marines were dropping. Every new turn we did, less Marines were there to confront them. We were taking on casualties. It was a chaotic mess. The tanks were just searching, traversing, alpha striking everywhere — an alpha strike is when they’re using all their weapons at once. [The tanks] were making Swiss cheese out of their houses, but it didn’t make

Corporal william kahn u.S. army Served: 2 years war: world war II

On Speaking Multiple Languages “I speak about three and a half languages. I speak English, German, Spanish and a little bit of Polish, what my dad taught me. I’d call that the half.” On Being Drafted “I was studying pre-medicine in college, and I wanted to finish my year out before I had to go, but they had a different idea. … In 1943, I went into the military, and they sent me to an anti-aircraft artillery battalion in Fort Bliss, Texas.” On the Battle of the Bulge “[That was my] first battle. Everything was very quiet for a couple days

because we were blanketed with fog, and that’s the reason why we were initially losing the Battle of the Bulge — because of the fog. We were closed in. We couldn’t get any reinforcements. We couldn’t get any supplies. We couldn’t get any ammunition because the planes couldn’t fly. And the Germans had outnumbered us 2-to-1. We were completely surrounded. We went to bed that night, and everything was quiet. So quiet, you wouldn’t realize a war was going on. Then about 5:30 in the morning it sounded like all hell was breaking loose. We had to quickly get dressed, run out, and get our weapons. We knew that we were being attacked. I was captured shortly after that.”

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in Their words On Being a Prisoner of War “We marched 513 miles. It took us five months of marching, on the road every day, just as far as we could go. Wherever we got, we looked for a decent place to lay down. If we couldn’t find a place, we slept on the snow and the ice. ... I gained favor with the guards by knowing German.” On What They Were Fed “Mostly, [the Germans] gave us a loaf of bread to divide between 15 and 20 people. If we would get one a day, we were fortunate, but usually we’d get about three loaves a week. And we got some soup, which we called grass soup. It was just water with grass thrown in and boiled, and bugs crawled on top of it. We had to spit them out.”

On How He Escaped “[We escaped when the Russians attacked us near the Czechoslovakian border. My partner, George, and I managed to get away from them.] … We’d hide in the ditches most of the day. And one time, both of us were down in a ditch and we heard some tanks coming. We saw the star on it, and we knew it was our tank. We jumped out on the street and waved. We told [the guy in head of the tanks] that we were escaped prisoners.” On Life After the War “I ran a gasoline service station and returned to college, where I met my wife. We went to Elmhurst College and met in a chemistry class.”

of them just miss her, and two of them hit her. That’s the first time I realized what we were up against because we had no chance. There was no way. We didn’t have guns fast enough to stop that, so if they were going to hit us, they were going to hit us. We lost many, many people; one of them was my classmate.”

captain john Gillooly u.S. navy Served: 30 years war: world war II

On Arriving in the Pacific “It was much harder than I thought it would be. There was much to learn. Although I had been trained technically at the Naval Academy, I had all this to learn about a ship at sea and life at sea and a crew, and you had to learn it in a hurry because we were under fire the better part of the time.” On the Battle of Surigao Strait “I was on the USS Columbia, a light cruiser in the South Pacific. The night after we had put the troops to shore, the Japanese came up through Surigao Strait to begin what would be the last great surface battle of all time. … It was

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like the Fourth of July, that night battle. We’re firing. We have 6-inch guns and 5-inch guns, and I’m on sound-powered phones in the middle of this. The whole thing is frightening. It’s also a wonder to see it.” On First Seeing a Kamikaze “We were in a circular formation in Leyte Gulf. It was about dusk, and all of a sudden, we’re under attack from 25 Japanese aircraft. … I’m in a full air control position, so I have wide vision and I can see what’s happening. I see them. Four of them break off and dive directly down on the cruiser opposite us, the St. Louis, in a formation. Two

On Hiroshima and Nagasaki “We were prepared, and we had been briefed for the invasion of Japan. We knew we were gonna be in great danger. Unbeknownst to us, we came back for one of those night sweeps, and the next morning it was announced that the first bomb had been dropped. We had no knowledge of that. It was unexpected. Then, the next bomb was dropped.”

On V-J Day “I celebrated V-J Day in the harbor in Okinawa with a couple of friends of mine. We had a couple of guys who knew how to find medicinal alcohol, so we had a great celebration.” After WWII “I came back on the Columbia and stayed on her, and decided I never wanted to go to war again unless I was flying an aircraft, so I put in for flight training. After some months, I finally got ordered to flight training. That was another whole chapter in my life.” On Learning to Fly “It’s a young man’s game to learn to fly. I was older, and I had already had some experience with my life, so it was pretty difficult for me to go through flight training.”

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Finding their Stories O

n July 19, 1918, Alexander Miguel Roberts was flying over Belgium as part of what was then called the Army Air Corps, when he found himself in a dogfight. He was outnumbered 3-to-1, but managed to strike down one of the enemy planes before his plane was shot down. “My plane descended and when it struck earth, I was inside the German lines and was made a prisoner,” said Roberts in an article that ran in his hometown newspaper a month after the attack.

His capture and release nearly a year later made Roberts an aviation legend. He would go on to appear in air shows, compete in cross-country races and serve in World War II. “He helped generate enthusiasm for the birth of aviation in America,” writes UCF history major Alexander Zimmerman in a biography on the lieutenant colonel who died on July 23, 1988, and is one of the nearly 130,000 veterans buried in the Florida National Cemetery. The paper was researched and written as part of the Veterans Legacy Program. Created by the National Cemetery Administration (NCA), an agency of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the project works to share the stories of deceased veterans with a broad audience. UCF was one of only three universities selected to launch the project. “UCF’s history department was in a unique position to compete for this VA contract because we are dedicated to public engagement,” says Amelia Lyons, an associate professor of history who leads the project at UCF and has been working with students such as Zimmerman. “The National Cemetery Administration runs 135 cemeteries in the U.S., and one of the largest is the Florida National Cemetery.” While the goal for this program is related to UCF’s Community Veterans History Project, in that both aim to share veterans’ stories, the work students and faculty are doing to tell those stories is different. For starters, students in the Veterans Legacy Program must do significant

research to learn more about the people listed on tombstones and grave markers. To do so, they rely on primary sources like draft registration cards, local newspapers and family members, so they can write robust biographies about each individual, such as Roberts. The program’s focus is also different in its goal to make this research available to K–12 schools. Part of that includes educational tours of the cemetery, such as the one conducted in May for seventh-graders from Davenport School of the Arts. UCF students, faculty and staff taught them about individual veterans, the VA and NCA. There is also a website for educators to use in the classroom, and an app, which cemetery visitors can use by scanning a tombstone to read about an individual veteran. “When we went out to the cemetery, we saw this ocean of white markers. Each one is a person who fought for our country, but all we see is stones,” says Zimmerman, whose grandfather was a high-ranking officer in the Flying Tigers, uncle flew helicopters in Vietnam and brother fought during the Iraq War. “But then you find out the story behind each stone. Now that’s a person who was willing to give up his or her entire life so that we can have the life we have. It just makes it so much more impactful.” To learn more about the Veterans Legacy Program and to read some of the biographies, visit vlp.cah.ucf.edu.

A veteran stops by one of the graves in the Florida National Cemetery, located in Bushnell. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ORLANDO SENTINEL

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

Briefs

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Opinion Expert Catherine Kaukinen on what’s so groundbreaking about Title IX. BY LAURA J. COLE

atherine Kaukinen, professor and chair of the criminal justice department, assumed changes to Title IX would follow shortly after President Trump’s election. Like many other Title IX scholars, she’d been following Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’ every announcement. And on September 22 — nearly two months after the book Kaukinen co-edited, Addressing Violence Against Women on College Campuses, was released — DeVos’ Title IX announcement came. Responding to complaints from sexual assault accusers and accused, DeVos rescinded the guidelines put in place under the Obama administration because “many schools have established procedures for resolving allegations that ‘lack the most basic elements of fairness and due process, are overwhelmingly stacked against the accused, and are in no way required by Title IX law or regulation.’ ” That same day, Pegasus interviewed Kaukinen about the history of Title IX, what it does right, what UCF has been doing and what DeVos’s announcement means for college campuses.

ILLUSTRATION BY MATT CHASE

Laura J. Cole: For 45 years, Title IX has perhaps been best known as the historic decision to stop discrimination against women in collegiate sports. For those who don’t know, how did it also come to cover sexual assault? Catherine Kaukinen: Title IX has always included nondiscriminatory treatment of women, which was broadly defined to include athletics, but also admissions, recruitment and, particularly, sexual harassment. Clearly, the 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter [issued by the Office for Civil Rights] codified what it means when we say harassment. Harassment includes sexual violence. It seems really obvious now — why wouldn’t sexual assault, which is the most severe form of sexual harassment, be included? — but to have that codified led to a cascading effect in terms of some of this later legislation now in place. It makes universities accountable to ensure they provide

a safe campus and redress sexual violence within a timely manner. I think Title IX is a game-changer in terms of safeguarding students’ rights during investigations and providing services for victims. LJC: With or without Title IX, how do you think universities should address complaints of sexual violence? Why not leave that to local police departments? CK: First and foremost, universities should provide a safe campus. When it comes to sexual violence on campus, the majority of campuses are not accurately reporting it. A recent study found that more than 89 percent of colleges reported no sexual violence on their campuses, an improbability given other data suggests the reverse is true. Campuses that accurately report sexual violence statistics have large numbers — those are campuses doing something about it. They ’re providing a safe place for their students. They’re redressing crime. The most important reason why we don’t or why we shouldn’t rely on city-level or county-level law enforcement is because the majority of rapes are never reported to the police. Among college-age students, 90 percent are not reporting their assaults. If we aren’t dealing with it on campus, we make this false assumption that local law enforcement’s going to deal with it, but reports rarely make it there. If they do, there’s a small chance it will go to trial and an even smaller probability that there will be a conviction. When a victim comes forward, campuses have an opportunity to report the assault. If the victim doesn’t want to legally prosecute, the university can still provide assistance, accommodations and a whole host of services to ensure that students stay on the campus and finish their degree.

LJC: You hear a lot about women and sexual assault, but Title IX also covers sexual assault against men. Can you discuss how many men experience this and why it’s not reported? CK: Yes. There are some estimates that assert roughly 8 percent of college men experience some type of sexual assault, which covers a whole continuum of behaviors. Men are sexually assaulted by both women and other men. There’s a stigma associated with all of those experiences for young men. Being the victim of sexual assault leads to fear of being disbelieved, accused of weakness or, in the case of heterosexual men, being perceived as gay. And being sexually assaulted by a woman carries the stigma that men should want and be ready for sex at all times. For men, it’s particularly challenging to report any crime, especially sexual violence. Men are less likely to report all types of violence, as compared to women, because of the belief that they should be able to defend themselves. LJC: What are some things you think Title IX does right, and where do you think it could be improved? CK: The 2011 “Dear Colleague” letter ensured that victims of sexual assault are protected, so for victims it is 180 degrees from what it was. Is it perfect? No, for victims there are still problems if universities don’t have policies and procedures put in place. For example, smaller universities often struggle to hire attorneys with Title IX expertise. On a big campus like UCF, we can afford attorneys who specialize in cheating, drugs, alcohol and sexual violence, but this isn’t a federally funded mandate. There’s no federal money available to help universities do this. I don’t think Betsy DeVos’ main concern is victims. Rather, it is a

perceived failure to ensure due process for accused individuals, which is largely part of a backlash to progress made for victims. I agree that we could do better, but doing better does not mean undoing where we are. It means continuing to move forward rather than going back to when we did nothing. LJC: How is UCF addressing sexual violence on campus? CK: I’m part of the university’s Title IX task force. It’s a large group run by Dawn Welkie, who’s the Title IX coordinator for the campus. We meet monthly to discuss compliance and crime prevention, address the crimes that the university is aware of as well as conduct and disciplinary functions. I’m incredibly impressed with UCF’s commitment to Title IX because, again, it’s an unfunded mandate, and the university has committed a sizeable amount of money and staff time to be both compliant and innovative in how it deals with issues related to Title IX. Our new campaign, Let’s Be Clear, lets victims know that the university is committed to reaching out and protecting them. It’s a huge step for a campus to make such a bold statement. We also require all students to complete an online sexual assault awareness module before the end of their first semester. Recently, UCF committed $1.25 million to start a new five-member faculty cluster to conduct research on violence against women, broadly defined. I’m part of that cluster along with co-lead Jana Jasinski [associate dean of the College of Sciences and a professor of sociology]. The cluster’s goal is to expand our ability to research violence against women in terms of health outcomes — mental health, behavioral health and physical health. It will also incorporate a public health perspective, not just an individual level perspective, by examining how this violence impacts public health. We are excited that UCF has committed substantial resources to support the faculty and establish UCF as a leader in this area.

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

MEETING

WHERE THEY ONLINE EDUCATION MAY HAVE ITS

STUDENTS

ARE

DETRACTORS IN HIGHER EDUCATION, BUT ACROSS THE NATION, STUDENTS ARE DRIVING A SHIFT FROM CLASSROOM TO DIGITAL LEARNING.

AND UCF IS ALL IN.

BY MAUREEN HARMON

ryce Nelson, a first-generation college student, had a full class schedule when he started at UCF. He was doing OK, but he knew he could be doing better.

The problem was, he simply couldn’t make the time. In addition to his full course load of online and on-campus classes, he was working two jobs. Not working just wasn’t an option.

“I needed to work 35 to 40 hours a week just to survive,” Nelson says. And that meant a lot of juggling with his UCF schedule, his work-study position as an event lead in the alumni center and his full-time job at Publix. All that, and he was facing the tough decision of changing his major from marketing to communication. So Nelson headed to his mentor’s office and laid out the issue for him. How could he improve? That’s when he learned that he could pursue a communication degree entirely online, doing course modules, homework and discussion on his own schedule. Suddenly, new possibilities opened up. “It’s what you make of it,” says Nelson. “In person, you can have the interaction with the teacher, but just because you’re online doesn’t mean you can’t do the same thing.” Nelson points to his professors’ online office hours, and the fact that because he’s local, he still heads to campus regularly and participates in the social life, including his role in Delta Sigma Pi, a business fraternity. This need for students to learn — how and when they want — is fueling a national movement. “I meet with college students across the country every year, and without exception, they all stress the importance of having flexibility in pursuing their degree or credential,” says Allan Golston, president of the United States Program of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the arm of the philanthropic organization that oversees educational opportunities across the nation.

National movement or not, online education has its detractors, especially in higher education. There are those who argue that face-to-face learning is simply better, allowing for in-depth conversation and in-person debate. Proponents, however, argue that digital learning provides access to education for students, such as Nelson, who may not otherwise be able to pursue it — a major driving force of the UCF mission. “It’s not a thought experiment,” says Provost and Executive Vice President A. Dale Whittaker. “Online education is an innovation that allows us to meet students’ life needs at a price point they can afford, with the quality that matches some of the most elite institutions.” Offering one of the lowest price tags in higher education, UCF needed to make sure it was living up to its strategic goal of providing a quality education to as many students as possible. To do that, administrators and faculty decided to go where students needed them to be. “Simply put, online education is the opportunity to bring a high-quality education to students who otherwise would not be able to access it,” says Tom Cavanagh, vice provost for digital learning at UCF. “I think we do a great service by bringing UCF to them.” If you look across any college campus at any moment, you’ll see students looking at screens — whether it’s a laptop, tablet or smartphone. There’s no doubt that students are living a good part of their lives online. “So we started offering online sections,” says Whittaker, and they took off. “All of the growth in online education has been driven by students.”

So how does UCF give students what they want, how they want it, in terms of a quality education? Several ways. While technology is in every classroom these days in one form or another, students can live on or near campus and choose to either attend face-to-face courses, take courses both in classrooms and online (which is called blended learning), or take all their courses online; or they can live anywhere in the world and pursue a degree exclusively over the internet through UCF Online. While all options have plenty of strengths to offer, data from a study conducted by an outside consulting group show that the students who choose blended learning have the best results — and UCF’s numbers reflect that too. More than 20 years of data confirm that adding digital learning to students’ mix of classes accelerates the time needed to earn a degree. UCF students who take a large portion of their courses online — from 40 to 60 percent — on average graduate in less than four years, compared to 4.3 years for those who take only traditional, face-to-face courses. Students in blended learning courses, says Cavanagh, have more success, achieving higher grades. “[Blended learning classes] also have the lowest withdrawal rates, and they have the highest end-of-course evaluation,” he says. “That’s pretty compelling.” “At its best,” says Golston, “online learning is about seizing the opportunity to do things in online instruction that you can’t do faceto-face.” For Amanda Groff, an associate lecturer in archaeology who teaches all of her courses online, that means leveraging the technology students

“Online education is an innovation that allows us to meet students’ life needs at a price point they can afford.” — Provost A. Dale Whittaker

NATIONALLY

6MILLION+ 30% 16% 14% 68% Students enrolled in higher education online courses

are already using by having course discussions through closed social media groups; it means instructional video; it means in-depth learning modules. “I think back to 2008 when I taught my first online course, and I look at my courses today, and it’s like night and day,” Groff says. “The strides, the technologies that have been developed just in these last 10 years are unbelievable, and it makes online education exciting and fun for me.” When it comes to judging an online course’s quality, UCF approaches the process just as they would any course. First, more than 80 percent of all UCF’s online courses are taught by full-time faculty and must go through the same departmental review process as any face-to-face course. Second, UCF created the Center for Distributed Learning, an organization dedicated to educating faculty in how to teach online courses effectively. “I think that we can leverage online learning as a laboratory to innovate the way we teach and to experiment with new technologies and new methods to engage students in more interesting and effective ways,” Cavanagh says. All faculty members hoping to build online courses must complete 80 hours of professional development with an instructional designer, and the university provides 35 hours of training for faculty who want to teach existing online courses. “Basically, instructional designers are a great support system,” Groff says. “If we have a really interesting idea that we want to introduce into our coursework, they show us how it

translates in an online environment.” Though she teaches all of her courses online these days, Groff is still on campus several days a week to work and hold office hours. Sometimes students drop by to see her in person; others set up phone appointments. “She makes learning the subjects interesting, informative and interactive,” says Tracy Lovingood, one of Groff’s students. “She’s always open to answering any questions … in addition to presenting the most up-to-date information. Dr. Groff sets the bar high as far as online classes go.” UCF recognized that effort by presenting Groff with the Chuck D. Dziuban Award for Excellence in Online Teaching in 2012. This year’s winner was Kenneth Hanson, associate professor of Judaic studies, who created a series of videos in which he explored the history of the diaspora, the Holocaust and other topics. “In many cases, he donned costumes and performed in character to bring it to life for his students,” Cavanagh says. “The committee thought it was just wonderful.” The work that Hanson, Groff and UCF at large are doing in the online education industry caught the attention of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. The foundation recognized the differences being made by about 30 universities in their approach to online learning. Three of them — Georgia State, Arizona State and UCF — were what the foundation referred to as “mega-universities” in online instruction. As a way to influence other colleges and universities, the foundation began

“I think that we can leverage online learning as a laboratory to innovate the way we teach and to experiment with new technologies and new methods to engage students in more interesting and effective ways.” — Vice Provost for Digital Learning Tom Cavanagh

Students enrolled in college who are taking at least one online course

Students taking some but not all courses online

Students enrolled exclusively in online courses

Online learners who attend public institutions like UCF

*Source: Digital Learning Compass: Distance Education Enrollment Report 2017

publishing studies on how well online education works, especially when it comes to making higher education accessible to more people. “The foundation has a broader strategy around postsecondary success, improving equitable outcomes and closing attainment gaps in U.S. higher education,” says Rahim Rajan, senior program officer in the postsecondary success strategy at the Gates Foundation. “Our goal is to erase and eradicate those gaps so that all students can succeed, and right now that’s not the case. Institutions like UCF are really at the forefront of leading that charge.” As for UCF’s own data: Students accessing the university’s online degrees tend to be older and from lower-income families. Women outnumber men in online

coursework, and it’s a go-to for transfer students. The best part: These students tend to score better in an online environment than they do in face-to-face courses. “Closing college attainment gaps by race and income means increasing student success without limiting access,” Golston says. “It can be done, and UCF is committed to doing that. And they’ve used approaches that could serve as a blueprint for other institutions.” When Golston visited UCF’s campus recently, he spoke with a first-generation senior. “He talked about how he felt like there were systems in place designed to help students just like him. He had had an experience at another college before coming to UCF and felt that they weren’t as invested in seeing

“Our goal is to erase and eradicate [attainment] gaps so that all students can succeed, and right now that’s not the case. Institutions like UCF are really at the forefront of leading that charge.” — Rahim Rajan, Gates Foundation

him graduate,” Golston says. “For a student to recognize that the institution is invested in his success and putting systems in place to address his specific needs is a powerful testament to the work UCF is doing.” UCF is learning that online education isn’t just about making a college degree possible, it’s also about making it affordable. Students who graduate in less than four years have lower overall tuition bills. Then there are issues of space constraint — a building and a campus can only hold so many students and faculty members. “Online education allows us to scale way beyond what our physical facilities allow,” Whittaker says. “We are built to teach about 40,000 students.” But online education allows UCF to reach 66,000 students in search of an education. Over 42 percent of UCF’s annual student credit hours are in online modalities, which equals more than 650,000 hours of learning — a number that continues to grow at a minimum of 2 percent per year, driving overall university growth. What does all of this mean for the future of online education at UCF? First, it’s a promise that Whittaker hopes to keep. “The first promise of our strategic plan is that we become the most educated region in Florida in terms of the number of people who

UCF STATS

6,500 80 HOURS Students solely enrolled in fully online courses in Fall 2017

80% 86% 42%

have a four-year degree or better,” he says. “That’s going to have to happen by dramatically increasing access, especially among folks in the lower half of family-income brackets. That’s done, I believe, through UCF Online, which offers fully online programs at a discount.” Whittaker also hopes that in 20 years, digital versus classroom learning won’t be a topic of debate at all. “I hope we won’t be having this discussion,” he says. “In other words, we will be talking about how technology increases a faculty member’s ability to reach

Students who take one or more online or blended course each year Online undergraduate credit hours taught by full-time faculty members Credit hours completed by students that are fully online or blended learning

of professional development for each faculty member wanting to build a new online course

80+

students through more intimate and individualized learning. I hope we won’t be talking about whether something is online or face-to-face. It will be so blended that you won’t be able to distinguish the difference.” For Bryce Nelson, the difference is clear and compelling. An online education allows him to make his own schedule, sometimes completing a week’s worth of coursework on his days off. Could he have pursued his degree the more traditional way — juggling his jobs with attending classes in person? Sure. But given that fact, his schedule would

Undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs offered fully online through UCF Online. To learn more, visit ucf.edu/online.

inevitably put his education second. He knows the online route is right for him. And his grades, which have climbed since moving his coursework entirely online, are proof enough for him. These days, he’s not just getting by at UCF. He’s thriving.

AlumKnights

PITCHING BY ERIC MICHAEL ’96

Six keys to selling your idea from the executive producer of Shark Tank. CLAY NEWBILL ’82 knows that two minutes can change lives. As the showrunner for ABC’s Emmy Award-winning reality hit Shark Tank, he has seen hopeful entrepreneurs convince the program’s financiers (“sharks”) to fund their dreams — and it all starts with a 120-second pitch. It’s a make-or-break moment.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF ABC/MICHAEL DESMOND

FA L L 2 0 1 7

“You’ve got one shot,” Newbill says. “Don’t blow it.” Newbill is helping Nicholson School of Communication students succeed in the harsh realities of business and entertainment by providing an unprecedented scholarship opportunity. Included is an offer to intern on his show, along with the funding to make relocation to Los Angeles feasible. “I graduated with a double major in film and radio-television production, but couldn’t get a job because I had no practical experience,” says Newbill, whose credits include The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, Road Rules, The Real World, The Mole and Making the Band. “I wanted to make sure that students didn’t make the mistake that I made by not doing internships.” The Clay Newbill Hollywood Scholarship Program, now in its fifth year, has brought more than 15 students to California to work on Shark Tank. And it’s spawned a few success stories of former interns who now work in the industry.

“For a student pursuing a career in entertainment, there’s nothing really that can compare to the experience,” says Newbill, who attributes his involvement with UCF’s Orientation Team, Interfraternity Council and cheer squad for developing his leadership skills. “For a student pursuing a career in entertainment, there’s nothing really that can compare to the [internship] experience because it’s not just what you know — it’s who you know.” The same holds true for the Shark Tank entrepreneurs. And part of Newbill’s responsibility as executive producer is to coach the contestants to make their best possible pitch. “It’s inspirational to see the growth of these entrepreneurs who spend weeks or months fine-tuning their pitch, then make that pitch to the sharks,” says Newbill. “There’s something magic about the blend of skill, faith and courage that can lift a person’s dream to incredible success.”

Here are Newbill’s six keys for selling your idea and turning your dreams into reality: 1 BELIEVE IN YOURSELF SO OTHERS WILL. “If you’re trying to convince someone to buy your idea, they need to see that you believe strongly enough that they’re convinced to believe too. You have to be relentless. On Shark Tank, after the initial pitch, sometimes the entrepreneurs are in there for an hour answering the sharks’ questions and they walk out with a deal. It’s not only an affirmation their dream is valid but also that they had the drive and the passion to convince five super-powered, super-successful business titans to believe in them.”

2 TURN COURAGE INTO CONFIDENCE. “Confidence is one of the most important things that I talk about with the entrepreneurs when they’re preparing their pitch. Make eye contact. Project your voice. Don’t stammer. Don’t mumble. Body language is really important too. By strengthening your poise, you won’t lose your confidence.

3 ADDRESS YOUR WEAKNESSES. “Every big idea has an Achilles’ heel. You know what yours is. Don’t try and sweep it under the rug. Embrace it, so when somebody expresses concern about the flaw, you have an answer. Acknowledge the potential pitfalls. You need to be ready with an answer, and it can’t just be, ‘Oh, don’t worry about that.’ It’s got to be a legitimate response of why it’s not going to stop you from succeeding.”

4 FOCUS TO MAXIMIZE CLARITY. “We make great effort to ensure that the sharks know nothing about the businesses beforehand. The entrepreneurs have to come in and quickly communicate their idea with clarity so the sharks can understand the opportunity and how the business works. I advise them to demonstrate the problem first, then present the solution their business provides. The most important element for a shark making a decision to invest is if they think a person at home — you or me — is going to need the business or product. Does it solve a problem or improve upon something that currently exists? Does it save people money? That’s the clarity.”

5 PRACTICE ... AND THEN PRACTICE AGAIN. “You don’t want to walk out of the pitch and think, ‘Oh, wait a minute. I forgot to tell them this, this and this.’ You can avoid that by practicing so you know it frontward and backward. You’ve only got one shot to impress someone. Whether it’s the sharks or anybody else you may be pitching, you want to nail it. And you’ve got to practice to ensure that.”

6 PERSEVERE UNTIL YOU’RE SUCCESSFUL. “You’re going to have plenty of people tell you, ‘This will never work,’ or ‘What are you thinking?’ — even your friends. You’ve got to be thick-skinned. You’ve got to be willing to hear the noes. Rejection can’t break you down. Failure is a fantastic opportunity to learn, improve and grow. A lot of entrepreneurs who come on the show take the sharks’ advice and apply it — whether they get the deal or not — and have success afterward. Perseverance is not giving up on your idea just because someone told you no.”

Class Notes 1973

1993

Linda (Ross) Czarnecki has retired after 22 years as the executive director for the Dougherty Foundation, which provides scholarships and loans to Arizona students.

Erin Martin is senior director of acute care services for Aspire Health Partners.

John DiBlasi has retired as the owner of DiBlasi Appraisal and Consulting Services in Scottsdale, AZ.

1974 Jonella Seroky Whittle has retired from teaching elementary school.

1977 John Morrison has retired.

1980

Brian Tibbs is vice president for finance and business intelligence at Monti.

1994 Patrick Power is managing director of investment banking at World Equity Group in Illinois. Trace Trylko is the writer, producer and host of the cable television show Our Faith in Action: Today’s Society of St. Vincent de Paul, which airs on the Eternal World Television network. He is also the co-host of the weekly Knightline podcast.

Victor Collazo was named Orange County’s District 4 Citizen of the Year.

1995

1981

John Alvarez Turner, associate director of the Multicultural Center at the University of Akron, was appointed to serve as an alternate on the Akron Civil Rights Commission.

Jim Stivender Jr. is retiring after 28 years as public works director for Lake County, FL.

1984

1996

J. Bryan McCullar ’85 ’89MA is an alumni engagement officer at Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, KS.

Jamaine (Howard) Cripe completed the religious education credentialing program with the Unitarian Universalist Association.

1985

1998

Steven Cottrell ’90MS retired after 32 years as an environmental specialist.

1987 Frank St. John ’91MSEE is executive vice president and deputy of programs for Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control. Elizabeth (Zwissler) Labreche is vice principal at St. John Vianney Catholic School in Orlando.

1991 Corinda Pitts Marsh’s novel, Holocaust in the Homeland: Black Wall Street’s Last Days, was optioned for film production.

1992 Cleave Frink is production manager for Advanced Systems Group in Mountain View, CA.

FA L L 2 0 1 7

Richard Blystone was selected as the chair of the Florida Defense Lawyers Association’s Labor and Employment Law Committee, and as a Fulbright specialist by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.

2000 Aaron Gaskins ’02MS is director of employee concerns at BHI Energy.

2001 Amy (Newberry) Bratten is associate provost and educational consultant at Southeastern University in Lakeland, FL.

2002 Constantine Caravelis ’03MBA launched a personal website and blog, Outrageously Remarkable.

Jaime (Crenshaw) Dresdner was named teacher of the year at Scales Elementary School in Brentwood, TN. Philip Dalhausser and his teammate, Nick Lucena, won the men’s 2017 World Series of Beach Volleyball President’s Cup. Tim Eggert designed Orlando’s new official city flag. Davey (Spicciati) Jay was elected to serve as chair of the Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section of The Florida Bar.

2003 Kenny Kent is an investigations coordinator for the state of Florida. Jaime (Rich) Vining was named a 2017 Florida Super Lawyers Rising Star. She practices trademark, copyright, entertainment and internet law in Miami. Jennifer (Rodriguez) Lombardo is a clinical social worker with Lombardo Counseling, a private therapy practice in Orlando. Megan (Sexton) Nivens is the vice president for business development at The Foundry in Huntsville, AL.

2004 Marcus Fernandez was inducted into the Make-a-Wish Central and Northern Florida Hope Hall of Fame. Alexandra Lehson was honored by the Greater Miami Jewish Federation for outstanding leadership in the community. Sharyl (Nazario) Mock ’05MA is the owner of S&S Organizing, a professional home organizing company.

2005 ReJonna Blackmon was promoted to site operations manager at Lexmark International. Blake and Kristin (Frost) Meyer started Mindful Meals, a healthy meal delivery service in Orlando. Sisters Megan ’12MS and Cedar Watson ’12MS, owners of Paper Goat Post in Orlando, received the inaugural Gift + Stationery 40 Under 40 Award.

2006 Asher Wildman was named Florida Associated Press Sportscaster of the Year. He is currently the sports director for the CBS affiliate in Tallahassee.

2007 Ricardo Cintron ’09MS is a senior project engineer at Dewberry’s Transportation. Michael Clark and John McCann ’11 host “Let’s Talk Future,” a weekly radio show about financial planning on News 96.5 WDBO. Jessica (Woody) Fredericks is the director of communications for the White House Historical Association.

2008 Carol Galbicsek is a copywriter at Valencia College. Stephanie Piccino received the 2017 Outstanding Paraprofessional Award from the Florida Library Association. She is a library specialist with the Martin County Library System. Sean Spence recently earned a Ph.D. in operations research and management science from George Washington University.

2009 Ryan Ernde received an Emmy Award for producing “The Yellow Dress,” a part of the series Taking Action Against Domestic Violence. Jason Duprat has opened the Injection and Infusion Clinic of Albuquerque, which provides lowdose ketamine infusion therapy for the treatment of depression. Stephen Kirouac is an assistant program manager for the Common Drivers Training Program for the U.S. Army Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation. Billy Rodriguez is a managing director and team leader at Cite Partners.

2010 Dana Bakich is the founder of Positive Equation, a social strategy company.

P EGASUS

2011 David Barratt is a software engineer at the Wikimedia Foundation. Austin Ellis is a resident doctor in pathology at Orlando Regional Medical Center.

2012 Brett Jones ’16MA is a budget analyst for the city of Tavares, FL.

Chelsea Daley is a membership specialist with the Girl Scouts Nation’s Capital.

Sneha Chackochan is a registered behavior technician at Autism Behavioral Solutions.

Carrie Lewis passed the Certified Documentation Specialist exam from the Association of Clinical Document Improvement Specialists.

Allison Enquist ’17MSW oversees the homeless prevention and diversion program at Family Promise of Brevard County, FL.

Ryan Moran is an operations manager at Target in Tyler, TX.

Evan Yaros is an event operations team leader at Universal Orlando Resort.

Nicole Schoen is a paralegal with the law firm Burnett Wilson Reeder.

Peter Reyes is the housekeeping manager at the Marriott Marquis Chicago and a recipient of the 2016 Ritz-Carlton Five-Star Award.

2013

2016

Jamy Barreau published an article on minimum wage in Barry Law Review.

Nicholas Cabiness was selected for a competitive percussion internship with Yamaha.

Kacie (Boniberger) Escobar is a communications strategist at Curley & Pynn. Dusty Gates is an associate manager at Tumi in Plano, TX. Tiffany Krimminger earned a doctorate of dental medicine and accepted a general practice residency position at Mercy College in St. Louis.

In Memoriam William Moore ’73 ’75MSMSE died January 27, 2016.

Ashley (Hardaway) Theriot ’06 died January 5, 2017.

2017 Robin Fieler teaches sixth-grade language arts at Innovation Middle School in Lake Nona, FL. Nicholas Voelker is a minor league athletic trainer for the Cincinnati Reds.

“Champions are not people who never fall. I skied 35 years, and I fell every single day of my life.” — Kristi Overton Johnson ’92

Shane McKendrick is vice consul at the British Consulate General in Miami. Colette Santana is an associate at Cite Partners.

2014 Joe Braga is an area manager for Amazon in Orlando. Dominique (Greco) Ryan was named project manager of nighttime economy for the city of Orlando. Kewina (Linton) Hibbert was promoted to senior manager and budget analyst at Orange County government. David Pesek is vice president of Multi-Bank Securities.

2015 Heather Bingaman is a clinical research coordinator at Florida Hospital’s Southeastern Center for Digestive Disorders and Pancreatic Cancer in Tampa. Meagan Cartaya is the social media manager at North American Veterinary Community.

PHOTO BY TOM KING

In September, Kristi Overton Johnson ’92 was inducted into the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation Hall of Fame. A professional water skier since age 13, Overton Johnson has captured more No. 1 world rankings than any female skier in the sport’s history. From 1992 through 2010, she held the world and national record in women’s slalom. To read more about Overton Johnson, visit ucfalumni.exposure.co/ride-of-a-lifetime.

U C F. E D U / P E G A S U S

Weddings & Births 1

Michelle (Matura) ’95 and Robert Rimes ’94 welcomed Asher Robert on April 24, 2017.

Amanda (Jonckheere-Carling) Pulivarthy ’00 and husband Sankara welcomed Andrew on June 7, 2017. 2

Leigh Ann (Lightsey) Wynn ’00 and husband JB adopted Jacob on June 25, 2016.

Bruce Barbre ’01 and wife Brandi welcomed Brayden Jeffrey on July 13, 2017.

4 Kelly (Romatz) Wood ’01 and her husband welcomed Andrew Glen and Avery Grace in May 2016. 5

Mary Ellen (Fugate) ’01 and Andrew Shaffer ’98 welcomed Margaret Tilly on February 8, 2017. Marco Garcia ’02 married Diana Ivanova on November 25, 2016. Jacey (Brown) Poppell ’05 ’07MA and husband Mike welcomed Camryn Jules on May 19, 2017. Katie (Hall) ’05 and Bill Higginbotham ’04 ’07MS welcomed Maxwell Billy on May 25, 2017. Lauren Davis ’06 married Daniel Hogenson on November 4, 2016.

10 Amanda Grabloski ’06 married Zachary Stimart on October 16, 2016. Deanna Padilla ’06 married Barry Damico on September 24, 2016. 11 Kristina Richards ’06 ’13MS married Leon McIntyre ’07 ’11MA on March 18, 2017. 12 Dane Michael Smith ’06 married Marcy Haylett on October 15, 2016. 13 Claire Balgemann ’07 ’09MA married Gunes Kayacik on March 2, 2017. 14 Whitney Glassberg ’08 married Dominguez Rodriguez on April 2, 2017.

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15 Nicole Rubin ’08 married David Beauchamp ’09 on February 18, 2017.

30 Robert Hernandez ’12 married Elizabeth Easterling on July 23, 2016.

16 Julie (Taylor) Cure ’08 and husband Abraham welcomed Amelia Nicole on March 18, 2017.

31 Kaylee Murdaugh ’12 married Thean Schmidt on April 16, 2016.

17 Adam Winter ’08 and wife Crystal welcomed Ava Elizabeth on March 28, 2017. 18 Robin (Donnelly) ’09 and Gavin Harper ’13 welcomed Emmitt Elijah on February 25, 2016.

32 Lacy Page ’12 married Jay Martin on January 7, 2017. 33 Emily Barimo ’13 married Joseph Lawrence ’14 on June 23, 2017. 34 Bianca Buscemi ’13 ’15MA married Nick Black ’13 ’15MS on September 3, 2016.

19 Ashley (Vance) ’09 ’11MA and Collier Faubion ’10 welcomed Aveline Noelle on November 1, 2016.

Lisa Kadison ’13 married Michael Hernandez ’09 on May 7, 2017.

Bari Becker ’10 ’15MNM married James Ciocia on February 4, 2017.

35 Chelsie Sloan ’13 married Brennon Hocker ’14 on February 19, 2017.

20 Jennifer Chadwick ’10 married Gregory Hulet ’11 on April 8, 2016.

36 Courtney Bishop ’14 married Ross Braddock ’12 on November 19, 2016.

21 Amelia Johnson ’10 married Derek Cowan ’09MBA ’10MSBM on September 24, 2016. 22 Britanny Moore ’10 married Jeremy Pinkerton ’08 on November 5, 2016. 23 Graham Smith ’10 and wife Amanda welcomed Elizabeth Lorraine on April 1, 2017. 24 Philésha Torrence ’10 married Arthur Huggins ’10 on August 20, 2016. 25 Katherine Daley ’11 married Jason Wehking ’06 on March 3, 2017. 26 Marlon Gutierrez ’11 and wife Stefany Marcelino welcomed Isabella on October 17, 2016. 27 Stephanie (Hecht) ’11 and John Gabrielsen ’12 welcomed James Joshua on October 24, 2016.

37 Madeleine Rodriguez ’14 married Adam Goldstein on November 30, 2016. 38 Geoffrey Sherman ’14 married Sandra Rodriguez on November 6, 2016. 39 Tia Blackmon ’15 married Bruno Moraes ’15 on July 7, 2017. 40 Helen Hawn ’15 married Theodore Perry ’13 on December 3, 2016.

Katie Person ’15 and Tim Carpentier welcomed Emma Rae on March 11, 2017. 41 Jenna Martucci ’16 married Jeremy Chipps ’17 on May 27, 2017. 42 Emily Mekas ’16 married Ryan Hunziker ’15 on February 4, 2017.

Lindsay Bordenkircher ’17 married Andrew Toelle ’17 on June 19, 2017.

28 Alejandra Kato ’11 married Peter McGranaghan ’12 on July 21, 2017. Sydney Chernoff ’12 married Jordan Solomon on March 18, 2017. 29 Katie Haines ’12 married Vincent Guira ’12 on October 22, 2016.

“User experience research is more important now than ever. No one is going to put up with using a poorly designed product.” — Melissa Amoi-Belinda Smith ’11

UCF’s annual 30 Under 30 program recognizes alumni age 30 or younger who have made a significant impact in their profession or their community. We congratulate the 2017 award recipients.

Melissa Amoi-Belinda Smith ’11 User experience researcher, Google Jonathan Beilan ’09 ’13MD Chief resident in urology, University of South Florida’s Morsani College of Medicine Tava Bingham ’12MA Assistant director for LEAD Scholars Academy, UCF Keal Blache ’11 Founder, Loba Creative Jacqueline Boehme ’11 Anesthesiology resident, Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston Sasha Dookhoo ’11 ’15MA Senior account executive, PAN Communications Andre Ferrari ’13 Associate attorney, Haynes and Boone Dasha (Gonzalez) Kuret ’12 Ring announcer and community liaison, World Wrestling Entertainment Jessica Gottsleben ’15 News editor, DC Stop Modern Slavery Ashley Gudzak ’10 Communications manager, Aurora Flight Sciences Corp.

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As a Google user experience researcher, Melissa Amoi-Belinda Smith ’11 works behind the scenes on a global product millions of people use daily: YouTube. To keep up with user needs, Smith analyzes existing features and develops new ones for the video sharing platform. To learn more, visit ucf.edu/pegasus. Nicholas Gurney ’11 Trial attorney, Newsome Melton

Brandon Naids ’14 ’16MSIE CEO/Co-founder, Talon Simulations

Lauren Rehm ’10 Associate, Bush Ross P.A.

Angela Huston ’10 Assistant general counsel, Florida Department of Revenue

Brandon Naidus ’12 Social media manager, Arizona Cardinals

Joseph Rogan ’11 Attorney, Smith, Hulsey & Busey

Ashley (Jordan) Beilan ’09 Associate attorney, Unice Salzman Jensen

Rupert Neish ’09 ’12MA Coordinator of academic services, UCF Department of Legal Studies

Kevin Kulbacki ’11 Forensic document examiner, IRS National Forensic Laboratory

Jordan Ostroff ’09 Founding partner, Jordan Law

Carey Sobel ’09 Partner and director of business development, Three21 Creative

Heather Lawrence ’15 ’17MSCpE Graduate research assistant, UCF

Stephanie Parenti ’11 Immigrant visa unit chief, U.S. Embassy Kabul

Joseph Taylor ’10 Regional eCommerce manager, Hilton Worldwide

Blaire Martin ’11 ’13MBA Director, Florida Angel Nexus

Dane Paul ’09 ’11MSA Audit manager, Deloitte & Touche

JaVonte’ Mottley ’08 ’09MPA Social insurance specialist, Social Security Administration

Michael Rape ’10 ’13MS Financial analyst, University of Texas Medical Branch

Amity Wyss ’10 Assistant principal of curriculum and instruction, Poinciana Elementary School

Kyle Simpson ’11 Director of business solutions and operations, FS Investments

P EGASUS

ALUMNI AUTHORS Ken Fite ’02 ’09MBA wrote The Senator: A Blake Jordan Thriller, about a federal agent sent to rescue a presidential candidate before his kidnapper murders him for all the world to see.

Sharon (Adams) Suver ’76 ’90MA co-wrote A Collection of Healing Stories for Children, Dealing with Feelings: Stories for Children and Perfectly Exceptional Kids.

Brock Adams ’08 wrote Ember, a dystopian novel about a group of militant rebels and a reluctant band of refugees trying to survive after the death of the sun. The book won the 2016 South Carolina First Novel Prize.

Scott George ’84 wrote Doing Good Works: How to Celebrate PurposeDirected Living. Michael Fox ’93 wrote Knocksense, a collection of irreverent and inappropriate poetry.

Renee (LeBlanc) Garrison ’76 wrote The Anchor Clankers, a young adult novel about a 14-year-old girl trying to make friends and find her way while living in a naval academy. The book is a medalist in the 2017 Florida Authors and Publishers President’s Book Awards.

Gary Roen ’97 wrote Journey, a collection of science fiction short stories.

James E. McCarthy ’79 wrote Sin & Redemption: The Pink Elephant Connection.

NCAA COMPLIANCE The following is an NCAA notice that must be in this issue of Pegasus to meet UCF and NCAA requirements. In February 2012, the University of Central Florida was placed on probation by the NCAA Division I Committee on infractions for violations involving the impermissible recruiting activity of outside third parties, impermissible benefits, an impermissible recruiting inducement, unethical conduct, failure to monitor and lack of institutional control. The university’s probationary period ended on February 10, 2017. In addition to the imposition of the probationary period, additional penalties were imposed. Those additional penalties include public reprimand and censure; a postseason ban for the men’s basketball program following the 2012–13 season; reduced numbers of initial scholarships and total scholarships in football and men’s basketball each year for three years; a reduction in the number of coaches permitted to recruit off campus at any one time for two years; a reduction in the available number of recruiting evaluation days and recruiting person days for two years; a reduction in the number of official paid visits for two

Feras Batarseh ’07MS ’11PhD co-edited Federal Data Science: Transforming Government and Agricultural Policy Using Artificial Intelligence, a guide to using data analytics methods to make proactive governmental decisions. Belinda Givens ’07MA wrote The Adventures of Demdem the Garbage Truck: Watch Out for the Bumps, a children’s book about completing a job even when things get in the way.

years; head and assistant men’s basketball coaches were prohibited from recruiting in July 2013; vacation of all men’s basketball victories in which an ineligible student-athlete participated during the 2008–09, 2009–10 and 2010–11 seasons; head men’s basketball coach Donnie Jones was given a show cause order and was required to complete additional rules training. In response to the infractions, the university has increased its athletics compliance staff as well as its overall compliance of educational and monitoring efforts. UCF has instituted the use of compliance and recruiting software for all athletics programs, and a greater emphasis has been placed on educating coaches, student-athletes, staff and fans on the rules and regulations concerning representatives of athletics interests (“boosters”) and thirdparty representatives. In addition, the University Compliance, Ethics and Risk Office now shares a dual reporting structure with the university’s chief compliance and ethics officer as well as the vice president and director of athletics. UCF will continue its efforts of promoting a culture of compliance throughout the university community and its goal of becoming a national model for athletics compliance.

Lori Levoy ’08 wrote I Am Going to Be a UCF Knight, a children’s book that follows Knightro on an adventure through campus. Tara Mixon ’15 wrote Your Mother Was a Panther, a collection of stories in verse about what it means to be a black mother in America.

YOUR NEWS Send us your announcements and high-resolution photos (minimum 3 megapixels, 300 dpi). Submissions are included as space permits. Class notes may be edited for length and clarity, and may be published in any medium.

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Why I ...

WHY I SWIM WITH SHARKS BY ANAI COLYER ’14

PHOTO BY ANAI COLYER ’14

The smell of chum surrounded me as I sat on the edge of the boat, peering into the deep blue Atlantic Ocean this June. The closest thing to land was the ocean floor nearly 500 feet below. My fins were dangling in the water when I heard our dive guide yell,“They’re here!” Our guide was referring to the bull, reef and sandbar sharks — some of the ocean’s most feared predators — that I was about to willingly join in the water. I took a deep breath, exhaled and slipped below the surface. A flood of emotions — fear, excitement, curiosity — washed over me as I descended into the water. I watched the light from the water’s surface dance over the sharks’ skin and made eye contact with a reef shark. Sharks have swum in the ocean for more than 450 million years, nearly as long as the first fish, and more than 200 million years before dinosaurs roamed the earth. As apex predators, they balance

the ocean’s food chain. Without them, large predatory fish such as grouper and snapper flourish, depleting populations of herbivorous fish. Without herbivores, algae spreads, killing off coral reefs and collapsing habitats. I have such an immense respect and appreciation for the important role sharks play in the ocean’s ecosystem. I didn’t always. I grew up fearing sharks as a result of movies like Jaws, but I have been infatuated with nature and wildlife for as long as I can remember. My father first took me underwater at the age of 8. As we approached a reef, a pod of dolphins suddenly surrounded us. I couldn’t believe my eyes. It felt like a dream. That childhood experience is one of my strongest memories, marking the moment I fell in love with the ocean and the creatures in it. To this day, whether in the water or on land, nature fills me with a sense of peace and happiness.

This feeling of wonder inspired me to pursue a degree in biology, during which time I researched the habitats of porpoises near Pensacola, Florida, and the social behaviors of orcas at SeaWorld Orlando. Since graduating, I have struggled to find a job that allows me to be outdoors rather than in a lab. To do so, I turned to another passion: photography. A camera allows me to capture nature’s magic and share it with others, connecting me to so many people and opening so many doors. I take pictures to show the beauty and sense of tranquility I find in nature, and share them to encourage others to explore this beautiful planet themselves. I also use my photos to share my view of the world with those who don’t have the ability to venture out, due to health, age or the busyness of everyday life. Since 2012, I have been posting my photos on Instagram, and earlier this year, I was selected

as the winner of the National Geographic “Wild to Inspire” Instagram short film competition. As the winner, I have the opportunity to travel to Africa with Nat Geo Wild to film wildlife alongside one of their cinematographers. I won the competition with the first video I ever made. That video described my two-week journey from still photography to capturing landscapes and wildlife — from rivers and wheat fields to alligators and great blue herons — on video. It wasn’t easy. I got very little sleep and had quite a lot of stress. But it was totally worth it. Through this experience, I learned that life is too short not to take chances and that the fear of failure leads to a sheltered life. This new view on life helped me work up the courage to jump into shark-infested waters. Of course, the so-called man-eaters, with their rows of razor-sharp teeth, could have shred me

to pieces. There was nothing between us other than water and my camera. But they didn’t touch me. I was far more curious about them than they were about me. As this realization dawned on me, I was filled once again with the sense of serenity that I often find in nature. The same feeling that sparked my love of nature while swimming near dolphins with my father returned. The only difference is that now I have a better understanding of the important role these animals play in the ecosystem. This knowledge, combined with my years as a diver, turned my fear into fascination, and I find myself longing to get back in the water with sharks again — with my camera, of course.

Anai Colyer ’14 lives in Gainesville and works at a dive shop in Palm Beach, Florida. In March, she won National Geographic’s 4th annual “Wild to Inspire” short film contest. See more of her photos, including this one of a reef shark taken off the coast of the Florida Keys, on Instagram at @anai.colyer and on Facebook at Anai Colyer Photography.

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CATCH ’EM IF YOU CAN

The hope of catching a rubber ducky attracts more than 10,000 students each year to the Reflecting Pond. But this year, Spirit Splash gained an even bigger audience when ESPN’s Will Reeve joined in on the annual Homecoming tradition for SportsCenter. To watch the video, visit ucf.edu/pegasus.

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