With more than 200 participating funds and so many opportunities for inspiration, activation and growth 鈥� we鈥檙e counting down to liftoff by highlighting unique areas to consider supporting with your gift this 麻豆原创 Day of Giving.

As Knights, we challenge status quo. We charge boldly ahead toward industry evolutions and technological advancements. We dare to build a future the world has only begun to imagine. And it鈥檚 all driven through moments like this and individuals like you.

Together,聽we鈥檙e聽launching Knights to new heights.

When the unexpected arises,聽help聽sometimes聽comes in the form of .聽Created to support聽Knights聽facing聽hardship that may聽hinder聽their education,聽this fund聽provides聽financial support聽for textbooks,聽fees聽and other education-related聽expenses聽for qualifying students.

Your gift ensures that聽when聽life鈥檚聽trials聽test our聽Knights,聽they聽pass聽with flying colors,聽securing聽the education聽and future聽they聽deserve.

The 鈥痯rovides services, programming and resources for thousands of military-connected students currently enrolled at 麻豆原创.

helps ensure聽that聽those who have served and their connected students are fully supported as they pursue their educational and career goals.

麻豆原创 has been recognized聽with a聽Gold Award聽on the聽Military Friendly聽Schools list, as a Florida Collegiate Purple Star Campus, a Best Military-Friendly Online College and on the Military Times鈥� 聽2025聽Best for Vets Colleges List.聽Help us聽continue that legacy聽of聽serving those聽who鈥檝e聽served.

offers an intensive, comprehensive therapy program聽to those聽navigating Aphasia, a聽language聽disorder that can arise from聽health challenges such as聽stroke,聽brain聽cancer聽and brain injury,聽and聽affects聽an individual鈥檚 ability to聽read, write,聽speak聽and聽comprehend聽language.

Through the program,聽individuals are聽empowered to聽make progress on their long-held goals, like talking with their grandchildren or ordering their favorite restaurant meal.

聽on 麻豆原创 Day of Giving聽supports the continuation of this聽important聽service for our community, as well as the hands-on experience 麻豆原创 student clinicians聽receive.

Support 麻豆原创 College of Medicine researchers as they聽break聽into new realms of聽understanding聽around聽the聽country鈥檚聽second leading cause of death聽鈥� cancer.聽Through聽innovative science,聽they鈥檙e聽exploring key聽avenues of discovery聽including聽the role that聽genes play聽in聽determining聽a person鈥檚 cancer risk, what causes cancer to spread聽and how to harness the body鈥檚 immune system to kill cancer cells.

The goal: to prevent cancer and find new therapies that improve quality of life聽for patients.聽 brings聽us one聽step closer聽to聽lives saved,聽families unburdened聽and a cure聽realized.

Did you know聽that 麻豆原创 has one of the top Moot Court聽teams in the nation, ranking聽among the top 15聽overall聽by the American Moot Court Association?聽Supervised by the , these student advocates聽are challenged聽with arguing聽mock supreme court cases聽on constitutional amendments.

and聽national聽leadership聽by聽making a gift on 麻豆原创 Day of Giving.聽Help聽cover聽competition travel expenses, as well as聽the聽cost of聽the聽annual tournament聽hosted聽at 麻豆原创 Downtown聽each fall.

It鈥檚聽time for launch, Knight Nation! Join us聽as聽we rally around聽our favorite causes, and聽maybe even聽uncover some聽new聽ones, during 麻豆原创 Day of Giving.聽Find聽more areas of support聽by聽别虫辫濒辞谤颈苍驳听迟丑别听,鈥痑nd聽save the date to聽聽on Thursday, April 9.聽聽

It鈥檚 taken the 麻豆原创 student years to get to this point in his life; a place of acceptance for the abuse he suffered as a child and the disappointments he has had to endure. Now, as the 30-year-old is one semester away from becoming the first person in his family to earn a college degree, he鈥檚 grateful for the focus and drive that brought him to this point in his life.

鈥淚鈥檝e learned if you just persevere and have a clear goal and focus,鈥� he says, 鈥測ou can get through anything.鈥�

Daniels was born in West Palm Beach and was in kindergarten, the oldest of three brothers, when his parents split up and his mother soon after began dating someone who was abusive. He says he went to school with bruises, sometimes a sprained limb, until child services eventually intervened.

He spent two years in foster care while the courts figured out what his fate would be. He didn鈥檛 realize it at the time, but the lawyers involved in his case made an impression on him and would play a role later in shaping his career aspirations.

鈥淭hey seemed like they鈥檙e valued members of the community and people cared about what they had to say,鈥� says the legal studies major. 鈥淭hey were kind of like modern-day heroes, saving children or people in need. They just had a very professional and commanding attitude and presence that I respected.鈥�

Once Daniels was deemed a ward of the court, he was placed with his grandmother, who he says welcomed and adored him. Daniels and his youngest brother, an infant at the time who went to live with an aunt and uncle in Massachusetts, kept in contact over the years and saw each other during the holidays. His middle brother stayed with his mother and moved to the western part of the country. Daniels rarely spoke to either of them.

When he graduated from high school, Daniels planned on enlisting in the Air Force to become a pilot. Just before he was set to head to boot camp, he found out he had a blue-red color vision deficiency, which meant no flying.

鈥淚 was devastated,鈥� he says. 鈥淔or a little while I didn鈥檛 know what I wanted to do. I felt like I had let my whole family down because I felt like there was a lot of hype and when it didn鈥檛 happen, I was crushed. I ended up running away from home because I didn鈥檛 want to face it.鈥�

鈥淲hen I was younger, I wished all the time, 鈥榃hy can鈥檛 I just have a normal life?鈥� Now that I鈥檓 older and I鈥檝e learned a little bit more, I think it鈥檚 like the furnace for steel 鈥� it hardened me and made me a stronger person.鈥�

For a while he did odd jobs. He worked at Panera Bread. He sold nuts and bolts for an industrial-supply company. He was a car salesman for a couple days.

鈥淚 just felt a longing for something more,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 just knew I wanted to go to school and make something of myself.鈥�

He enrolled at St. Johns River State College and eventually transferred to 麻豆原创 to major in computer science. When he quickly realized the required math classes weren鈥檛 for him, he took an aptitude and personality test he found online. Lawyer popped up among the list of professions he matched with, and he started to think about the lawyers from his childhood.

He switched his major to legal studies and nearly every facet of his life started pulling in the right direction, he says. He made the dean鈥檚 list. He started seeking counseling through to unpack his childhood trauma. He finally made lasting friendships he always wished for as a kid by playing his favorite game, Dungeons & Dragons. He became engaged in his classes, even when they challenged his weaknesses.

鈥淲e have a mock courtroom on the downtown campus so we can get a feel of how it will be. I鈥檝e shied away from public speaking, but it鈥檚 been a really fun challenge to see myself progress,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 found that I like to command that room.鈥�

He says once he pays off his student loans, he would like to offer legal services pro bono to help children who are in the same position he was in as a child. Daniels is most proud of the work it took to get this far, and that his youngest brother has told him he wants to go back to school, just like Daniels did.

鈥淎t risk of sounding clich茅, they say 鈥榃hat doesn鈥檛 kill you makes you stronger.鈥� I definitely agree,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hen I was younger, I wished all the time, 鈥榃hy can鈥檛 I just have a normal life?鈥� Now that I鈥檓 older and I鈥檝e learned a little bit more, I think it鈥檚 like the furnace for steel 鈥� it hardened me and made me a stronger person.鈥�

However new research co-authored by a 麻豆原创 researcher and appearing in the journal today offers evidence that criminal laws come from an intuitive and shared, universal sense of justice that humans possess.

鈥淲e sometimes think of the law as this completely rational enterprise that is the result of wise experts sitting around a table and working from logical principles,鈥� says Carlton Patrick, an assistant professor in the 麻豆原创鈥檚 and study co-author. 鈥淎nd instead, what this study suggests is that these intuitions that people tend to share about justice may be the things that are becoming institutionalized.鈥�

Patrick and Daniel Sznycer, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Montreal and the study鈥檚 lead author, made the finding by comparing modern and ancient people鈥檚 sense of whether a punishment fits a crime.

And while previous studies have examined people鈥檚 intuitions about justice, this is the first one that compared them across thousands of years.

Using participants from the United States and India, the researchers had people rate offenses from one of three legal codes: the Laws of Eshnunna, Sumerian laws from nearly 3,800 years ago; the Tang Code, Chinese laws from nearly 1,400 years ago; and the Criminal Code of Pennsylvania, which reflects modern U.S. laws.

Participants were shown the offenses, but not the punishments that the law established.

The crimes ranged from ancient offenses, such as not keeping an ox in check, which caused a person to be gored, to modern ones, such as assault.

Some participants were asked to determine the appropriate fines for each offense, while others were asked to determine prison sentences.

The researchers found that the more seriously modern people judged a crime to be, the higher the actual legal punishment for the crime.

This was despite participants living in different countries and legal codes that were separated by thousands of years.

鈥淭he match between participants鈥� intuitions and ancient laws was notable,鈥� Sznycer says.

鈥淭his new research adds empirical weight to the possibility that the capacity to make laws鈥攖he brain mechanisms that appraise offenses and generate justice intuitions鈥攁re universal, and a part of human nature.鈥�

鈥淐riminal laws, like the writing that supports those laws, are cultural inventions: present in some societies, absent in others,鈥� he says. 鈥淗owever, this new research adds empirical weight to the possibility that the capacity to make laws鈥攖he brain mechanisms that appraise offenses and generate justice intuitions鈥攁re universal, and a part of human nature.鈥�

Patrick says the study is an important step in helping to demystify the origin of laws.

鈥淚 think what this study does is lead us into the black box a little bit,鈥� he says. 鈥淚t removes one layer of the shroud of mystery that surrounds the lawmaking process, and it also gets us closer to understanding why we sometimes feel that something鈥檚 wrong, even when we can鈥檛 explain why.鈥�

Patrick received his law degree from Boston University School of Law, his doctorate and master鈥檚 in psychology from the University of Miami and his bachelor鈥檚 from Florida State University. He joined 麻豆原创鈥檚 Department of Legal Studies, which is a part of 麻豆原创鈥檚 , in 2018.

1. Pop Parlour

Serving up sweets is practically in graduate Brandon Chandler 鈥�10鈥檚 DNA. In 2013, Chandleropened Pop Parlour, a shop offering fruity, creamy and boozy frozen treats as a tribute to his grandfather PopPop, who sold similar items after World War II. Pop Parlour has grown to two locations and serves coffee, tea, craft beer and wine, depending on which spot you visit.

尝辞肠补迟颈辞苍蝉:听4214 E. Plaza Drive on the 麻豆原创 campus; 431 E. Central Blvd., Suite C; ThePopParlour.com
(Pop Parlour’s 麻豆原创 location will be closed on Small Business聽Saturday due to campus closures, but you can still visit the downtown location or stop by another day.)

2. Six28 Boutique

Six months after graduating with a degree in elementary education, Rachel Ledbetter 鈥�16聽took a risk to pursue entrepreneurship by opening clothing boutique Six28. Located near 麻豆原创, Six28 sells trendy, affordable women鈥檚 clothing and accessories, which can also be purchased on the store鈥檚 online site.

Location:12082 Collegiate Way; 407-630-3890; Six28Boutique.com

3. Bikes, Beans & Bordeaux

Cycling enthusiasts Darrell Cunningham 鈥�93聽and Jen Cunningham 鈥�95 鈥�96MSW聽opened Bikes, Beans and Bordeaux to provide a space for people to bond over good food, drinks and company. With a commitment to health in mind, the shop sells breakfast items, sandwiches, soups, salads, desserts, beer, wine and more daily and at special events each month. While at 麻豆原创, Darrell studied civil engineering and Jen majored in social work.

Location:3022 Corrine Drive; 407-427-1440; BikesBeansandBordeaux.com

4. Deli Fresh Threads

Marketing major Anthony 鈥淏iggie鈥� Bencomo 鈥�98聽merged his love of sandwiches with another creative passion by opening Deli Fresh Threads, a clothing store? with designs inspired by what he considers the #KingOfMeals. You can buy foodie fashion in the form of T-shirts, hats, pins and stickers on the online shop. Bencomo also hosts a monthly #SandwichEatUp at local shops around Central Florida to help support other small businesses.

Location: 321-303-5129; DeliFreshThreads.com

5. Tactical Brewing Company

Owned and operated by veteran and psychology graduate Doug Meyer 鈥�14 鈥�16MBA, Tactical Brewing Company serves craft brews created on-site to veterans, first responders and all beer lovers alike.

尝辞肠补迟颈辞苍:听4882 New Broad St.; 407-203-2033; TacticalBeer.com

6. Retrolando

Retro Orlando captures the City Beautiful鈥檚 history while giving back to others. The online T-shirt company offers men and women鈥檚 clothing inspired by former iconic Orlando businesses, organizations and landmarks. Each purchase is something you can feel good about because owner and English major Shannon Flesch Couillard 鈥�04, donates a new shirt to a local homeless shelter for each shirt sold.

尝辞肠补迟颈辞苍:听Retrolando.com

7. Yaupon Brothers Tea Co.

Brothers 鈥� 麻豆原创 senior hospitality major Kyle White and legal studies graduate Bryon 鈥�09鈥� have revived an ancient Native American superfood with their yaupon holly tea company. The brothers sustainably harvest their organic crop and distribute their product at restaurants and shops. Online purchases can also be made on their official site and Amazon.聽Yaupon Brothers also offers sustainable agricultural consulting services for Florida farmers looking for alternative crops.

尝辞肠补迟颈辞苍蝉:听Various local shops such as Lucky鈥檚 Market, Credo Coffee, Infusion Tea and Dandelion Communitea Caf茅; YauponBrothers.com

8. A Piece of Work

Started by marketing graduate Curtis Young 鈥�04聽in 2007, A Piece of Work apparel company creates custom embroidery and screen printing. Through partnerships with companies such as the Orlando Magic, Funky Buddha and more, the online site offers quality work clothing. A Piece of Work also sells eco-friendly items such as recycled journals and organic cotton totes.

尝辞肠补迟颈辞苍:听321-662-3836; APieceofWorkGear.com

9. Just Save the Date

Whether you need to put together a small intimate gathering or a major extravagant event, Just Save the Date can help make any occasion special. Communication graduate and owner聽Kelly Erickson Fowler 鈥�02聽started the event planning company after planning her own destination wedding. Just Save the Date operates from two locations in the Orlando and Key West areas.

尝辞肠补迟颈辞苍蝉:听Orlando 鈥� 407-258-1944;聽Key West 鈥� 305-767-3774; JustSaveTheDate.com

鈥淏y establishing an undergraduate law journal, 麻豆原创 joins a very elite group of universities that provides students this unique, unparalleled and quintessential experiential learning opportunity,鈥� says Alisa Smith, chair of the Department of Legal Studies.

Patricia 鈥淭rish鈥� Cashman, a local attorney and longstanding member of the Department of Legal Studies Advisory Board, said the process of creating the journal provides a great educational benefit for the students and is a great way to educate and connect with the local community.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a journal that has something for many different people in the community who are interested in different issues,鈥� says Cashman, also a legal studies adjunct professor for 麻豆原创. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great way to engage people in thought for them to potentially learn something new.鈥�

Legal studies professors recommended students for the editorial board during the fall semester, and 麻豆原创 legal studies professor James Beckman, who served as the journal鈥檚 faculty advisor, selected the inaugural board, which comprised 15 students.

As part of the journal鈥檚 board, students enrolled in a new legal-studies course focused on the best practices involved in preparing and editing an academic scholarly journal for publication in Spring 2018. The students also completed extensive research and reading in order to conduct multiple blind peer reviews typical for an academic journal and conducted extensive editing of the accepted articles prior to publication.

The editorial board invited 麻豆原创 students from any major to submit articles. By late January, the editorial board had received more than 50 in-depth and well-researched pieces covering a variety of topics for the journal. They chose 12 articles and a book review for publication. Topics in the 175-page journal include President Trump鈥檚 use of social media, the impact of race on the U.S. correctional system, and the legality of police officers鈥� use of automatic scanners and whether such practices are privacy violations.

鈥淚t was so wonderful to do it and publish it at the end,鈥� says legal studies junior Samantha Forkel, who authored 鈥淢aking Millions of Dollars off Constitutional Violations.鈥� 鈥淚 learned a lot about legal writing and editing.鈥�

Beginners and high rollers alike enjoyed fine wines, craft beers and hors d鈥檕euvres, while pressing their luck with the house.

Proceeds from the event will benefit scholarships for students in pre-law programs.

鈥淪ince this organization started, we鈥檝e always focused ourselves on providing 麻豆原创 students aspiring to go to or are already in law school with something many different lawyers in our local community didn鈥檛 have while in school: Perspective and the opportunity to help fund the start of their careers,鈥� says Mike Mendez, 鈥�04, immediate past chair of the Legal Knights & Friends Alumni Chapter. 鈥淚鈥檝e met all of the recipients of the scholarships we鈥檝e awarded throughout the years, and there鈥檚 no better feeling than seeing the difference we鈥檝e made for these hard-working students.鈥�

MORE INFO

legalknights@ucfalumni.com | 407.823.3491 | 407.823.3525

A forum to celebrate the Constitution and the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 will be sponsored Wednesday by the 麻豆原创鈥檚 Office of Undergraduate Studies, Department of Legal Studies, Department of Political Science, Department of History, Lou Frey Institute, John C. Hitt Library and Student Government Association. The forum will focus on how different interpretations of the Constitution have changed over time and the effect it has on society. 聽

The event will be from 10 a.m. to noon at FAIRWINDS Alumni Center and is free to 麻豆原创 students, faculty and staff members. Former Ambassador William J. Hughes and Congressman Peter Torkildsen will address the topic, after which they will join a panel alongside Legal Studies faculty members James Beckman and Cynthia Schmidt to answer questions.

鈥淲e encourage the involvement of 麻豆原创 students, as this is a wonderful opportunity for them to be a part of an event with such prestigious speakers,鈥� said Juan Lugo of the Office of Undergraduate Studies. 聽

For more information about the Constitution Day event

Brandon Clark, a junior with a double major in criminal justice and legal studies, and Caroline Engeman, who graduated in December with a bachelor鈥檚 in event management, are working in Washington through May.

Clark is interning in the correspondence department in the Office of the First Lady.

鈥淲e process all of the first lady鈥檚 mail from the public. I help process mail from students, letters inquiring about the first lady鈥檚 Joining Forces and Let鈥檚 Move! initiatives, and policy-related correspondence for my department,鈥� he said.

A graduate of George Jenkins High School in Lakeland, Clark plans to attend law school after graduation and stay engaged in public-service opportunities.

鈥淭hrough this internship I hope to better understand how the executive office of the president works and runs,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 believe it will provide me with an opportunity to develop skills necessary to further my education and future career goals.鈥澛�

Engeman is interning in the White House visitors office.

鈥淲e handle all events open to the public, such as White House tours, the Easter Egg Roll, spring/fall garden tours, state arrival ceremonies, and other various events that take place at the White House,鈥� said the Winter Park High School graduate.

Engeman, who plans to stay in Washington to continue a career in government, said she hopes to learn during her internship 鈥渨hy there is a great emphasis on opening the White House to the public.鈥�

鈥淎lso, I hope to learn more about the different roles that each department within the White House holds pertaining to all events and how together they build the foundation for the success of the event,鈥� she said.

White House interns work in one of several White House departments, ranging from the Office of Legislative Affairs, to the Domestic Policy Council, to the Office of the Vice President. The mission of the White House internship program is to make the White House accessible to future leaders around the nation and to prepare those devoted to public service for leadership opportunities.

The students will serve as 麻豆原创 Legislative Scholars, conducting research, assisting with constituent relations, tracking bills and supporting other daily operations of a legislative office during the聽session, which runs March 4 to May 2. They will work full-time and receive a stipend and housing in the state capital for a minimum of three months.

麻豆原创 established the Legislative Scholars Internship in 2005 to provide students with insight into the workings of state government and the Florida Legislature. To be eligible for the internship, students must be a junior, senior or graduate student in a communication, legal studies, political science or public administration academic program.

Students are selected for the internship through a rigorous application and interview process led by Fred Kittinger, associate vice president of state and local government affairs. Kittinger appoints a committee of 麻豆原创 faculty and staff members and representatives from local legislative offices to select the interns.

Successful candidates exhibit strong communication skills, including speaking, writing, research and computer skills; an interest in or knowledge of the legislative process; and a demonstrated ability to work with others in a fast-paced, highly visible environment.

鈥淭his year鈥檚 field of candidates for the internship was the strongest to date,鈥� Kittinger shared.

The 2014聽interns include聽seven legal studies majors,聽two communication majors, a political science major聽and a graduate student in public administration. Ten have been assigned to state senator聽and representative offices, and one has been assigned to the government relations office of a law firm. (For the intern placements, see http://bit.ly/1j2Zk5u.)

Kathy Cook, instructor of legal studies, is especially proud so many students in her program are participating this year. 鈥淭hey are very professional students and well-prepared for this experience,鈥� she said.

Legal studies junior Mikaela Duffy moved to Tallahassee last weekend to聽intern in Senator Alan Hays’ office.聽She will room with聽Jessica Sirianni, a legal studies and finance junior who heads to Tallahassee next month聽to intern at the Gray Robinson law office. Both plan to attend law school and are thrilled to be part of the legislative process.

鈥淭his will do nothing but help us learn how to work in the legal and legislative fields,鈥� Duffy said excitedly.

Duffy’s excitement is understandable. Alumni of the internship program have been hired by both state and federal聽legislative offices and other government聽offices, and several have been accepted to prominent law schools.

Orlando鈥檚 WDBO FM will broadcast the debate from 7 to 8 p.m. from the Morgridge International Reading Center on the main campus. The debate is free and open to the public.

Mel Robbins, a trial lawyer and national radio news commentator, will moderate the student debate, and Dick Batchelor, founder of the Dick Batchelor Management Group and a former member of the Florida House of Representatives, will join the discussion panel. Michael Frumkin, dean of 麻豆原创鈥檚 College of Health and Public Affairs, will provide the opening remarks.

The students speaking on the side of聽limited reform are: Kyle Ross, Todd Foster, Jack Flanary and Jessica Sirianni. Arguing for more reform are: Taylor Koshak, Chris Chambers, Brittany Hollenbacher and Justine Poteau.

鈥淲e appreciate the opportunity to explore important topics with the students and with the community,鈥� Frumkin said.聽

The debate will be broadcast on FM 96.5.