A Knight's Journey Sparks Profession and Philanthropy

Robert Aronoff '92's enrollment at UCF was a last-minute decision. Aronoff made his way to UCF on the first day of classes. Although he quickly registered and was ready to start classes the next morning, he found himself without a place to stay that evening.

A chance encounter with a helpful UCF patrol officer led Aronoff to a couch in the office of Gene McDowell, UCF's head football coach, where he spent the night. That started a connection to the athletics program that continues today.

At UCF, Aronoff developed a passion for education, speech, debate, athletics and philanthropy. Today he is an instructor at Collin College in Frisco, Texas, teaching public speaking, interpersonal communication and, his favorite, business and professional communication. He designed this course to help students effectively communicate in the same way he was taught at UCF.

Aronoff solidified his calling for teaching while earning his master's degree in rhetoric and communication theory from Florida State University. He fell in love with teaching and went on to be an instructor at FSU serving as the director of the forensics program (intercollegiate competitive speech and debate).

Throughout his career, Aronoff has stayed connected with UCF. He served on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, as the chair of the Tallahassee and Dallas-Ft. Worth Alumni Clubs and as a die-hard athletics fan.

It was inspiration from his UCF professors that motivated him to give back. He recently documented a legacy gift to the university in the two areas that were most influential in his personal and professional journey: to the UCF speech and debate teams for igniting the flame that fuels his profession; and to UCF athletics for a connection that started on his very first day.

Aronoff hopes these gifts will help other students find their calling and strengthen a growing athletics program for future generations to enjoy.