The UT Journal
The University of Tampa's full-color magazine connects UT to its alumni, parents and friends. Three issues are published each year: Spring (in April), Fall (in August) and Winter (in December).
The Winter 2022 Issue
Seven of this issue’s articles are available as links below, and the entire issue can also be read as a Zmag.
Features
As longtime University of Tampa benefactor John Sykes finished a meeting with UT President Ronald Vaughn in 1997 about plans for what would become the Sykes Chapel and Center for Faith and Values, he had one additional thought.
Last September, BBC News reported alarming findings from a worldwide survey of 10,000 16-to-25- year-olds: Nearly 60% of them said they felt “very worried” or “extremely worried” about climate change, and more than 45% said feelings about climate affected their daily lives.
Selwyn Birchwood MBA ’12 knew his destiny wasn’t to work at an AT&T store. He was born to sing the blues and he knew it. But several years and a couple of hundred gigs after getting an undergraduate degree in marketing from UCF, he was still selling cellphones by day. “I felt trapped,” recalls Birchwood, 37, of his travails from a decade ago. “I had no idea if a career in music would work out for me, but I knew that I hated my job. I had bills to pay, so I decided to go back to school.”
Read Story: Selwyn Birchwood has an Advanced Degree in the Blues
Spartan Spotlights
Crime Fighter Turned Crime Writer
David Rey ’03 shares a peak into his new memoir, Larceny on 34th St., with his “high drama, high adrenaline” experiences from working at Macy’s Herald Square.
Activism Online and Offline
Alejandra Caraballo ’12 found her calling as a public interest lawyer, teaching cyberlaw at Harvard and advocating for the LGBTQ+ community online.
Spartan Ready Philanthropy
Most UT students are grateful for the world-class education and good times they soak up during their years on campus. But some consider their time in Tampa truly life-changing, and retired Army Lt. Col. Constantine “Thom” Bougas ’74 is certainly in that extra-appreciative club.
Maria and Paul Weizer have the ultimate conversation-stopper of a “how we met” story. Back in their student days at UT, Maria ’96 was a freshman attending her first ROTC Leadership Lab in her heavy camo training garb. On a blazingly hot Florida day, she passed out, and — wait for it — her squad leader Paul ’94, MBA ‘11, then a junior, was the person to attend to her and get help.
Read Story: Spartan Spirit Squared: How One Couple Gives Back
Patricia “Trish” Ross ’89 has had a high-flying career — quite literally. She’s a retired U.S. Air Force colonel who has recently been named Commissioner of Georgia’s Department of Veterans Service. The launching pad for her success? She gives UT a round of applause.
Read Story: Meet the Commissioner: One Spartan’s Life of Service
Past Issues
