Honoring Family Legacies by Opening Doors for First-Generation Students

A few months into his freshman year, economics major Ervin Xhemali was stunned to see a few thousand dollars in his student account. As the first in his family to navigate a four-year university, Xhemali assumed there had been an error; he didn't want to spend money that wasn't his.

"Once I realized it wasn't a mistake, I was thrilled," says Xhemali, one of the inaugural recipients of the Katherine Crock Memorial Scholarship. "I'm financing this entire experience on my own, so every bit helps. That's money I can now put toward my future."

For Xhemali, an aspiring lawyer, college once felt like a distant world reserved for others. Between traveling back-and-forth across the Atlantic Ocean to live with his parents in Albania and relatives in Chicago and Jacksonville, Florida, he constantly balanced family expectations with his own ambitions. Ultimately, Xhemali faced a difficult choice: work to support his family or focus solely on his studies. He chose both, supplementing his scholarship by working as a produce clerk at Publix and a warehouse shipper.

College of Business alum Raymond Smithberger '02MBA understands that drive. Growing up on a 100-acre farm in Southeast Ohio, Smithberger learned the value of hard work and family obligation early on. The oldest of five, with a father who worked in a factory and a mother who was a receptionist, Smithberger was aware of the financial hurdles facing a first-generation student when he left home to pursue his undergraduate degree and later an MBA at UCF.

Now the chief operating officer at Help at Home, a national home care provider, Smithberger credits his late mother, Katherine Crock, for pushing him to blaze his own trail.

"She was the one who really encouraged me to do things differently," Smithberger says.

Following his mother's passing, Smithberger honored her legacy by creating the Katherine Crock Memorial Fund. The endowment ensures students like himself, and Xhemali, have the support they need to define their own futures - and pays tribute to someone who valued education more than anything else.

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"[My mother] wanted to pursue further education but never had the chance," Smithberger says. "I feel honored to support other first-generation students in her memory."

Strategically launched last year on UCF Day of Giving to maximize impact, visibility, and matching opportunities, the Katherine Crock Memorial Fund helps to expand student access, reduce financial barriers,and accelerate academic success. By funding both established and new scholarship initiatives, donors directly enable UCF students to focus on their studies and career-shaping experiences, such as internships and campus involvement, rather than financial stressors.

While the finer points of UCF Day of Giving are still new to Xhemali, he understands the significance ofSmithberger's generosity.

"I'm still fresh, but I'm figuring out this stuff," Xhemali says. "What I do know is that I want to use this scholarship to put me in a position where I can help someone like Mr. Smithberger has helped me."

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