Greater Heights
Ryan Poehling arrived at the University of Florida in 1995 with big ambitions — and he was soon well on his way to achieving them. A graduate student in the Department of Geography, he made an immediate impression with his flair for research and teaching.
In 1999, though, a rare form of cancer that Ryan had overcome as a teenager returned. Undaunted, he pressed on with his studies until passing away in December 2000, just months before he would have defended his dissertation. In May 2001, he was posthumously awarded his PhD.
Although Ryan’s journey was cut tragically short, his legacy lives on at UF. The Poehling family set up a scholarship in his honor, which for 20 years has supported outstanding geography graduate students. What’s more, the Ryan Poehling Graduate Student Lab in Turlington Hall provides a dedicated space for students to pursue their studies with the same passion that Ryan did.
Recently, Ryan’s brothers Pat and Tom, along with Tom’s wife, Stephanie, furthered their commitment by establishing the Ryan Michael Poehling Professorship in Geography, an endowed position that will become the highest honor given to geography faculty.
“We’re trying as best we can to perpetuate Ryan’s good works,” Tom said. By providing new opportunities for faculty research, the gift will allow others to reach the greater heights in the field that Ryan never had the chance to achieve.
“The continued support from the Poehling family and the new Poehling Geography Professorship are transformative for our program — celebrating faculty excellence, innovation and success,” said Jane Southworth, professor and chair of the department. “Our faculty is honored to receive such a prestigious and meaningful gift.”
Pat and Tom also see the professorship as a tribute to their parents, Henry and Sandra, who instilled in the whole family the value of education and giving. “We feel like we can magnify the amount of good by channeling it through UF,” Tom said. “Our collective family really believes in the great things that are being done at the Department of Geography.”
Learn how to make your own lasting impact. Contact alumni@clas.ufl.edu or visit clas.ufl.edu/waystogive.
This story appears in the spring 2022 issue of Ytori Magazine. Read more from the issue.
