This report was updated with a comment from the University of West Florida Foundation.
A couple who established an endowed scholarship at the University of West Florida for Hispanic students plan to now use that money to help schoolchildren in West Palm Beach.
John Smykla, a former UWF department head, said he and his wife, Evelyn, will donate $22,675 the university returned to them last week to the Center for Creative Education, a K-5 independent school that provides arts-based education to low-income children. The couple has been donating to the K-5 school for several years, including a $5,000 gift last year.
In December 2011, the Smyklas established the Evelyn Ortiz and John Ortiz Smykla Criminal Justice Scholarship in Diversity with a $25,000 gift. In late 2025, the endowed scholarship had $33,716 because of interest.
After learning last fall that the “diversity” scholarship had not been awarded in two years, the couple asked UWF—after some back-and-forth—to terminate the scholarship and return their money.
Smykla said the UWF Foundation encouraged them to leave the scholarship at the university, and they would distribute the funds in accordance with the policies of the Florida Board of Governors and the foundation.
“Which meant that they would strip the word ‘diversity’ from the scholarship. They wanted to do that and requested several times we consider that and talk to them,” Smykla said. “Each time, we said, ‘No. That’s not acceptable. Just cancel it.’”
The refund amount also surprised the couple, who said the UWF Foundation told them—based on a review of best practices—the total amount was eligible for refund.
Smykla said UWF Foundation further stated their policies align with those of institutions such as Florida International University, which say: “In the event that a donor, for whatever reason, requests that endowed funds are returned — whether during the pledge period or after the endowment is fully funded — only the funds originally contributed by the donor will be returned. The donor will be issued a 1099 for the amount of funds returned, as required by the Internal Revenue Service.”
This policy, Smykla said, is not fair.
“We have several savings accounts and those accounts earn interest. If we decide to close those accounts, we collect back the initial deposit plus all of the interest. The bank does not hold the interest—on a CD or any kind of savings account or checking account—if you close it. The persons who opened it receive the interest that goes along with their deposit. So, it really floored us when UWF said that only the funds originally contributed would be returned.”
The couple, who have made donations to other institutions where he worked including the University of Alabama and University of South Alabama, are not sure if they will pursue legal action against UWF, saying, “we haven’t ruled out anything at this point.”
“The energy that we had to put into this is overwhelming and it’s all negative energy that we don’t need. We will make good use of the money that we have. The Center for Creative Education will have even more money,” Smykla said, adding he feels that UWF students are the victims, and he and his wife have been victimized by UWF holding $11,000 that would not exist without their contribution.
“When UWF honored me with a Distinguished University Professorship, we felt very humbled and a need to really give back in meaningful way that would provide funds for students into the future,” he said.
The Pensacola News Journal reached out to the university for comment, and on Thursday received this prepared statement via email:
“The University of West Florida Foundation Inc., followed the donor’s wishes, and the refund amount was determined in accordance with UWF Foundation policies, which align with best practices and policies at other State University System institutions, including Florida International University.”
