The passion Adam Amir fights with just won him $30,000.
Amir, a 20-year-old UF junior, was named a Truman Scholar for 2009 last month.
He was one of two students attending a Florida university to win the award, which reflected his efforts in pursuing a career in leadership and public service.
Sixty students in the U.S. received the award overall.
"It legitimizes a lot of the thankless, hard work throughout college," Amir said. "It's one great figurative pat on the back."
Amir said two of his more prominent leadership positions have included being Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender cabinet affairs director for Student Government and serving as a district court intern in Gainesville.
He also participated in four different trips with Florida Alternative Breaks, where he spent time doing community service instead of vacationing.
Amir recalled leading a trip last year to Nashville, Tenn., where he counseled gay, bisexual and transgendered teenagers from local schools.
He said personal growth from the trip was rewarding.
"Conversations that we had with the students were eye-opening," he said.
Amir is also a J. Wayne Reitz Scholar and a Florida Opportunity Scholar, a need-based award funding low-income, first-generation and underrepresented minorities at UF.
The award has given him more confidence to continue his fight for the rights of lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgendered people, Amir said.
Ignited by the anti-gay environment in his hometown of Coral Springs, Amir said he inherited "a big mouth and confidence you need to get involved in politics," from his older sister, Morgan.
Amir said one of his favorite memories at UF was working with the Obama campaign and celebrating with his best friends after the votes had been counted.
Jeanna Mastrodicasa, assistant vice president for Student Affairs and Gainesville City Commissioner, directs the J. Wayne Reitz Scholars program and agreed that Amir had a penchant for politics.
"Adam is an inspiring student with a true passion for change," she wrote in an e-mail. "He works hard to understand the issues and how to make a difference."
She wrote Amir worked hard during this year's local elections to ensure the defeat of a discriminatory charter amendment that would have, if passed, removed protections from sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination in the city.
Amir said he hasn't decided on the details but plans to attend law school after graduating from UF as a political science major .
He is also pursuing a history major focused on homosexuality in Nazi Germany, a self-created program under history professor Geoffrey Giles, a leading expert on the issue, according to a UF news release.
Amir, who is Jewish, said he feels there is an inherent sense of persecution and justice in America's history and culture.
"As a gay kid growing up, I noticed a homophobic world around me," he said.
Other than fighting for equal civil rights, Amir said another goal goes back to family.
"I'm just trying to make my parents proud of me," he said
