BIOGRAPHIES
Dr. Jeffery S. Allbritten
Dr. Allbritten serves as the college president of Florida Southwestern State College (FSW). With over 30 years in higher education, Dr. Jeffery Allbritten has served in leadership roles at Middle Tennessee State University, Florida State College at Jacksonville, and Broward College in Fort Lauderdale. Prior to becoming FSW’s fourth president, he was president of Middle Georgia State University.
Since just becoming FSW’s president in 2012, Dr. Allbritten has worked with college administrators on initiatives that have reestablished FSW’s athletics program; secured a $5-million-dollar gift from Suncoast Credit Union for the Suncoast Credit Union Arena; expanded FSW’s international education programs by establishing university partnerships worldwide; and enhanced research opportunities for FSW faculty and students.
Dr. Allbritten holds a Doctorate in Arts degree in chemistry from Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, a Master of Science degree in mathematics and a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry from Murray State University, Murray, Ky.
Ms. Teresa W. Borcheck
Ms. Borcheck currently serves as Chief Financial Officer and Vice President of the Special Olympics Florida, while also serving as President/Owner of Borcheck Non profit Consulting Services in Maitland, Florida. Prior to that, she was Director of Development for the Barbara Bush Foundation for Financial Literacy President and Chief Operating Officer of Hans & Cay Jacobsen Foundation, Winter Park, Florida. She also served as Sr. VP Florida Regional Manager, Endowment Foundations with SunTrust Bank.
Ms. Borcheck has worked with non-profits and private foundations for over 30 years. Her significant accomplishments include creating and managing investment management process, procedures and policies for the Barbara Bush Foundation for Family Literacy. She established and managed the ground up Endowment & Foundations Specialty Practice for SunTrust's Florida Region and managed a team of 10 professionals responsible for 250 relationships with non-profit clients in the Southeast. Ms. Borcheck achieved accountability for $2.5 Billion in assets under management in 7 years, with average annual revenue of $10,000,000. She provided assistance with grant administration, asset management, strategic planning, board governance, and Executive Director. Her work at SunTrust, with the Jacobsen Foundation and on the Florida Board of Accountancy has provided her with many opportunities to find creative, innovative and collaborative solutions to meet the financial needs of college students in Florida.
Ms. Borcheck is a Gubernatorial Appointment to the Florida Board of Accountancy as one of two Consumer Members from 2005-Present. Ms. Borcheck was Florida Bankers Association Trust Banker of the Year, 2006 SunTrust Bank.
Ms. Jennifer Christensen
Ms. Christensen has 22 years of experience in public accounting and has worked with a variety of not-for-profit organizations performing audits, reviews, compilations, agreed-upon procedures, and Single Audits. During this time, Jennifer has also worked with several Florida school districts focusing on their school internal accounts.
Jennifer is the Partner-in-Charge of the Orlando CRI office and is a member of CRI’s 7-member Executive Committee, which is responsible for governing the operations of the firm and its 1,800 professionals.
Jennifer received her Bachelors in Accounting Degree from the University of Florida and her Masters in Accounting Degree from the University of Central Florida. She has been a presenter at the annual conferences for the Florida School Finance Officers Association and the Florida Association of School Business Officials. Jennifer has been an active volunteer at her local schools and was a past Board Member and Treasurer of the Foundation for Seminole County Public Schools. She is also a volunteer mentor for UCF Business School’s mentoring program.
Ms. Joan Crain
Joan collaborates with families and their advisors to plan and execute the successful transition of family wealth to children and future generations.
As a key member of the family’s estate planning team, she provides an independent perspective and excels in coordinating the tough tax and legal issues with the equally challenging human side of family wealth.
Joan is a member of the Hall of Fame of the National Association of Estate Planning Professionals. She has 30 years of experience in senior leadership roles in trust administration, tax strategies, international wealth planning and family governance at major global financial institutions, including Bank of New York Mellon and Northern Trust. Distinguished awards include 2022 Hall of Fame, National Association of Estate Planning Councils; 2022 Trust Banker of the Year and member of Hall of Fame, Florida Bankers Association: and 2017 Industry Thought Leader, Global Finance.
Crain received her Master of Business Administration at Crummer Graduate School/Rollins College, Bachelor of Education, Queens University, and Bachelor of Music, McGill University.
Mr. Bill Cramer
Bill Cramer is president and owner of Bill Cramer Chevrolet Cadillac Buick GMC, Inc. located in Panama City, Florida and Outlet Rental Car Sales of Dothan, Inc. located in Dothan and Enterprise, Alabama.
Mr. Cramer has been extensively involved in education since 1987 when he was first appointed to the Board of Trustees of Gulf Coast Community College (now known as Gulf Coast State College) where he served for 18 years, including 15 years as its chairman. During that time, he chaired all three major scholarship campaigns which brought the assets of the college's Foundation from $1.6 million to over $25 million. Cramer is a recipient of the Association of Community College Trustees M. Dale Ensign National Trustee Leadership Award, and has twice been awarded the Florida Association of Community Colleges Trustee of the Year Award. Additionally, he served on the Education Commissioner's Blue Ribbon Committee on Education Governance for the State of Florida and as a Public Commissioner on the Committee on Criteria and Reports for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. He also chaired the Florida Association of Community Colleges Trustees Commission. He presently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Gulf Coast State College Foundation. In 2022 Governor DeSantis appointed him to Gulf Coast Sate College Board of Trustees.
Mr. Cramer earned a JD from Harvard Law School and a bachelor of arts in mathematics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Ms. Tami Cullens
Tamela Cullens, a member of South Florida State College's (SFSC) eight member District Board of Trustees.
Cullens was appointed to the SFSC District Board of Trustees and began serving on June 1, 2006. She twice served as board chair, in 2008-09 and 2012-13. As an SFSC trustee, Cullens follows in the footsteps of her uncle, Ronnie Sachsenmaier, and her brother-in-law, Jim Brooks, who both served on the SFSC District Board of Trustees in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
She is also a member of the Association of Community College Trustees (ACCT) and served on the Finance and Audit Committee for one year. Currently, she is a member of the ACCT Southern Regional Awards Committee during its 2013 selection process.
Ms. Claudia Davant
Claudia Davant is a founding partner at Adams St. Advocates a governmental and business development consulting firm.
Claudia has extensive, in-depth experience in both government and private sectors. Most recently, Claudia was on the national business development team for Accenture, a global information technology firm, where she led sales campaigns for large, complex integrated systems opportunities.
In 2000, Claudia moved to Florida, where she served as AT&T’s state president for regulatory and legislative affairs, working hand in hand with key decision makers in both the Florida legislative and executive branches for five years. Claudia was subsequently promoted to regional vice president for legislative affairs for AT&T, where she successfully led legislative and regulatory reform campaigns in the Southern Region before the merger with BellSouth.
In addition to her corporate experience, Claudia worked in government on both the state and federal levels. Claudia served as U.S. Senator Strom Thurmond’s legislative aide in Washington, D.C., for three years, providing legislative analysis, constituent service and external communications services. Claudia also served as a policy advisor to the Michigan House of Representatives, where she led the staff effort to rewrite the Michigan Telecommunications Act. And, as general counsel and communications director for the South Carolina Department of Commerce, Claudia negotiated economic development incentives with corporations wanting to do business with the state.
She currently serves on the Florida TaxWatch Board’s Executive Steering Committee, the Take Stock In Children Board, the Florida After School Network Board and the Tallahassee Downtown Improvement Authority. Claudia is also a founding member of the Florida Technology Council (FTC), a newly-formed association that is focused on the needs of the technology sector. She previously served on the Associated Industries IT Council.
A South Carolina native, Claudia holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature and a law degree from the University of South Carolina.
Ms. Barbara Fonte
Barbara Fonte, MHSA, MBA, Carol B. Emmott Fellow is the vice president of managed care and population health, for Jackson Health System, one of the largest academic and public health systems in the United States.
Ms. Fonte manages the almost $2 billion dollar payer contracting strategy that helps subsidize Jackson’s charitable mission to care for the unfunded and most vulnerable populations of Miami Dade County.
Ms. Fonte’s experience includes an extensive career in South Florida based healthcare administration, serving as chief administrative officer for the University of Miami Health System, and leadership positions in global medicine, physician relations, patient access and multispecialty physician group practice at Miami Children’s Hospital.
Ms. Fonte’s expertise includes value-based care strategy, organization, and business design with leadership experience within hospital systems, payers, ancillary service companies and large multispecialty physician groups on issues of strategy, population health management, health equity, clinical transformation and strategic repositioning.
She is a Leadership Florida Cornerstone 38 Fellow, has served on the Vizient Consortium for Vulnerable Patient Populations National Steering Committee and on the boards of The Health Foundation of South Florida and The Education Fund.
Ms. Fonte holds a bachelor of arts in health services administration from Florida International University a master’s degree in health services administration from Barry University and a health executive master’s degree in business administration from the University of Miami Herbert Business School.
Dr. John Gyllin
John Gyllin, an executive with over 23 years of experience in higher education administration, is the Vice President of Resource and Economic Development and Executive Director of the Foundation for Seminole State College.
Gyllin, who previously served in similar capacities in Georgia, Oklahoma and Arkansas, has been back in his home state of Florida working with the Foundation for Seminole State, a non-profit corporation that oversees the development and stewardship of external resources on behalf of the College, since 2011.
Gyllin holds a bachelor's degree in management and a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. He also has a Doctorate in Higher Education Administration (Ed.D.) from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville.
Gyllin is active in the community as a graduate of Leadership Florida, Leadership Orlando and Leadership Seminole. He is a member of the Rotary Club of Lake Mary, Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP), serves on the boards of Leadership Seminole, Florida Citrus Sports, Seminole County Regional Chamber, Career Source - Central Florida, and was a trustee and former commissioner with the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). His goal is to connect people with their passions and improve lives through philanthropy.
Ms. Marva Johnson
Marva Johnson is the Group Vice President, State Government Affairs for Charter Communications’ Southern Region. In this role, Johnson evaluates state legislative, municipal, and regulatory policy implications associated with the company’s technological infrastructure, service delivery, and long-term strategy. She also works to establish and drive legislative and regulatory strategies for the company’s video, voice, and broadband services. Johnson is actively engaged on numerous board and leadership roles. She holds the distinction of having served as a member of Florida’s 2018 Constitution Revision Commission and past chair of the State Board of Education. She is a member of Enterprise Florida, Florida TaxWatch, Global Board of Women in Cable Telecommunications, and the National Board for the Pace Center for Girls. Throughout her career, Johnson has been passionate about creating educational opportunities that enable success for every child. Ms. Johnson received her bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University, her master’s degree from Emory University and her law degree from Georgia State University.
Deirdre MacCarthy
Deirdre MacCarthy is the Florida Blue's Vice President and Senior Litigation Counsel. In this role, she leads the litigation management team and is responsible for managing the risk of litigation to the Enterprise. MacCarthy also serves as counsel for The Florida Blue Foundation. Prior to joining Florida Blue in 2004, MacCarthy served as senior counsel with CSX Corporation. She was also in private practice for several years as a trial lawyer, focusing her practice on medical malpractice defense. Before entering private practice, she clerked for the US District Court in the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Throughout her career, MacCarthy has been active in her community and most recently served as a
member of the board of directors of Jacksonville Area Legal Aid.
MacCarthy holds a Bachelor of Arts in English and Juris Doctorate from the University of Kentucky.
She is a member of the Kentucky Bar and is certified as authorized house
counsel by the Florida Bar.
Ms. Candace Marshall
Candace Marshall serves as a senior philanthropic specialist and vice president within the Wealth & Investment Management division at Wells Fargo. Philanthropic Services helps charitable individuals, families, and nonprofit organizations work toward their unique goals by providing specialized advisory services.
Her expertise defines and achieves charitable objectives as part of overall wealth plans. Including gift and tax planning, multi-generational planning, estate planning, donor advised funds, private foundations, charitable trusts, and other charitable planning strategies. She works extensively with nonprofit organizations, where she advises in the areas of gift planning, endowment management, and board governance.
Mrs. Marshall attended Hillsborough State College in Plant City, Florida, and Valencia State College in Orlando, Florida. She is a graduate of Florida Bankers’ Association’s Florida Trust School, Cannon Financial Institute’s Trust School and earned the American Bankers’ Association’s General Banking Diploma. Mrs. Marshall also earned her Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy from the American College. She has earned a Claritas Investment Certificate from the CFA Institute, a Certificate in Nonprofit Board Consulting from Board Source and earned the Certified Trust and Fiduciary Advisor certification from the American Bankers Association.
Mr. John Mitten
John Mitten, of Brooksville, Florida, is a local small business owner, serving at the only Chick-fil-A in Hernando County. He received his bachelor’s degree in finance from Florida State University.
John has held appointed positions by Governors Scott and DeSantis as Hernando County Commissioner, Pasco-Hernando State College Trustee, and Southwest Florida Water Management District Governing Board.
While his restaurant has received Chick-fil-A’s highest award for performance multiple times, John is passionate about developing leaders to launch from Chick-fil-A as professionals into careers. In addition to serving actively in his church, John is often asked to serve on numerous boards and committees. A commissioned Kentucky Colonel, John currently volunteers with the following organizations: Southwest Florida Water Management District, Gubernatorial Appointment; Pasco Hernando State College, Gubernatorial Appointment; Greater Hernando Chamber of Commerce; Hope Children's Home, Tampa; MissionSERVE Alliance, Tampa; Jericho Road Ministries; The Restoration Center of Florida.
Ms. Karen B. Moore
Karen Moore was re-appointed to the Tallahassee Community College Board of Trustees in July 2019 by Governor Ron DeSantis for a four-year term. Moore was originally appointed to the board in 2007 by Governor Charlie Crist and reappointed in 2012 by Governor Rick Scott. She is the founder and chief executive officer of Moore, Inc., a national integrated communications firm. Moore served as board chair in 2009-10. She previously served as president of the TCC Foundation Board and chaired both of the College's capital campaigns, which secured over $23 million to support student scholarships and facilities upgrades. Moore is currently vice chair of the Florida College System Foundation, which provides scholarships for students attending Florida's 28 community and state colleges. Last year, she served as chair of the Association of Florida Colleges Trustees Commission and was recognized as Trustee of the Year by the Commission. TCC’s Richard W. & Karen B. Moore Veterans Success Center was named in honor of Moore and her husband, who are also founders of the Moore Veterans Leadership Academy, which helps veterans succeed in college and in the workforce. Moore represents Leon County.
Mr. Tim Morris
Tim Morris is the Vice President of Ernie Morris Enterprises, Inc. He is a member of the National Office Products Association, and Rotary International. He serves as Treasurer of the Florida College System Foundation and is a member of the Lake-Sumter State College Board of Trustees. Morris earned his associate degree from Lake-Sumter State College.
Ms. Mayela Rojas Sánchez
Mayela is an award-winning CCO, media and broadcasting maestro, and visionary brand development expert with passion for inspiring diversity and positively impacting communities.
Mayela Rojas Sanchez is Co-Founder/Executive Vice President of Media Vista Group, LLC. Mayela is the creator of D’Latinos a multi-platform content-driven brand with local news, print and digital content for 20 years.
Mayela has been in the Media and Broadcasting business for 28 years, she started her career in Venezuela developing advertising and marketing campaigns for national and international clients. Her education in journalism and mass communications started in her native country and then continued in Washington D.C. at the National Association of Broadcasters (NABEF) and Cornell University. She is an expert developing C-Level corporate communications with a record of accomplishments designing world-class content creation, digital marketing, and inclusivity initiatives for groundbreaking, industry-leading businesses, transforming company branding and optimizing organizational excellence.
As a true global citizen, Mayela has embraced diversity for many years being the founder of Face Diversity Summit and Awards in Southwest Florida, a recognized event that promotes social justice, equity and inclusion and also honors unsung heroes who are trailblazers in the community. She has also advocated for women’s business leadership in the broadcasting industry, stressing the importance of access to capital to own more media businesses by minorities.
Mr. Randall Vitale
Randall Vitale is the President of BBX Capital Partners, a division of BBX Capital, supporting the companies within the BBX Capital portfolio in acquisitions, business development, capital raising, strategic partnerships, and other strategic initiatives. He previously served as President of Hoffman’s Chocolates, a BBX Capital company, after spending 17 years in the banking industry, focusing on private banking and wealth management in South Florida. He is on the board of directors and executive committee of the Broward Workshop and a Board of Trustees member for Florida TaxWatch. He is also on the Board of Governors for the Florida State University (FSU) College of Business and chair of the Broward County Transportation Surtax Appointing Authority. He attended FSU where he received his Bachelor of Arts in business management and multinational business operations.
Ms. Wendy Walker
Wendy Walker served as president of Leadership Florida, a position she has held for 25 of the organization's 32 years. Under her leadership, the program produced an annual class program to providing programs for the state's top college students, young professionals, locally elected officials from cities, counties and school boards, new executives in Florida, graduates of community leadership programs, and members of the Florida Legislature. Leadership Florida is also well known for producing televised debates between candidates running for Governor, the U.S. Senate, and President of the United States, and for its anti-discrimination campaign, the Faces of Florida.
Walker has served as president of the Economic Club of Florida, and is on the boards of Florida House, the Village Square and Florida State University's 7 Days of Opening Nights.