I am pleased to announce that there are two exciting changes taking place within the FEDC.
First, we have relocated the FEDC office to the USF Research Center in Tampa, FL. By making a strategic decision to locate to a more central location in the state, we can better serve our membership and maintain our strong ties in Tallahassee to ensure a strong and vibrant Florida. We want to thank Dr. Judy Genshaft, President of the University of South Florida and Rod Casto, Ph.D., Executive Director, USF Research Foundation for their generous donation of space for FEDC.We would also like to recognize Enterprise Florida for their generosity while FEDC was located in Tallahassee, FL.
The second change is a reorganization and new governance structure of the Executive Committee of FEDC. Moving forward into the future, we as a board recognize that there are key initiatives we must work together on to drive Florida’s economic success. The new leadership framework encourages shared responsibility and involvement of all members.
I want to take this opportunity to thank all of our new and existing board members who have stepped forward in making this a year of change for FEDC. I have appointed 4 outstanding individuals who will help guide me: Executive Appointment, Andra Cornelius of Workforce Florida who will handle our Governance; Board Appointments, Holly Wiedman of the Beacon Council who will handle our outreach into different state and national organizations and bring best practices back to FEDC; Ron Bunch of Martin County Economic Development Council who will assist in framing our needs in education; and Todd Kourcek, of Florida Export Finance Council that will assist in keeping our wheels turning on finances for FEDC. All of these appointments will interact with each of the Vice Chairs and be an integral part of FEDC’s new framework.
For more information on Vice Chairs and their committees please see the Executive Committee article to the right or visit the FEDC website. We welcome you all to join us as we continue to improve our already strong organization.
Please share this Newsletter and encourage members of your community to join the FEDC. I thank you all for the honor of working with you as we build Florida’s future and grow the Florida Economic Development Council.
With kindest regards,
Deborah Wilkinson
Chairman
Florida Economic Development Council
