Connect Florida Announces 2016-2017 Board of Governors

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Connect Florida today announced its 2016- 2017 Board of Governors. Connect Florida was created in 2007 as a signature program of Leadership Florida and has developed into the premier statewide institute for Florida professionals ages 25 - 40.

"It is an honor to serve as the Chair of the Connect Florida Board of Governors," said Chester Spellman, a graduate of Connect Florida Class IV. "With a record number of applications and an exceptionally successful Class VI, we are grateful for the hard work of Immediate Past Chair Roger Feicht and the outgoing Board. I look forward to working with the 2016-2017 Board of Governors and the Leadership Florida team to build on this success."

The mission of Connect Florida is to educate, engage and inspire the state's top emerging leaders. Connect Florida's flagship activity is a Statewide Leadership Institute, which is patterned after the Leadership Florida Annual Class Program. The Connect Florida program offers an intensive orientation to the issues facing Florida and is designed to enhance the participants' leadership skills, provide practical experience in community service, and facilitate opportunities to interact with statewide leaders.

Leadership Florida President Wendy Walker added, "There is no better preparation available for building our state's next generation of leaders than Connect Florida. This program recognizes and imbues in its participants the tremendous opportunity and value Florida's diversity brings our state. We are fortunate to have in Chester Spellman a gifted and proven leader who is dedicated to furthering the mission, values and purpose of Leadership Florida."

The 2016-2017 Connect Florida Board of Governors is as follows:

Officers

Andrew Fay, Class IV: Finance Chair
Roger Feicht, Class II: Immediate Past Chair
Keith Fletcher, Class V: Institute Chair
Merdochey LaFrance, Class VI: Statewide Outreach Chair
Alex Price, Class III: Chair-elect
Chester Spellman, Class IV: Chair

Board Members

Andrew Comiter, Class VI: Gulfstream Regional Chair
Terin Cremer, Class III: Governance Chair
Dustin Daniels, Class VI: Development Chair
Alex Dominguez, Class VI: Southeast Regional Chair
Tina Ekblad, Class V: Southwest Regional Chair
Estella Gray, Class VI: Class VI Representative
Tim Hogans, Class VI: Gold Coast Regional Chair
April Patterson, Class V: Northeast Regional Chair
Ned Pope, Class V: West Central Regional Chair
Samantha Sexton, Class V: Northwest Regional Chair
Keith Sonderling, Class IV: Selection Committee Chair
Vinnie Taranto, Class V: East Central Regional Chair
Hong Tran, Class VI: Institute Co-Chair
Erin VanSickle, Class VI: Communications Chair
Randal Vosburg, Class VI: Calusa Regional Chair
Marvin Wilmoth, Class VI: Recruitment Chair

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