2024 Black Professionals Expo

THE CONNECTOR

Day One - 10:00am - 1:00pm Job Fair - Career Expo - Non Profit Showcase

THE MIXER

Day Two - 5:30pm - 7:30pm Networking - Connecting - Mixing & Mingling

THE CONFERENCE

Day Three - 8:30am-2:00pm Professional Development - Workshops Break Out Sessions - Entrepreneurship Track

3 DAY EVENT

February 22- 24, 2024 Santa Fe College 3000 NW 83rd Street Gainesville, FL

Where Great Careers Begin As a growing leader in the energy industry, we’re proud of the diverse and talented team we’ve brought together here at Gas South. And we’re pleased each day in our purpose to Be A Fuel For Good® to treat them as our most valuable assets.

Joining our top-rated workplace means: • • •

Great pay and bonuses Competitive benefits Career growth opportunities

• •

Flexible scheduling options A fun, casual atmosphere

It also means tools for growth.

You deserve support and resources to help grow personally and professionally as a member of our team. To help with that, you have access to several employee resource groups: Black Employee Support Team (BEST)

Women’s Networking Circle (WNC)

Young Professionals Group (YPG)

TrailBlaze Mentorship Program

Justice Equity Diversity Inclusion (JEDI)

And you’ll help make a difference too.

As a company that strives to Be A Fuel For Good, we’re committed to giving 5% of profits back to help support children in need. In the communities we serve, we’ve donated more than $16 million to charity and logged thousands of paid employee volunteer hours since we began in 2006. That’s a difference you get to be part of when you join Gas South.

For a career with a purpose, choose Gas South: GasSouth.com/Careers

2024 BLACK PROFESSIONALS EXPO

EVENTS

THE CONNECTOR

THE MIXER

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2024, 10:00AM-1:00PM

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2024, 5:30PM- 7:30PM

The Community Connector hosts a range of companies, startups and nonprofits looking for professionals to fill current and future career opportunities and board openings. The connector is perfect for any company or nonprofit looking to recruit from a diverse population of professionals. This event will create a space for professionals and companies to meet, network and discuss future connections. This portion of the Expo is open to the general public.

A unique, energetic and non-traditional networking event to bring event professionals, speakers, exhibitors and sponsors together. This event will serve as the reception and ice breaking event for the Expo. Attendees will be able to begin their networking journey here and lay the foundation for building some positive connections. This portion of the Expo is open to the general public and registration is required.

Santa Fe College - Room R-01

Santa Fe College - Sasser Fine Arts Hall

THE CONFERENCE

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2024, 8:30AM- 2:00PM

Santa Fe College - Lyceum Fine Arts Hall - Bldg. E

This day of The Expo is designed to encourage, support, inspire and equip professionals to reach their full potential in their chosen industries. The conference will include presentations and breakout sessions on various topics. Attendees will leave this conference with the inspiration, motivation and tools to take their careers to the next level. This portion of the expo is reserved specifically for registered attendees.

2024 BLACK PROFESSIONALS EXPO

ITINERARY 8:00

CHECK-IN Breakfast presented by Publix Exhibitor Showcase Networking

9:00

LYCEUM ̶

All Attendees

WELCOME/RECOGNITION OF SPONSORS 9:15

YOUR ROLE IN LEADERSHIP WHEN YOU CAN’T CONTROL YOUR RESULTS ̶

9:45

BREAK/TRANSITION

10:00

LYCEUM: PROFESSIONALISM: HOW TO BRAND & MARKET YOURSELF ̶ ROOM E134: SURVIVING YOUR FIRST 100 DAYS ̶

Brandon West

Angela Howard

Jamie Kraft

ROOM E104: HOW TO START A CAREER IN THE GAS INDUSTRY? ̶

Courtney Spencer

10:40

Break/Transition

10:55

LYCEUM: INTERGENERATIONAL LEADERSHIP: LET’S WORK TOGETHER ̶

Caleb Chambliss

ROOM E134: CREATIVITY AND IMAGINATION IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP ̶ Dr. Chris Pryor/Dr. Tony Middlebrooks ROOM E104: HOW TO START A CAREER IN THE FINANCE INDUSTRY? ̶ 11:30

Break/Transition

11:45

LYCEUM: EFFECTIVELY INTEGRATING DEI PRACTICES ̶ ROOM E134: ENTREPRENEURIAL LEADERSHIP ̶

Jason Hurst

Jamie Kraft

ROOM E104: HOW TO START A CAREER WITH THE FBI? ̶ 12:00

Stephen Walker, II

Jordan Campbell

LUNCH PRESENTED BY WARRINGTON SCHOOL OF BUSINESS Exhibitor Showcase Networking

1:00

LYCEUM ̶ All Attendees: MOVING FORWARD: WHAT’S THE NEXT STEP? ̶ Dr. Dakeyan Graham *Schedule is subject to change.

2024 BLACK PROFESSIONALS EXPO

SPEAKERS CALEB CHAMBLISS

PROGRAM COORDINATOR HEAVENER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Caleb is a dedicated advocate for youth, athletes, and marginalized communities. His focus is leadership development through an experiential learning approach.

He currently works for the Heavener School of Business as the Program Coordinator in the Experiential Learning Department at the University of Florida. As he pursues his doctorate in Educational Leadership, he is moving closer to his goal to implementing a program that becomes the leading global influencer for high school student athletes. The mission is to development, empower and revolutionize the student athlete identity and experience.

Caleb wants all his students and the individuals he gets to connect with to remember one thing; that there is more to you than you recognize. You just haven’t seen it yet and I will help you see it.

ANGELA HOWARD

PRESIDENT/CEO NORTH CENTRAL FLORIDA YMCA, GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA Angela Howard serves as the President & CEO for the North Central Florida YMCA (Gainesville, Florida). She took her seat on January 17, 2019, transitioning her from the state of Ohio to Florida.

In this role, she provides strategic direction, facilitates growth, develop innovative programming, and foster key relationships that will help the Y grow to become the leading nonprofit within the eight communities under their service umbrella.

Angela is highly skilled in developing and training diverse teams and building strong community collaborations and partnerships. She serves as a co-facilitator the national Y, while serving on many committees locally, statewide, and nationally working to address issues around equity and inclusion.

Angela holds a Master of Business Administration degree (Nova Southeastern University), a Bachelor of Science in Organizational Management (Wiley College) and has served within the YMCA movement for over 19 years.

Angela has been married to Kenneth Howard for 31 years.

They have three adult children and one granddaughter.

DR. DAKEYAN GRAHAM

CEO RE-IMAGINING EQUITY AND LEARNING (R.E.A.L.) Dr. Dakeyan Chá Dré Graham, CEO of Re-Imagining Equity and Learning (R.E.A.L.), advocates for student and educator empowerment and opportunity as the Director of Educational Equity and Outreach for Alachua County Public Schools. He actively travels the nation delivering keynote speeches, professional development seminars, and workshops in the educational, instructional, and DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) spaces. He is also widely sought out as a music clinician, having worked with band and orchestra students and ensembles across the south eastern United States. The 2019 Hillsborough County Teacher of the Year, Dr. Graham was selected in July 2019 as the 2020 Florida Teacher of the Year, representing 74 school districts and more than 195,000 teachers. During the 2019-2020 school year, Dr. Graham was on sabbatical from teaching and served as the Christa McAuliffe Ambassador for Education. In this role, he toured the state delivering motivational speeches and workshops focused on empowering teachers to create the most impactful learning experience possible for their students.

In 2022, after serving for two years as the Executive Director in the Office of Independent Education and Parental Choice for the Florida Department of Education, Dr. Graham transitioned to support turnaround schools throughout the state as the Executive Director of School Improvement. As an avid equity champion, he also served as the Vice Chair of the Florida Council on the Social Status of Black Men and Boys, as a member of the education committee and chair of the mentorship committee. He was also appointed by the governor of Florida as a Commissioner for the Florida Commission on Community Service in 2021, where he presently serves as chair of the Volunteer Services Committee and a member of the National Programs Committee. Dr. Graham also serves on a number of boards that directly impact the provision of opportunity for our world’s future leaders, including: University of Florida Alumni Association Board of Directors (Machen Florida Opportunity Scholarship and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committees member and a Regional Director), Instruments of Change Board of Directors (President), Florida Association of Teacher Educators Board of Directors, and Gentlemen’s Quest Tampa Board of Directors.

A product of Hillsborough County Public Schools, Dr. Graham served as the Director of Instrumental Studies at his alma mater, C. Leon King High School in Tampa, FL, where his teaching responsibilities included leading the KHS Marching Lions, conducting the Wind Ensemble, Symphonic and Concert Bands, Jazz Bands, Symphony Orchestra, Chamber, Symphonic, and Concert Orchestras, Percussion, and supervising the Lionettes Dance Team. He holds Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in Music Education (University of Florida), a Master’s in Educational Leadership (Concordia University), a Doctorate of Philosophy in Music Education (University of South Florida), and a Doctorate of Education in Learning Design and Performance Technology (Florida State University). He is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Musical Arts degree in Instrumental Conducting at the University of Florida. During his 11 years in HCPS, his students consistently demonstrated determination, focus and tenacity as they earned a performance position in the prestigious Carnegie Hall.

Serving as a past president of the Hillsborough Secondary Music Council and founder of the Eastern Coalition of Music Directors, Dr. Graham travels around the state as an adjudicator for both the Florida Bandmasters and Orchestra Associations. In 2012, Dr. Graham was a finalist for Hillsborough County Teacher of the Year and a semi-finalist and quarterfinalist for Grammy Music Educator of the Year in 2013 and 2020, respectively. He was acknowledged as a 2020 LifeChanger of the Year award recipient by National Life Group. Dr. Graham has been honored as a 2020 USF Outstanding Young Alumni Award Recipient and one of 40 Gators Under 40 in 2021 for his work in the field of education.

Dr. Graham is blessed to share life with his wife, Casey (also a former educator), and daughter, Aaliyah.

His passion is to fight for ALL students to have an equitable educational experience while continuing to positively impact the next generation of world changers.

JAMIE KRAFT

DIRECTOR FOR THE ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND INNOVATION CENTER UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Jamie Kraft is the Director for the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Center at the University of Florida. Jamie came to the Center from Deloitte Consulting where he spent several years as a management consultant focusing on economic performance evaluation, competitive assessment, and strategic development for clients in the manufacturing and consumer products industries. He graduated from the University of Arizona with a degree in Microbiology and from the University of Florida as a Matherly Scholar with a MBA specializing in Finance, Operations Management, and Business Strategy. Before starting with the Center, Jamie spent one year in Paris studying the French language. He has been with the Center for the past 20 years and is currently the Center’s Director. He has served as the instructor for courses covering the topics of the entrepreneurial mindset, business planning, technology commercialization, small business consulting, customer discovery, entrepreneurial leadership, and creativity, and has managed, led and participated in student programs in Silicon Valley, Hungary, Ireland, Chile, Cuba, South Africa and Haiti.

TONY MIDDLEBROOKS, PH.D.

CLINICAL FULL PROFESSOR OF LEADERSHIP WARRING COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Tony Middlebrooks, Ph.D., creates programs and tools, designs learning experiences, and explores the intersection of leadership, innovation, creativity, and design. He is Clinical Full Professor of Leadership in the Warrington College of Business at the University of Florida. He has taught aspiring leaders from youth through executives, creating a wide range of courses and programs in the process. Dr. Middlebrooks is lead author of the textbook Discovering Leadership: Designing Your Success, now in its second edition; has published numerous articles and book chapters, and delivered hundreds of presentations. He is also co-author of Public Sector Leadership, co-creator of the Idea Fan Deck and Design Thinking Cards, and serves on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Leadership Studies. Dr. Middlebrooks has a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

CHRISTOPHER PRYOR

ASSISTANT CLINICAL PROFESSOR OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA Christopher Pryor is an assistant clinical professor of entrepreneurship at the University of Florida. He received his Ph.D. from Oklahoma State University. He researches the links between top executives and firms’ entrepreneurial outcomes as well as issues related to formality and child labor in developing economies. His work has been published in Strategic Entrepreneurship Journal, Journal of Management, and Journal of Management Studies.

BRANDON WEST

FOUNDER PHOS CREATIVE

Brandon founded PHOS Creative at the age of 26 out of his home office. A strategy-first digital marketing agency headquartered in Florida, PHOS’ growth and culture have been highlighted in the Greater Gainesville Chamber of Commerce, Inc. 5000, Gator100, and Florida Trend Magazine.

PHOS is passionate about working to restore dignity, purpose, and freedom to the lives of women and children who have been impacted by extreme poverty and sex trafficking. They sponsor twenty-seven children across the world and recently funded the launch of North Central Florida’s first trafficking safe house. By 2030, PHOS desires to launch 30 care centers around the world that serve the most vulnerable.

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OUR PLATFORMS Movers & Shakers Mixer This unique, energetic and non-traditional networking event brings professionals, executives and business owners together in a space that naturally supports positive connections. These events and the connections that are made have led to life changing experiences, connections and partnerships.

Black Professionals Expo Encouraging and inspiring professionals to reach for leadership positions in their chosen industries. Professionals, business owners, executives and community leaders are welcome to participate in this multi-day event of networking, connecting, career development and personal and professional growth.

SYNERGY SYNERGY is the only magazine in North Central Florida dedicated to showcasing the achievements, successes and contributions of Black Professionals. This recognition fosters collaboration, supports diversity and empowers our next generation of professionals.

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BRINGING PROFESSIONALS TOGETHER - MAKING MAGIC HAPPEN

Advancing the Careers of Black Professionals

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