Leading Men of Gainesville

Stigmas about poverty and crime don’t define African-American men in America. Among the many storylines that highlight inner-city tragedies and tense relations between authority figures and African Americans, there are bright spots all around the country that show how much progress black men are making. According to a CNN report titled “Black Men Making it In America,” more than 57% of black men have made it into the middle class or higher as adults today. It is up from 38% in 1960, according to Census data. Additionally, the share of black men who are poor has fallen from 41% in 1960 to 18% in 2016. New opportunities for growth in a plethora of industries is why there has been a rise in blackowned businesses. Black men are realizing that the opportunities to be successful in society extend to them as well as people of all races and racial backgrounds. Plenty of successful black professionals reside in North Central Florida.

And that shows in the following four black professionals located in the Gainesville area who have been examples of everything that black men are doing to disprove the negative stigmas that have surrounded them for years. Craig Wilburn, a real estate broker for Keller Williams Realty, is one of many prominent black professionals who are paying it forward in Gainesville.

His team of realtors, Team Dynamo, specializes in real estate services and being a resource to prospective homeowners. “Our mission is to provide an experience in the home-buying process that is so memorable in a good way that people would use us for life,” Craig said. Sean McIntosh, the Senior Vice President of Asset Management for Celebration Pointe, has established himself by continuously working hard, planning and making necessary adjustments to thrive when unexpected problems arise along the way. Kevin Monroe is a well-traveled businessman who wasn’t afraid of taking chances and moving to different cities to chase his dreams and seek new opportunities. He is now the Market Vice President of Central Florida Operations at Cox Communications where he has

succeeded by creating a balance in his life and embracing adversity. “In every aspect and every career that I have had there are always difficulties and challenges,” he said. The fourth professional is Duncan Kabinu, who is the founder of the Gainesville Dev Academy (GDEV). He has shown that black men not only have the expertise to manage and hold positions in other businesses, but they can create their own. Duncan created a professional training school that equips people with the skills they need to become web and mobile software developers. These four men are examples of how the dynamic black men’s roles are changing, and it is important to continue to illuminate these types of success stories and accomplishments as minorities in America continue to climb the ladder to important positions in society.

assuming other communications positions in Orlando, Florida. Then, in 2013, Kevin landed at Cox Communications, where he now leads a team of up to 190 employees in the Central Florida market, which spans across Gainesville and Ocala.

Kevin Monroe

Story by: Alanis Thames

Kevin Monroe’s road to becoming a successful businessman has taken him all over the country. The Market Vice President of Central Florida Operations at Cox Communications grew up in Rantoul, Illinois, where he stayed until after high school, and he attended Devry Institute of Technology in Chicago, Illinois, soon after. There, he studied computer science and computer programming. He went on to secure a position as a reservation agent with Southwest Airlines in Houston, Texas, and he received a promotion to a supervising position at the Houston Reservation Center for Southwest. “From there, I was just building on my career,” Kevin said.

he move back to Chicago as the assistant manager for the Chicago Reservation Center with Southwest, then back to Texas (San Antonio) to serve as an assistant manager of a larger reservation center. Then back to Chicago. Although many people would hesitate to move back and forth to so many different cities, Kevin embraced the challenge and took advantage of the opportunities presented to him. “Each time, I moved for promotional purposes,” Kevin said. “Larger jobs, larger responsibilities.”

Much larger responsibilities arrived when Kevin joined a telecommunications company called Ameritech in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He served as the regional manager for small business services for the state of Wisconsin before

Kevin’s career as an entrepreneur spans nearly 22 years, and one of the most important strategies of success that he carries with him each day is something that the founder of Southwest Airlines, Herb Kelleher, told him: “Take your job seriously. But don’t take yourself so seriously.” Kevin has learned that incorporating fun into what he does is essential, and he has also learned that success comes from how you treat people, especially those who work for you. “Treat your employees with respect,” he said. “Treat them with dignity, and treat them as if you work for them. If you keep that in mind, you will be successful.”

Respecting his employees has propelled Kevin to success as a member of the Cox team. But the successful entrepreneur has faced difficulties throughout his career, and these situations have taught him the importance of patience. “The main thing that I’ve tried to espouse is that you need to be grounded,” he said. “You need to make sure that you assess the situation. Don’t get too excited. Look at things for what they are, and try to see your way through.” Kevin credits the Gainesville community for helping him along the way. “Gainesville is a tremendous place to live, work, and play,” Kevin said. “I think that great opportunities exist for those who seek them.”

Sean McIntosh

Story by: Voleer Thomas

Sean McIntosh, Senior Vice President of Asset Management for Celebration Pointe, Gainesville’s burgeoning mixed-use development west of I-75 on Archer Road, encourages people to find what they love to do and get paid for it. “Really think about what your passions are because too often, people stress about finding a job, earning a paycheck, and putting away money to retire,” Sean said. “These are not bad ambitions, but I think people do not focus on what they love doing and figure out how to make money doing it. I think the earlier you identify what you love, the better equipped you will be to not only be successful, but to also be happy at what you do.”

Sean, originally from Chicago, graduated from Northern Illinois University with a Bachelor of Science in Accounting. He started his career as a real estate accountant with Chicago based General Growth Properties before moving to Atlanta in 2001 for a position as a development director with the same company. Sean eventually moved into property management, where he worked for large real estate companies and received the opportunity to do asset management

for a small developer as a consultant. Sean moved to Gainesville after receiving a call from the developers of Celebration Pointe and striking a deal to become the Senior Vice President of Asset Management. The owner of Celebration Pointe inspired Sean with his vision, and Sean wanted to be a part of it. “His vision for this project is amazing, and what he’s done to pull this project off is even more amazing,” Sean said. “And I thought this was an opportunity to bring something valuable to a community and be a big part of that happening.”

In his position, Sean maximizes the value of the assets for the owners, which means he is a member of the leadership team that ensures that space at Celebration Point is leased and remain leased. He also makes sure that tenants are doing well. Sean uses the following three strategies to

get the job done.

Strategy #1: Work Hard. “Put in the work,” Sean said. “If work needs to be done, and you are there and able to do it, get it done.”

Strategy #2: Plan. “Don’t allow things to sneak up on you,” he said. “Always be prepared.”

Strategy #3: Adapt. “No matter how much you plan, wrenches are going to pop up, and somewhere along the way, you have to adapt and solve problems as they arise.”

Sean loves that he gets to interact with so many people in his job. “I deal with people from all levels of corporate structure, all facets of life,” he said. “I can be serious, but I like to have fun, and I’m a social person, so the interaction with people is what I like the most about my job.”

Duncan Kabinu met a guy years ago who shared that he was going to open a bookstore. “I remember thinking, ‘He is crazy,’” Duncan said. “Everything is going tech; why would he open a bookstore?” The man explained that he had taken from the community for almost 20 years; he had always consumed, and he wanted to give back and create an environment for people to relax, congregate, and listen to readings. “He changed the way I think,” Duncan said. “Plenty of people have helped me, so I thought, ‘Now, how can I help others in my community?’”

In 2015, Duncan, who graduated from the University of Florida with a computer engineering degree and has worked in both sales and information technology, founded Gainesville Dev Academy (GDEV), a professional training school that teaches people to become web and mobile software developers in 12 weeks. Duncan helps folks, many looking to transition in their careers, to acquire valuable skills, which, in turn, allows recruiters to find and retain top talent. And he delivers a program that fits the needs of his students. “Most boot camps are for people with discretionary money and time,” Duncan said. “That model does not fit people who need the most help.” Duncan’s classes take place five days per week from 6:00 to 9:00 p.m. to accommodate those who work and go to school. And his cost is almost half of the national average for similar programs. Duncan, who gives 150% to all of his efforts, aims for a 100% graduation rate. “We are not here goofing off,” he said. “We are serious

Duncan Kabinu

about changing lives. We don’t guarantee anything, though. We provide the tools, but the magic has to come from you.” Duncan employs skilled instructors to provide the tools. “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that keeping up with all the latest in tech can be a challenge,” he said. “A younger programmer will be more up on the latest, so I do the next best thing: manage the instructors and offer best practices, leadership, and consulting.” Because technology changes about every six months, the curriculum shifts to match what is happening in the industry, which is why GDEV can be a better option than attending college for software development skills. “Traditional education institutions cannot be as nimble in their offering,” Duncan said. One of Duncan’s graduates told him, “Two college degrees have failed me.” That student is now working in Thailand as a senior software

developer. Duncan recently received via Facebook a message from another graduate who shared, “This was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had.” He is now a software developer for Mindtree, a multinational information technology company. Duncan also prepares kids for careers in coding through a summer coding camp, and in 2019, he offered 25 $400 scholarships for those who needed financial assistance. Duncan, a New Yorker who grew up all over the world — Kenya, Singapore, Japan, Australia, and England, among other locations — came to Gainesville and found a home. When he first arrived at the University of Florida and realized he was the only black student in his engineering classes, he thought, “What am I doing here?” The father of two (Aubri is 23, and Gianna is 11) now knows what he is doing in Alachua County. He is impacting

Craig Wilburn

Story by: Alanis Thames

Craig Wilburn felt something inside him whispering to get into real estate. The Brooklyn, New York, native was working an average sales job when he started to feel an urge to do something different. “I didn’t know what it was,” Craig said. “But through a series of events, I realized that real estate was the door for me to open.”

After discussing a possible real estate venture with his wife, Rhoda, Craig decided to take the necessary steps to enter the field, and he knew the first place to start was finances. He and Rhoda figured they would need up to a year’s worth of income to be financially stable enough for Craig to leave his job and step into real estate. They estimated that saving the money would take about one

year. Two months later, Craig and Rhoda were having dinner with Rhoda’s family, and her grandfather gifted Craig with an envelope. In that envelope was a check for the exact amount of money Craig and Rhoda had guessed would take them a year to save. Craig called the gift a sign.

Craig and Rhoda went home that night, Craig enrolled in a real estate class, and three months later, he was working for his first real estate company, Bosshardt Realty. “I began to learn,” Craig said. “This business was going to require a lot of my time. I got into real estate with no knowledge of what to do, but I worked my behind off.” From that point on, he was all in.

Craig sold 55 homes in 2003 in his first year with Bosshardt. In 2014, he transitioned to Keller Williams

Realty and built his team, Team Dynamo, which specializes in real estate services in Gainesville. Craig and his team base their services on one strategy: being a resource. “Very early on, I realized that real estate was not about selling houses for people,” he said. “For me, it was about being a resource to help people make smart decisions.” For many people, buying or selling a home is the biggest financial transaction they will ever make. “As a professional, my highest priority has to be making sure that we equip people making decisions with every piece of information possible,” Craig said. Sometimes, he must even guide people to make decisions that are not best for him financially. “That’s OK,” he said. “I’ve always been OK with that, which is why I knew that I was not going to get into real estate for the paycheck.”

With so much success during the past 15 years in real estate, Craig has found consistency to be his biggest challenge. “Real estate has so many moving parts and so many people involved,” he said. “It’s a miracle that anyone can transition through the whole process successfully.” But the challenge does not bother him. “Our business motto focuses on relationships, and we strive to be a resource for people so that they trust us, and we make sure that we tell everyone that we do not care whether we benefit; we just want them to make the right decision.”

Kevin monroe

Sean McIntosh, Senior Vice President of Asset Management for Celebration Pointe, Gainesville’s burgeoning mixed-use development west of I-75 on Archer Road, encourages people to find what they love to do and get paid for it. “Really think about what your passions are because too often, people stress about finding a job, earning a paycheck, and putting away money to retire,” Sean said. “These are not bad ambitions, but I think people do not focus on what they love doing and figure out how to make money doing it. I think the earlier you identify what you love, the better equipped you will be to not only be successful, but to also be happy at what you do.”