USF St. Petersburg is an urban university that aims to integrate seamlessly into the fabric of the city and region, enhancing opportunities for students, businesses and the public. This community roundup series highlights the ways that USF faculty, staff, students and administration are active in the community. If you’d like to engage with USF St. Petersburg, or are a campus staff, faculty or student interested in engaging with the community, please contact Caryn Nesmith, Community Relations Director.
Camp helps students find their college PATHe
From June 24 - 28, the Pinellas Access to Higher Education (PATHe) team proudly hosted a transformative summer camp for rising 7th to 11th grade students. Held at USF St. Petersburg in partnership with the USF Office of Youth Experiences, the camp aimed to ignite excitement about higher education and empower students with essential college preparation skills.
The PATHe summer camp was not only educational but also a memorable experience filled with fun. Throughout the week, participants immersed themselves in a program designed to expose them to the college experience and equip them with valuable information. Activities included:
- Exploring College Essentials: From application strategies to scholarship opportunities, students gained firsthand knowledge of navigating the path to higher education.
- Personal Growth and Career Exploration: Through personality tests, goal-setting exercises, and career assessments, students discovered their strengths, interests, and potential career paths.
- Campus Immersion: A mock lecture, campus tour, and interactive sessions allowed students to envision themselves as college students at USF St. Petersburg.
- Life Skills Development: Essential life skills such as budgeting and college planning were integrated into the program, preparing students for success beyond academics.
- Culminating Projects: Students showcased their aspirations and plans through creative posters and vision boards, reflecting on their personal growth throughout the week.
Community leaders engage record number of summer admits
This summer, USF St. Petersburg had a record number of admits, with more than 700 first-year students beginning their coursework during the summer session rather than the fall. About 60 percent of these students started with in-person instruction, many moving onto campus. Other students began remotely and will join in person in the fall. For the students enrolling remotely, the Regional Vice Chancellor for Undergraduate Studies, Aurelio Valente, launched learning communities centered on discussions about the city of St. Petersburg. The course was designed to promote critical thinking in five major domains of knowledge and inquiry—Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM), Social Sciences, Health Professions, Business, and the Humanities and Arts. He then invited community and business leaders from St. Petersburg to speak to the students in each of these domains, sharing their stories and perspectives. Over a dozen local leaders participated, including:
- Ryan Adelberg: Business Development Manager at PrideStaff, University of Tampa
- Gabe Alves: Real Estate Specialist at RE/MAX
- Yomika Walker: STI Program Manager, Florida Department of Health
- Jon Decker: Senior Vice President & Wealth Management Branch Manager for Janney Montgomery
- Beverly Frank: Principal Owner of BFRANK Studio, LLC
- Anita Frankhauser: Nutrition Director at the Neighborly Care Network
- Polita Cohen Glynn: Filmmaker, Writer, and Director of Merfolk Media Alliance in St. Petersburg, FL
- David Thompson: Director of Government Affairs for the City of St. Petersburg
- Eric Vaughan: LGBTQ+ Liaison & Community Engagement Coordinator for the City of St. Petersburg
- Will Veneziano: Owner of Mad Beach Dive Shop
- Matt Walker: Sr. Vice President, Engineering for George F. Young
These leaders spoke about critical issues and opportunities in their sector through the lens of the major disciplinary domains, preparing our students to engage in collaborative, interdisciplinary problem-solving. Thanks to these local leaders for willingly continuing to support our students.
Campus hosts 400 middle and high school students as part of St. Pete Strong Youth Summit
On June 21, the Dreamfaith Foundation brought 400 middle and high school youth for a one-day St. Pete Strong Youth Empowerment Conference. The objective, according to executive director Deonte Thompson who hosts the event each year, is to expose them to careers they may not have been exposed to before. Throughout the day, youth attended workshops on personal finance, made objects using 3D printers in the campus STEM lab, toured campus and listened to high profile guest speakers including St Petersburg-born film producer Will Packer and actor Lamar Ruckman.
Education Dean visits Italy summer STEM program
David Rosengrant, campus dean for the College of Education, and Justice Palavra, associate director of the Mathematics Engineering Science Achievement (MESA) Program, visited Trento, Italy to meet Dr. Claudia Dolci who leads a project called WebValley. This program brings together 17- and 18-year-old students from around the world for a three-week residential program that utilizes big data to solve real world problems. After spending a week learning graduate level content, they then mine large data sources (in this case 12 TB of satellite data). The results of their work will be used by scientists and researchers from around the globe. Rosengrant and Palavra aim to develop a partnership to replicate this project or a variation of it on campus.
Sustainability Studies and Honors Student Presents at Better Boating Breakfast
Marza Hiatt and Kyle Walker from Liquid Creative Studios. (Photo credit Brooke Hansen)
USF St. Petersburg student Marza Hiatt (Sustainability Studies, Honors) presented with Dr. Brooke Hansen for Keep Pinellas Beautiful's Better Boating Breakfast series at the Discovery Center on St. Pete Pier on May 30. The event is part of the KPB Hospitality Eco-Partnership Program that Marza is interning with to increase sustainable tourism in Pinellas County. The event was part of a film being made by Liquid Creative Studios about the statewide impact of Keep Florida Beautiful Affiliates. Marza was interviewed for the film which will be released in the fall. To see her next presentation in the program, attend the final Better Boating Breakfast at the Dunedin Library on July 22 at 9:30 a.m.
USF Youth Experiences hosts Cyber Camp
For the first time, the USF Office of Youth Experiences hosted the "USF Middle School Cyber Camp," at USF St. Petersburg from June 24 - 28, bringing in 20 middle and high school campers. The Cyber Camp introduced students to the exciting world of cybersecurity, offering hands-on experience in a rapidly growing field. At the end of the week, the campers compete in CyberPatriot’s National Youth Cyber Defense Competition, which challenges teams of high school and middle school students to find and fix cybersecurity vulnerabilities in virtual operating systems. Using a competition system, teams are scored on how secure they make the system and are ranked nationally based on their performance. Looking ahead, the USF Office of Youth Experiences will host the USF Elementary Cyber Camp on the USF St. Petersburg campus from July 22nd to 26th with the aim to engage and inspire young minds in a waterfront university setting. Get more information and register here.
SOFWOLF offers STEM program for Gold Star families
For the third year, the nonprofit SOFWOLF held the 7-Day DRONE WOLF Program, a summer robotics initiative for military Gold Star and Blue Star Youth who have lost a parent in service. From June 3 - 9, 2024, youth aged 16-24 stayed in campus dorms, while enhancing their technical skills and engaging in emergency response scenarios. Participants learned about floatable and submersible robotics to tackle maritime cyber threats; worked with Coast Guard professionals, port authorities, and tech and defense experts; and developed innovative solutions for drone sentry deployment to protect Tampa Bay's economic hub. SOFWOLF is based in the St. Petersburg Innovation District's Maritime and Defense Technology Hub.
Junior Achievement recognizes USF volunteerism
Junior Achievement (JA) Tampa Bay, a nonprofit that works to empower students with financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship programs, recognized the University of South Florida for its volunteerism. Namely, during the 2023 – 2024 school year, USF increased its volunteers to JA programming by 58 percent. From USF St. Petersburg, Junior Achievement specifically recognized Muma College of Business faculty member Sandy Weiss for empowering her students to volunteer at JA BizTown, and JA Finance Park. JA also commended faculty and staff from USF’s Nault Center for Entrepreneurship, which is active on all three campuses, for volunteering as mentors for 11th grade 3DE students during their entrepreneurship projects.
Insights from the Industry: Business class shares survey data
In Spring 2024, Muma College of Business faculty member Sandy Weiss enlisted students from her Strategic Management and Decision Making course to develop an "Insights from the Industry Survey" to be distributed to local area business owners. Christie Bruner, Vice President of Advocacy at the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce, also collaborated on this initiative.
Strategic Management and Decision Making is an undergraduate capstone course designed to explore the challenges and opportunities faced by today's competitive organizations. Dr. Weiss is dedicated to her students' success both in and outside the classroom. The survey project provided students with a unique opportunity to gain behind-the-scenes insights into what it takes to excel in the corporate world. Learn more here.
The survey was distributed via email to all Chamber members in March and April, yielding 29 responses. Weiss, recent graduate Michael Fosci, and students Kevin Giampino and Leandro Gonzalez presented the findings at the Chamber’s Future of Work Task Force meeting in June.
This initiative not only enhanced students' learning experiences but also fostered stronger ties between the academic and business communities, offering valuable perspectives on the current and future state of the industry. You can review the findings here.