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.
USF St. Petersburg earns Family Friendly Business Award™
USF St. Petersburg earned distinction for its workplace policies by Family Friendly
Tampa Bay, a local initiative developed to recognize companies that have adopted policies
that give Tampa Bay businesses and organizations an advantage in recruiting and retaining
the best employees. The Family Friendly Tampa Bay initiative offers resources to organizations
on how to implement more family friendly policies and recognizes organizations that
offer their employees family friendly benefits.
“Studies continue to show that costs associated with creating family friendly benefits
are outweighed by improved productivity, employee morale and retention. We are happy
to recognize USF St. Petersburg as a leader in implementing family friendly policies,”
said Dr. Diana Santangelo, Director of Thrive by Five, which sponsors the initiative.
For a full list of family friendly policies and to learn more about the initiative
and see if your company qualifies, please visit www.FamilyFriendlyTampaBay.org.
Career Services to host three industry showcases this semester
For the first time, the USF St. Peterburg Center for Career & Professional Development is hosting three upcoming Industry Showcase events this fall, designed to connect students with leading professionals and organizations in their fields of study. On October 10, we will kick off with the Nursing & Healthcare Showcase, followed by the Environment & Sustainability Showcase on October 29, and wrap up with the Government & Non-Profit Showcase on November 13. These events offer a unique opportunity for students to explore career paths, learn about hiring opportunities, and network with local industry experts! If your organization is interested in participating in one of these events, please email tsnipes@usf.edu.
Thomas Hallock puts the "nerd" in St. Pete's Nerd Night
In his presentation, "Salt Creek, St. Pete's Forgotten Stream," USF professor Thomas Hallock discussed the difference between a ditch and a creek, and why these words matter during a recent talk at St. Pete’s Nerd Night. The story of Salt Creek, an urbanized stream that flows from Lake Maggiore to Bayboro Harbor through the heart of south St. Pete, can also tell the history of the neighborhoods through which it flows, yet we drive over or walk past the creeks and don’t consider them. Hallock has taught at USF's St. Pete campus for over 20 years. With his partner Julie Armstrong, he has raised a (now grown) son. When he is not reading or writing, Tom likes to go on ill-advised kayak adventures. Nerd Nite St. Pete is a monthly speaker series. Check it out at www.stpete.nerdnite.com.
Staff selected for Leadership Pinellas
Caryn Nesmith, campus director for Community Relations, was selected to participate in the 2025 Class of Leadership Pinellas. The mission of Leadership Pinellas is to develop and enhance community leadership by providing a diverse group of emerging and existing leaders with the opportunity to increase their community knowledge, civic network, and perpetuate their service to the community. The program has connected people across the county since 1977. Nesmith’s interest in joining the program was to help strengthen connectivity between the St. Petersburg campus of USF and organizations and governments throughout Pinellas County, including some 23 municipalities outside of the St. Petersburg. She is one of 40 people selected for this year’s class, most of whom are pictured here during the kick off Leadership Retreat in late August.
Early Innovation Fund grant awarded to Education faculty
USF Research & Innovation and the Florida High Tech Corridor partnered to provide $100,000 for a new round of projects from the Early Stage Innovation Fund program, an effort designed to give a starting boost to cutting-edge ideas. The four awarded projects are led by faculty from the Colleges of Arts & Sciences, Behavioral & Community Sciences, Education and Engineering, and represent USF’s Tampa, St. Petersburg, and Sarasota-Manatee campuses, and the Morsani College of Medicine. This round of seed funding will support four projects focused on USF’s Strategic Areas of Focus, including one by AnnMarie Alberton Gunn and Susan V Bennett from the College of Education, Department of Language, Literacy, Ed.D., Exceptional Education, and Physical Education. The goal of their project is to build a robust curriculum that schools and afterschool centers can use to increase students’ vocabulary and social and emotional learning. The team plans to publish this curriculum and work with new and existing community partners to implement it at afterschool centers to support the needs of this underserved community in Pinellas County and beyond. Learn more about the Early-Stage Innovation Fund awards here.
COE Faculty meets with St. Pete Chief on disengaged youth
Dr. LaSonya Moore, assistant professor at USF St. Petersburg, and member of the NAACP
St. Petersburg Chapter’s Criminal Justice Committee, is committed to community engagement
and social justice. Her work focuses on preparing future educators to be culturally
competent and responsive to the communities they serve.
Recently, Moore met with St. Petersburg Police Chief Anthony Holloway, youth advocate
Trenia Cox, and Patrice Perry (pictured in the header above) to discuss efforts to
reach disengaged youth. This collaboration is part of the chief's broader goal to
bridge the gap between education and public safety, ensuring that educators understand
community dynamics. Dr. Moore's work highlights the importance of partnerships with
key community stakeholders, like law enforcement, to address issues such as the school-to-prison
pipeline and promote positive youth development. Her efforts in this area support
a safer environment for students and the community. Through her active involvement
with the NAACP Criminal Justice Committee, Moore advocates for changes that benefit
both students and the wider community.
Employ-a-Bull: Finance major interns at Tampa Bay Partnership
Andrew Pagnotta is a finance major in the Muma College of Business and Judy Genshaft Honors College. Pagnotta is one of many students who have landed great internships and jobs in the community thanks to USF's community partnerships. As an intern and research assistant at the Tampa Bay Partnership, Pagnotta interviews local leaders and business owners about the issues they face with the region's continuous expansion. Pagnotta has always been interested in data, but after taking a statistics class at USF St. Petersburg, he decided to focus on data analytics. After working at the Partnership, he became passionate about sustainability and humanitarian issues in Florida.
USF participates in Innovation District master planning
In August, USF Regional Vice Chancellor of Finance and Administration Kevin Sheehy participated in a trolley tour along with landowners within the St. Petersburg Innovation District. This was the first of many initiatives that are part of the district’s master planning effort, aimed at creating a comprehensive look at the places and spaces in and adjacent to the Innovation District. It will include discussions of zoning, infrastructure, public spaces, facility uses, events and more. In September, the District leadership will be hosting focus groups over the next several months for the Innovation District Master Plan. Learn more about master planning effort here.
Honors convocation invites students to engage with their city
On August 30, the Judy Genshaft Honors College hosted its annual Convocation, welcoming new students to campus to kick off their academic journey. This community-building event invited faculty from across campus to don their regalia and join with students and march across campus playing kazoos, drums and other instruments to announce that "Honors is in the house!" Dr. Kanika Tomalin, former St. Petersburg deputy mayor and the president and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, was the keynote speaker for the formal program. She provided inspiring remarks that encouraged students to become active participants in the Innovation District in order to enact the three commitments of the Honors College which are sustainable futures, healthy humanity, and engaged citizenship.
Center for Civic Engagement hosts campaign internship fair
On August 29, candidates campaigning for elections and their staff turned out for an on-campus fair for students seeking campaign internships. Those students interested in interning spoke with staffers from campaigns of the following candidates: Lindsay Cross; Ed Montanari; Debbie Mucarsek-Powell; Cookie Davis; Kathy Castor; Linda Chaney; Anna Paulina Luna; Whitney Fox; Rick Scott; Berny Jacques; and Charlie Justice. In some cases, candidates themselves attended the fair and spoke with students, including Njallsen Amaro Lionheart; Nathan Bruemmer; and Vince Nowicki. Additionally, student representatives from the College Democrats, the College Republicans, and the Pinellas Democratic Party participated, recruiting students to their clubs. The event was organized by the Center for Civic Engagement, and followed the Civic Engagement Fair held on campus on August 27, which featured the following community organizations: Visit St. Pete Clearwater, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay, Tampa Bay Watch Interview, Ronald McDonald House, Keep Pinellas Beautiful, St. Pete Free Clinic, Florida Holocaust Museum, Creative Clay and Common Cause. Interviews with representatives from each organization is viewable here.