Page 12 - Florida Sentinel 6-26-20

Local
USF’s New President And TOBA/SMBG Met Virtually To Discuss Diversity And USF Spending With Black People
The joint economic develop- ment committees of Tampa Organization of Black Affairs (TOBA) and Saturday Morning Breakfast Group (SMBG) had its quarterly meeting with Dr. Steven Currall, President of the University of South Florida System (USF System) on Fri- day, June 19.
The meeting’s focus was to find out President Currall's plan to significantly increase the representation of Blacks in positions of governance, ad- ministration, tenured faculty and staff along with signifi- cantly increasing USF System’s spending with Black-owned companies.
During the meeting, the TOBA/SMBG representatives were able to discuss and show Dr. Currall historical data to support its request for him to create and enact a plan for his executive team that would transcend throughout the en- tire USF organization.
Among the actions sug- gested, would be to ‘mandate that all personnel given the au- thority to hire staff and spend USF System funding be held accountable for dramatically improving the USF System di- versity, equity and economic inclusion of Blacks in repre- sentation of positions and in USF System spending’.
DR. STEVEN CURRALL According to James Ran-
som, TOBA/SMBG commit- tee members and President
Currall will be meeting again in July to discuss the action items, timelines and possible due dates for the requested changes.
TOBA/SMBG’s joint com- mittees are in the process of scheduling a briefing with the Hillsborough County Legisla- tive Delegation to make sure they are informed and sup- portive of its efforts to ensure that Blacks are not excluded. Mainly because Black people represent approximately 24% of the voting and taxpaying population that helps to fund the USF System.
The virtual meeting on Fri- day included: TOBA/SMBG -
EDC presenters James Ran- som, Board Member and Chairman of Economic Devel- opment Committee; Dr. Larry Shannon, TOBA/SMBG Board Member; Ken Dees, TOBA/SMBG member, Strate- gic Planning and Business An- alyst Consultant; David Eason, TOBA/SMBG Member; Dr. Anderson Prewitt, TOBA/SMBG member and Re- search Consultant; Attorney Warren Dawson, TOBA/SMBG Member and Legal Advisor and Sol Davis, Sr., business owner.
Other TOBA/SMBG mem- bers observed and listened to the Microsoft "TEAM" video tele-conference meeting as well. The USF representatives present were: Dr. Haywood Brown, USF System Chief Of- ficer of Diversity and Inclu- sion; Cecil Howard, Esq., Diversity and Inclusion Office, USF System and Terrie Daniel, AVP, Supplier Diver- sity.
Volunteers Needed Saturday To Paint ‘Black Lives Matter’
Former City Council- woman Gwen Miller reached out to Mayor Jane Castor and asked if “Black Lives Matter” could be painted on the street at Cass and Central Ave. The Mayor agreed.
On Saturday, June 27, 2020, volunteers are asked to gather at 8 a. m. to assist with the project. Bring your masks, water, tents and any other per- sonal items needed to complete this project.
PAGE 12-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, JUNE 26, 2020