2023-2024 Board of Directors

Meredith Abel

City of Temple Terrace

Appointed : 1/23/2023

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Mitchell Allen

Tampa Bay EDC

Appointed : 10/18/2023

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Robert Blount

President, Abe Brown Ministries

Director, Ready4Work-Hillsborough

Appointed : 9/22/2021

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

President, Abe Brown Ministries
Director, Ready4Work-Hillsborough

Robert Blount has been President of Abe Brown Ministries since 2002. With a core focus on prison ministry, reentry services, and criminal justice reform, he continues to quietly transform the Tampa Bay community through his faith-based hands-on leadership and community collaboration.

Robert, along with the Hillsborough County Department of Human Services and the United States Attorney’s Office Middle District of Florida, founded the Hillsborough Ex-offender Re-entry Network (HERN) which promotes public safety by increasing awareness about the needs of ex-offenders returning to Hillsborough County.

Under Robert’s leadership, Abe Brown Ministries worked together with the Children’s Board of Hillsborough County, Big Brothers Big Sisters, and Florida Kinship Care Center at University of South Florida to establish Children in Hillsborough of Incarcerated Parents (CHIPS). CHIPS is committed to connecting resources and systems of support to meet the needs of children in Hillsborough County whose parents are incarcerated with a vision of eliminating generational incarceration. The CHIPs platform also helped launch the Family Reunification Video Visitation program between children in the Tampa Bay community and their incarcerated parent.

In 2006, Robert was appointed by Florida Governor Jeb Bush to serve on the Governor’s Ex-offender Task Force where his peers chose him to serve as Vice Chairman. Subsequently, he served on the Florida Department of Corrections Re-entry Advisory Council and on the Hillsborough County Violence Prevention Leadership Council, now known as Safe and Sound.

In addition to his responsibilities as President of Abe Brown Ministries, Robert also serves as Director of Ready4Work-Hillsborough. In September 2014, Robert and Abe Brown Ministries launched the first replication of the nationally-acclaimed Ready4Work program in Hillsborough County. Ready4Work-Hillsborough provides case management, life and job skills training, life-coaching/mentoring, and job placement assistance to citizens returning to the community after incarceration in Florida’s prisons.

Warren “Scott” Brooks

Hillsborough County Schools

Appointed : 2/19/2020

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Board Member Name: Warren “Scott” Brooks
Industry represented: Education
Name of Employer: Hillsborough County Public Schools
Company Website: sdhc.k12.fl.us
Official Title: Executive Director
Length at current position: 10/29/2012
Previous Position: Principal of Tampa Bay Technical High School
List other committees or volunteer activities: Workforce Development Advisory Team with Mayor Jane Castor
Degrees/Education: BS from University of Florida, Master’s Degree in Education Leadership from Nova Southeastern University
Current Home: Lives in Plant City, Florida

Stephanie T. Brown Gilmore

Tampa Housing Authority

Appointed : 7/1/2018

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Board Member Name: Stephanie Brown-Gilmore
Industry you represent: Government
Name of Employer: Tampa Housing Authority
Company Website: www.THAFL.com
Official Title: Director, Program and Property Services
Length at current position: 24 Years
List other committees or volunteer activities: Stageworks Theatre, Healthy Start Coalition, Greater Area Council d/b/a/ Boy Scouts of America
Degrees/Education: B.S., Business Administration from Clark University
Current Home: Lives in Tampa

Sean Butler

Titan Technologies

CSTB Board Chairman, Chief People Officer

Appointed : 7/1/2018

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Board Member Name: SEAN BUTLER
Industry represented: Technology
Name of Employer: Titan Technologies, Inc.
Company Website: Titantechnologies.com
Official Title: Chief People Officer
Length at current position: Less than year
Previous Position: Executive Vice President
List other committees or volunteer activities: Trustee and former chair of Compensation Committee, Zoo Tampa; St-Joesphs (BayCare) board of directors and current Finance Committee Chair.
Degrees/Education: Bachelors University of Kansas, MBA – Baker University
Current Home: Tampa Florida
Additional Information: Former Chair of Career Source Tampa Bay and working to create strong business and community partnerships to ensure we are helping building the talent that the region needs to support our communities.

Joseph Eletto

Veterans Council of Hillsborough

Appointed : 7/1/2023

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Elizabeth Gutierrez

Enterprising Latinas, Inc.

Appointed : 7/1/2018

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Board Member Name: Elizabeth Gutierrez
Industry  represented: Community Development
Name of Employer: Enterprising Latinas, Inc.
Company Website: http://www.enterprisinglatinas.org/
Official Title: Founder/CEO
Length at current position: 6 years, 4 months
Previous Position: Hispanic Services Council – Director of Planning and Programs
List other committees or volunteer activities: Member of the Hillsborough County Commission on the Status of Women, Member of the Hillsborough County Commission on Human Trafficking, Board Member of the Florida Association of Community Development Corporations
Degrees/Education: Southern New Hampshire University, Master’s – Community Economic Development
Current Home: Apollo Beach

Gary Hartfield

Serenity Village Company,

CSTB Treasurer - Finance Chair

Appointed : 7/1/2021

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Benjamin Hom

McKibbon Hospitality

CSTB Vice Chair

Appointed : 7/1/2018

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

John Howell

Vocational Rehabilitation

Appointed : 7/1/2018

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Board Member Name: John T. R. Howell
Industry represented: Government
Name of Employer: State of Florida, Department of Education, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation
Company Website: www.RehabWorks.org
Official Title: Area 4 Director
Length at current position: Since May 2009
Previous Position: Area Supervisor
List other committees or volunteer activities: Mr. Howell serves on two other local CareerSource boards. He sits on Florida Center for Inclusive Communities and was previously on the board for the Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology. He is currently the 2020-2021 President of the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, also known as the Rough Riders. The Rough Riders commemorate Theodore Roosevelt and the soldiers from the Spanish–American War in 1898. Tampa is historic in that the Rough Riders left from Tampa to fight in the war in Cuba. The Rough Riders also give out thousands of Teddy Bears to children in hospitals, centers for abused women and children and the family court system, as well as, participate in many parades throughout the year.
Degrees/Education: Master of Arts degree in Rehabilitation and Mental Health Counseling, University of South Florida; Bachelor of Science degree in Rehabilitation, Troy State University in Alabama. He went to Bloomingdale High School in Valrico.
Current Home: Riverview
Additional Information: Loves all Tampa area sports teams

Jim Junecko

IUOE Local 487

Appointed : 3/3/2021

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Dr. Brian Mann

Hillsborough Community College

CSTB Chair Youth Development Committee

Appointed : 7/1/2021

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Brian Nathan

IBEW Local Union 915

Appointed : 10/18/2023

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

April Neumann

Ultimate Medical Academy

CSTB- Secretary

Appointed : 11/16/2022

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Roy Sweatman

Southern Manufacturing Technologies, Inc.

Appointed : 9/8/2022

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Board Member Name:  Roy Sweatman

Industry you represent:  (Such as Government, Manufacturing, Education, Healthcare, Service Industry, Healthcare) Manufacturing

Name of Employer:   Southern Manufacturing Technologies, Inc.

Company Website: www.smt-tampa.com

Official Title:   President

Length at current position:   38 Years

Previous Position: N/A

List other committees or volunteer activities:  Florida Makes-BOD, Chair-Advanced Manufacturing Workforce Leadership Council, Florida Makes Advocacy Committee, Chair-Industrial Manufacturing Technician Apprenticeship, BAMA-BOD, BAMA-Chair of Workforce Committee, BAMA-Advocacy Committee, Florida West Coast NTMA-BOD, Team Leader-NTMA Government Affairs Team, Chair-One Voice Advocacy (NTMA and PMA), Vice Chair-NIMS-BOD, Chair-Tampa Bay Machining Apprenticeship Board, PTC Machining Program Advisory Council, AmSkills BOD, Tampa Bay Works Manufacturing Collaborative, The Manufacturing Alliance of Hillsborough County, High School Advisory Councils-Armwood-Dixie Hollins-East Lake-Middleton-River Ridge, STAR Business Partner

Degrees/Education:   Apprentice Machinist Graduate

Current Home:  Lutz

Thayne Swenson

Swenson Construction

Appointed : 6/17/2020

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Board Member Name: Tye Swenson
Industry represented: Private Business Sector
Name of Employer: The Swenson Group
Company Website: swensonent.com
Official Title: CGO
Length at current position: 17yrs
Previous Position:
List other committees or volunteer activities: Title Sponsor Martinis for Moffitt, St Jude’s Childrens Hospital gala board, Catholic Charities
Degrees/Education: Chamberlain High School 1995 and University of South Florida, 1999
Current Home: Lutz, FL
Additional Information: Tye Swenson is the “Head” of Home Services with the Swenson Group, Raised in Tampa he is passionate about serving the community and making it a better place.

Sophia West

CS West & Associates, PA

Appointed : 9/8/2022

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Joshua Wostal

Hillsborough County

2nd Vice-Chair

Appointed : 11/14/2023

Term End Date: 11/19/2024

Jermaine White

Maincorp / Revive Church

Appointed : 9/8/2022

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Jermaine Antonio White is a Panamanian-American entrepreneur known for founding for-profit, faith-based, and community organizations that solve problems and effect change within communities and individuals.
He is the founder and owner of MaineCorp which is the parent company of:
• MaineLine Insurance: A property and casualty agency specializing in home, auto, and commercial products.
• MaineLand Development: A real estimate and land development firm that builds residential rental housing.
• MaineStreet Capital: A private investment firm that builds assets through public and private equities.
• MaineCorp Foundation: The giving arm of MaineCorp that provides funding and creates opportunities for individuals and organizations.
As an entrepreneur, White has been an Allstate Insurance franchisee and was awarded a contract by the State of Ohio to operate a DMV agency. In 2012, White and his wife Ericka founded OneChurch Tampa (now Revive Church) in Brandon, FL and their aim is to help build and rebuild the lives of individuals and families within the community.
White holds a Bachelor of Arts from Florida International University and a Master of Arts in theological studies from Liberty University. He is currently a student in pursuit of a Doctor of Ministry degree.
White has been recognized for establishing corporate social responsibility programs such as an Academic Resource Center that serves low-income elementary school students in Jacksonville, and REalSOURCE Management Consultants that generated operating capital for the Urban League of Greater Cleveland.
He has been married for 30 years to his high school sweetheart, Ericka White, and they are the proud parents of 2 children.

Ocea Wynn

City of Tampa

Appointed : 9/16/2020

Term End Date: 6/30/2025

Board Member Name: Ocea Wynn
Industry represented: Government
Name of Employer: City of Tampa
Company Website: www.tampagov.net
Official Title: Administrator of Neighborhood & Community Affairs
Length at current position: Ms. Wynn has been in her current position for one year
Previous Position: Previously, Ms. Wynn held the position of Director of Logistics & Asset Management Department for the City of Tampa
List other committees or volunteer activities: Ms. Wynn serves on the following boards: Community Action Board for Hillsborough County, H.B. Plant Museum, Tampa Theatre, United Way, and YMCA.
Degrees/Education: Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering (BSEE) from University of Central Florida and master’s degree in Public Administration (MPA) with a concentration in Environmental Management from Troy University
Current Home: Lives in Tampa
Additional Information: Ms. Wynn is currently enrolled in the Florida State University Certified Public Management (CPM) course, a nationally recognized program for training and developing public managers and the Bloomberg Harvard Executive Education Program at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Mercedes Young

Vivid Consulting Group LLC

Appointed : 9/8/2022

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Audrey Ziegler

Hillsborough County Government

Appointed : 2/17/2022

Term End Date: 6/30/2024

Audrey Ziegler has worked for Hillsborough County government for over 33 years, with 26 years in the Social Services department.  Audrey is currently Hillsborough County’s Director of Social Services and oversees a staff of over 80 full time employees and a budget of approximately $60 million (ad valorem, grants, CARES and ARP). The role of Social Services is to deliver and manage programs and services to serve the low income, vulnerable residents of Hillsborough County through holistic case management with a focus on individual and customized self-sufficiency goals with measurable outcomes.  The Department provides direct social services; coordinates with community resources for additional support; case manages individuals and families; and determines eligibility for multiple county, state, and federal programs at eight intake sites throughout the county.

Over the last several years, Audrey and the Social Services team have worked diligently to formalize processes to ensure the highest level of efficiency in both service delivery and contract/grant management.  The Department’s motto is Service MATTERS and Audrey is passionate about services being provided to customers with compassion, dignity and the highest level of professionalism.   Audrey prides herself on ensuring the most vulnerable residents have access to services as well as empowering low-income youth through education and opportunity.

On a personal note, Audrey is married and has one adult daughter who is an RN at Baycare.  For fun, she enjoys being at the gym, camping, staying in regular contact with lifelong friends of Tampa, and binge-watching documentaries.