New trustees Tiffany A. Altizer ’90MS, Bill Christy ’86 and Jeff Condello will participate in their first regular Board of Trustees meeting on Thursday.

“Trustees Altizer, Christy and Condello are outstanding business leaders who serve our community so well,� said Board of Trustees Chair Beverly Seay. “Our entire board looks forward to continuing to work closely with President Cartwright to achieve our goal of becoming one of the nation’s and world’s leading metropolitan research universities.�

The new trustees replaced Alex Martins ’01²Ñµş´¡, David Walsh and William Yeargin, who reached the end of their terms earlier this year after nearly 20 years of combined service. Walsh and Yeargin were honored at Thursday’s meeting.

Martins rejoined the Board of Trustees in March after he was appointed by DeSantis. He replaced Trustee Ken Bradley, who had served on the board since 2016.

Under the Florida Constitution, each state university is administered by a board of trustees consisting of 13 members.

The Board of Trustees is responsible for the administration of UCF in a manner that is dedicated to and consistent with the university’s mission and with the mission and purposes of the State º£½ÇÖ±²¥ System. This responsibility includes cost-effective policy decisions, the implementation and maintenance of high-quality education programs, and oversight of university performance, financial management and accountability, personnel, the reporting of information and compliance with laws, rules, regulations and requirements.

Learn more about the board at .

Meet the new trustees

Tiffany A. Altizer ’90MS, of Orlando, is a certified public accountant and managing shareholder of Keith Altizer and Company, P.A. She began her career in public accounting in 1991 with the international accounting firm of Ernst & Young LLP and joined Keith Altizer and Company in 1997.

Altizer serves as a trustee for the Southern Federal Tax Institute and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants. In addition, she serves on the boards of directors for the Orange County Sheriff Foundation and the Seminole County Sheriff Foundation. She has also been active in other community organizations such as the Junior League of Greater Orlando, Maitland Presbyterian Church Foundation and Florida Citrus Sports.

The UCF alumna earned a Master of Science in taxation after receiving a B.S.B.A. (emphasis in accounting) from Auburn º£½ÇÖ±²¥.

Bill Christy ’86, of Daytona Beach, is CEO of Cognitive Kinetics, a spinal implants and orthopedic joints distributorship. He is also CEO of Challenge North America, an organization led by athletes to help enhance race experiences for athletes and their families. He has extensive experience leading medical instrument and clinical start-ups and also played a key role in the design and market launch of more than 20 medical devices and is the holder of more than 25 issued and published patents.

Previously, he was CEO of both AOI Medical and SpineMatrix, and he has been involved with the Halifax Health Foundation and New Era Orthopedics.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in business administration from UCF in 1986 and his MBA from the Rollins College Crummer School of Business in 1997.

Jeff Condello, of Windermere, is president and CEO of Randall, a company he started with his wife, Debra, in 1986. Based in Apopka, the commercial and industrial contractor now employs roughly 1,400 people and has worked on some of the largest and most influential projects in Central Florida; including the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts; Terminal C at Orlando International Airport; SunRail stations; and buildings at Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld Orlando and Amazon.

He is an active member of the Central Florida community, volunteering his time with Project Opioid, Faine House, Florida Hospital and the Children’s Home Society. And, recently, he launched the Randall Academy in partnership with Orange County Public Schools and the City of Apopka. The pilot program enables high school students to gain experience in manufacturing, construction, accounting and human resources at Randall.

In addition, he was named theÌıOrlando Business Journal’sÌı2019 CEO of the Year and is a º£½ÇÖ±²¥ Legacy Circle Member, which recognizes loyal donors to the athletics program.

The selections — chosen from 60 business categories — were based on their contacts in regional business circles, “culminating in a highly selective biographical guide to the people who really run Florida.�

Four people named to the list are on the UCF Board of Trustees: Chair Beverly Seay and members Alex Martins ’01MBA, Harold Mills and William Yeargin.

• Seay, a longtime leader in Central Florida’s modeling and simulation industry, has served on the board since 2013. She is a member of the National Center for Simulation Hall of Fame and also served as chair of the Dean’s Industry Advisory Board for the College of Engineering and Computer Science.
• Martins, vice chair of the board, is CEO of the Orlando Magic. He is also a member of the College of Business Hall of Fame, serves on the Dean’s Executive Council, and is a recipient of the university’s Distinguished Alumnus Award. He earned his degree in business administration.
• Mills is CEO of VMD Ventures, which focuses on enabling aspiring entrepreneurs who create technologies and tech-enabled services that create new market spaces.
• Yeargin is CEO of Correct Craft, which manufactures fishing, utility and recreational boats and operates watersports parks.

Names of others with UCF roles:

• Thad Seymour Jr., former interim president of the university, who retired earlier this year. He previously oversaw development of the UCF Downtown campus and was a senior vice president of Tavistock Development, where he led strategy and development for Lake Nona Medical City.
• Clint Bullock ’95, is a board member of the UCF Foundation and general manager and CEO of the Orlando Utilities Commission. He earned his degree in marketing.
• Brian Butler is a board member of the UCF Foundation and president and CEO of Vistra Communications in Tampa.

Other UCF alumni at organizations in Orlando and around the state:

• George Cheros ’78 ’80MBA, president and CEO of National Center for Simulation, earned his degrees in accounting and business administration
• Steve Hogan ’01, CEO of Florida Citrus Sports, earned his degree in journalism and played football at UCF.
• Inez Long ’98²Ñµş´¡, president and CEO of Black Business Investment Fund Florida, earned her degree in business administration.
• Karen Moore ’79, founder and CEO of Moore Inc., Tallahassee, earned her degree in history and played volleyball and tennis at UCF.
• Terry Shaw ’90MBA, CEO of AdventHealth, Altamonte Springs, earned his degree in business administration.
• John Sowinski ’86, founding partner of Consensus Communications, earned his degree in public administration and was president of Student Government.
• Rasesh Thakkar ’84, senior managing director of Tavistock Group, earned his degree in accounting.
• Richard J. Walsh ’77 ’83MS, CEO of Knob Hill Group, who previously served as chair of the UCF Board of Trustees, earned his degrees in political science and public policy and was awarded an honorary doctorate in 2014.

Ava Parker, a former member of the UCF Board of Trustees, is now president of Palm Beach State College, West Palm Beach.

“These students must continue to have the opportunity to hone their skills, which will benefit not only their futures but also the companies, government agencies and universities that will hire them.� — Beverly Seay

The inaugural North America Programming Camp,Ìıbeing held virtuallyÌıfromÌıMarch 30ÌıtoÌıApril 3,Ìıoffers more than 100Ìıstudent participants multiple online sessions of concentrated practice to prepare for this year’s International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC) World Finals.

An in-person camp wasÌıoriginally plannedÌıto be held this week onÌıUCF’sÌımain campus in Orlando, but event planners shifted to the online camp format in March as news of the global coronavirus pandemic emerged.

“These students must continue to have the opportunity to hone their skills, which will benefit not only their futures but also the companies, government agencies and universities that will hire them,� says UCF Board of Trustees Chair Beverly Seay, who has long been involved with ICPC and championing computing talent across the country.

A United Effort

Forty-three teams signed up to participate remotely from 29 different institutions. During each sessionÌıofÌıtheÌıvirtualÌıcamp,Ìıstudent teamsÌıwork through simulated world-level competitions and receive feedback and analysis of their performance from trainers with proven experience and success on the global stage.

The trainers are from Carnegie Mellon º£½ÇÖ±²¥, Georgia Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Alberta, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of California-San Diego and º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Texas, as well as technology companies Google andÌıImpira.

“An institutionalized approach toward algorithmic problem-solving and its associated activities is long overdue in North America,� says Richard Peng, an assistant professor in Georgia Tech’s College of Computing and lead trainer. “This camp is providing, in the short term, a new resource for all the participating teams, and in the longer term, a starting point for the development of a community for students and instructors focusing on algorithmic problem-solving.�

The goal is to prepare camp attendees for theÌı2020ÌıICPC World Finals, where the topÌı130 three-person teams will compete after advancing from regional or national contests among 15,000 teams from hundreds of universities around the globe. Originally planned for June in Moscow, the world contest may be held later this year due to the global pandemic.

Preparing for the Global Stage

This week’s campÌıattendeesÌırepresent the top-ranked student teams in North America who will compete in the world contest. Their ranking wasÌıdetermined afterÌıcompeting among 59 teamsÌıin the ICPC North America Programming Competition hosted by Georgia Tech on Feb. 22, the first time aÌıchampionship-levelÌıprogrammingÌıcompetition was heldÌıfor the entire continent. Previously in North America, teams advanced to world finals after winning regional contests in the United States and Canada.

“The camp has been a fantastic opportunity to train with the greatest ICPC teams in North America.�
— David Harmeyer

In the competitions, teams try to solve eight or more complex, real-world problems in a five-hour time limit. Teammates collaborate around a single computer using logic, strategy and endurance that requires precision, problem-solving and an understanding of advanced algorithms. They try to solve the most problems in the fewest attempts in the least cumulative time.

“It was a very good idea to add the additional level [North America Championship] between the regional andÌıworldÌıfinals,â€�Ìısays AliÌıOrooji, UCF Programming Team faculty advisor. “It was goodÌıfor teams toÌısee howÌıtheyÌıcompare against other universities in North America.â€�

A UCF team of three computer science majors took bronze in North America to earn an exclusive spot in the World Finals. UCF has competed in the World Finals forÌıthe past seven consecutive years, achieving itsÌıbest rank of No. 1 in North America and No. 10 inÌıthe world in 2018.

“The camp has been a fantastic opportunity to train with the greatest ICPC teams in North America,â€� says David Harmeyer, one of the three UCF students who will compete on the university’s world finals team. “It’s helpful that the camp isÌıledÌıby trainers who are really good at competitive programming themselves.â€�

Sharpening the Competitive Edge

Seay, who was a driving force to add the championshipÌıand theÌıtraining camp, says the United States and Canada need to be more competitive in computer science, both in student competitions and in the high-tech workforce.

“With the need for more computing talent across the country, it is our responsibility to groom the leaders of tomorrow in computer science and related areas.�
— Beverly Seay

“With the need for more computing talent across the country, it is our responsibility to groom the leaders of tomorrow in computer science and related areas,â€� saysÌıSeay.Ìı“We need to be more competitive internationally and invest in events that give our students opportunities to showcase their best skills to industry and government.â€�

Jeff Donahoo, Baylor º£½ÇÖ±²¥ computer science professor and executive director of the ICPC World Finals, agrees.

“In the almost 20 years that I’ve been involved in the ICPC, I’ve seen the strongest performances by teams where investment in training and practice is prioritized. The top teams have typically attended at least one camp,� he says. “The teams from North America are already competitive at the ICPC World Finals. This camp is a great way to assist the North America teams in their quest to win this world-level Battle of the Brains.�

Supporting the Next Generation of Computing Talent

While this year’s camp had to be adapted to an online format, organizers say they plan to continue growing this initiative to prepare more teams to compete in the top tier among their international peers — leading the way for a greater North American footprint in the computing field for many years to come.

To offset the costs for attendees, the campÌıisÌısponsored by Universal Parks and Resorts, the National Security Agency, L3Harris Technologies, Northrop Grumman and others that have an interest in recruiting the nation’s brightest computer science students.

The campÌıis intended toÌıprovide companies and agencies opportunities toÌıget to know andÌırecruitÌıtop computingÌıstudentsÌıfor future job or internships.ÌıWith the change to the online training camp format, sponsors have been provided participants’ resumes.

Universal Parks andÌıResorts, a major employer in Orlando, invested in the North America Programming Camp as a premier sponsor to support the next generation of computing talent.

“We understand the importanceÌıof technology to the future ofÌıour community and our business,â€� saysÌıUCF Trustee John Sprouls, executive vice president and chief administrative officer for Universal Parks & Resorts. “We want to stronglyÌısupport STEM education and programs that motivate and recognize highly talented tech students.â€�

Students, faculty, staff and the UCF community are encouraged to watch the candidates’ open forums via livestream and provide their feedback.

“Dr. Laurencin and Dr. Cartwright are stellar candidates of exceptional character. Both finalists are more than qualified to lead our university.� — Beverly Seay, Board of Trustees chair

The Presidential Search Committee selected David Brenner and Cato Laurencin as finalists before spring break. Committee members met again Wednesday morning to review any additional applications they’d received. At that meeting, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Missouri Chancellor Alexander Cartwright was interviewed via online videoconference and moved into the finalist pool.

Shortly after the meeting, Brenner withdrew his candidacy.

“Given Dr. Brenner’s success as a world-class innovator, we are disappointed that he chose not to continue in our process,� said Board of Trustees Chair Beverly Seay, who also serves as chair of the Presidential Search Committee. “However, Dr. Laurencin and Dr. Cartwright are stellar candidates of exceptional character. Both finalists are more than qualified to lead our university, and I think the board will have a very difficult decision.�

Biographies of the finalists and links to watch their open forums are available below.

Watch Thursday’s Open Forums

Alexander Cartwright, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Missouri
Open forum, 10-11 a.m. Thursday, March 19
ucf.edu/presidential-search/alexander-cartwright/

Cato Laurencin, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Connecticut
Open forum, 3:30-4:30 p.m. Thursday, March 19
ucf.edu/presidential-search/cato-laurencin/

Each candidate will host a campus forum via videoconference, opening with a short presentation before answering questions submitted by the UCF community. The forums will be moderated by Faculty Senate Chair William Self, who is a member of the Board of Trustees and the Presidential Search Committee.

Each finalist also will hold virtual meetings with student leaders, faculty and deans. Feedback can be left for each candidate at links below.

Submit Candidate Feedback

Alexander Cartwright:

Cato Laurencin:Ìı

Links to watch the forums and to submit feedback will be available until 10 p.m. Thursday.

From the start of the search process, consultants advised the search committee that any applications from current university presidents would come late in the process. Search consultant Alberto Pimentel of Storbeck/PimentelÌı& Associates said that’s because they’re reluctant to disrupt relationships and ongoing initiatives with donors, their state lawmakers and the campus community.

“Why does a candidate wait until the last minute to jump in?� Pimentel said. “There are various things that a sitting president must focus on and think about before engaging in this type of a very public search.�

Next Steps

The Board of Trustees is expected to review feedback and interview each of the finalists starting at 8:30 a.m. Friday, March 20, before selecting UCF’s next president. That meeting with be livestreamed at .

The Board of Governors, which oversees Florida’s State º£½ÇÖ±²¥ System, will vote on whether to confirm the appointment; that vote is expected on March 25 during a virtual meeting.

For more information about the finalists and updates about the presidential search, visitÌıucf.edu/presidential-search/.

With the uncertainty surrounding the scope and duration of COVID-19, UCF is proceeding with the final stage of the search that began in the fall. The Board of Trustees met Friday to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on the search and supported the plans to move forward.

“This is an extraordinary time,� UCF Board of Trustees Chair Beverly Seay said. “We have a competitive pool of highly qualified candidates today, and we must make decisions that are best for the future of our university, even if we are unsure of everything that the next few weeks or months hold.�

Next week, each finalist will host a virtual open forum that will feature brief introductory remarks followed by questions and answers. Open forums will be held Wednesday, March 18, and Thursday, March 19, with opportunities for the campus community to ask questions electronically, as well as provide feedback about each candidate.

On Monday, UCF will share the specific times and links of the open forums, as well as details on how to provide feedback.

Two finalists were selected last week by the Presidential Search Committee.

David Brenner has served as Vice Chancellor, Health Sciences, at the º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of California San Diego for the past 13 years. In this role, he leads the School of Medicine, Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences and UCSD Health. He earned his M.D. from the Yale º£½ÇÖ±²¥ School of Medicine, and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine. Brenner also is a Distinguished Professor in the Department of Medicine and an adjunct professor in the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

Cato Laurencin is º£½ÇÖ±²¥ Professor; Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering; Professor of Materials Science and Engineering; Professor of Biomedical Engineering; Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery; Chief Executive Officer, The Connecticut Convergence Institute for Translation in Regenerative Engineering, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Connecticut; Director, The Raymond and Beverly Sackler Center for Biomedical, Biological, Physical and Engineering Sciences; and a member of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Engineering. Dr. Laurencin earned his bachelor’s in chemical engineering from Princeton º£½ÇÖ±²¥, his Ph.D. in biochemical engineering/biotechnology from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and his M.D., Magna Cum Laude, from Harvard Medical School.

The third finalist selected by the committee withdrew his name from consideration on Monday.

Here’s an outline of all of the search activities next week:

The Presidential Search Committee will meet at 9 a.m. Monday, March 16, at the FAIRWINDS Alumni Center to review additional information on the two remaining finalists, reconsider candidates currently in the pool, and consider any new candidates who may apply.

At Friday’s Board of Trustees meeting, Seay spoke about continuing to recruit highly competitive candidates and the likelihood that at least one more candidate would become a finalist.

“It has been a really great opportunity talking to this quality of talent, listening to their experiences and hearing their enthusiasm for the university,� Seay said of the candidate pool. “I am looking forward to our campus having the opportunity to hear their different perspectives on what they would do for UCF.�

Monday’s search committee meeting can be viewed via livestream, in real time only, at this link: .

On Wednesday and Thursday, all of the finalists will conduct virtual open forums and also meet separately with small groups of students and faculty virtually. Open forums will be livestreamed and available online to allow for feedback.

In lieu of the Board of Trustees having an opportunity to interview candidates earlier in the week – as was originally planned – board members also will be meeting or teleconferencing one-on-one with finalists before their virtual visits to campus next week.

The Board of Trustees is then expected to meet starting at 8:30 a.m. Friday, March 20, for videoconference interviews with each finalist and then to select the next president. This meeting will be livestreamed, in real time only, at .

The Board of Governors, which oversees Florida’s State º£½ÇÖ±²¥ System, will vote on whether to confirm the appointment; that vote is expected on March 25 during a virtual meeting of the board.

For more information about the finalists and updates about the presidential search, visit /presidential-search/.

The applicant pool includes a remarkable depth of academic scholarship and accomplishment, including candidates with membership in the prestigious National Academy of Medicine and National Academy of Engineering, and affiliation with institutions in the Association of American Universities, which represents the country’s leading research universities.

“From a very strong pool of applicants I am pleased with our choices of academic scholars with impeccable records of achievement,” said Trustee William Self, an associate professor in the College of Medicine and a member of the Search Committee. “These candidates are world-renowned in their disciplines and also strong academic leaders that have led or are currently leading large and complex academic and health enterprises in higher education. I am confident that from this strong pool of candidates we will find our next President and that this leader will be a proud member of the faculty in their discipline.”

Candidates who will move forward in the process are:

• Barbara Boyan, Alice T. and William H. Goodwin Jr. Dean of College of Engineering and Professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth º£½ÇÖ±²¥; and member, National Academy of Engineering
• David Brenner, Vice Chancellor, Health Sciences, and Distinguished Professor, Department of Medicine, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of California San Diego; Adjunct Professor, Salk Institute for Biological Studies; and member, National Academy of Medicine
• Amr Elnashai, Vice President/Vice Chancellor for Research and Technology Transfer, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Houston
• Vistasp Karbhari, President, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Texas at Arlington
• Richard Larson, Executive Vice Chancellor and Vice Chancellor for Research, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of New Mexico Health Sciences Center
• Cato Laurencin, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ Professor; Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering; Professor of Materials Science and Engineering; Professor of Biomedical Engineering; Albert and Wilda Van Dusen Distinguished Endowed Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery; Chief Executive Officer, The Connecticut Convergence Institute for Translation in Regenerative Engineering, º£½ÇÖ±²¥ of Connecticut; Director, The Raymond and Beverly Sackler Center for Biomedical, Biological, Physical and Engineering Sciences; member National Academy of Medicine and National Academy of Engineering
• Javier Reyes, Vice President for StartUp West Virginia; Milan Puskar Dean of the John Chambers College of Business and Economics, West Virginia º£½ÇÖ±²¥

Beverly Seay, who chairs the Search Committee and the UCF Board of Trustees, praised the quality of the candidates interested in leading UCF.

“This whole process has been very eye-opening, producing high-quality candidates who are equipped to build a future at UCF that addresses our opportunities and our challenges,� Seay says. “It will be a valuable exercise for us to bring these individuals to campus and to learn from them. I encourage our campus community to take advantage of the opportunity to hear from this group of leaders with very different backgrounds and perspectives.�

Candidate interviews will be conducted in person during a meeting of the Search Committee, scheduled to start at 7:30 a.m. Thursday, March 5, in the Key West Ballroom of the Student Union. Livestreams for that meeting, available for viewing only as a live broadcast, will be as follows:

Morning session:

Afternoon session:

The schedule for the first-round interviews on Thursday is:

7:30am – 8:00am Committee Briefing

8:00am – 9:00am Barbara Boyan

9:15am – 10:15am David Brenner

10:30am – 11:30am Amr Elnashai

11:45am – 12:45pm Vistasp Karbhari

12:45pm – 1:30pm Lunch Break

1:30pm – 2:30pm Richard Larson

2:45pm – 3:45pm Javier Reyes

4:00pm – 5:00pm Cato Laurencin

5:15pm – 6:15pm Debrief

On Tuesday, Search Committee members also discussed the possibility of considering additional candidates who may apply later.

The Search Committee will recommend candidates to the Board of Trustees. Then, finalists will return to campus after spring break for open forums and campus visits. The campus community will have the opportunity to provide feedback on each of the finalists.

The Board of Trustees will vote on the selection of the president. Then, the Florida Board of Governors, which oversees the state’s public universities, will vote on whether to confirm the selected candidate.