2018-2019 Polk Vision Annual Report PV AR 2019_web

Alex Nikdel Chair President, CNP It has been an honor to serve as Polk Vision’s Chair for the past year. I continue to be impressed with and appreciative of the hundreds of volunteers putting in countless hours towards the end goal of improving the lives of every citizen. One key initiative for my second year as Chair is to be more intentional about sharing the stories of our hard- working volunteers and celebrate their success. Together, I have no doubt that we will continue to make Polk County an even more amazing place to live. BOARD OF DIRECTORS OPERATING BOARD Elaine Thompson, Ph.D. Immediate Past Chair President & CEO, Lakeland Regional Health Stacy Butterfield Treasurer Polk County Clerk of Courts & County Comptroller, Polk County Terry Brigman Operating Board Chair CIO & Director of IT, City of Lakeland STEVE BISONNETTE Quality of Life Team Co-Chair VISTE Jackie Byrd Director Superintendent, Polk County Public Schools Brad Dantzler Director Mayor, City of Winter Haven Tony Delgado Director City Manager, City of Lakeland Angela Falconetti, Ph.D. Director President, Polk State College Jerry Miller Chair-Elect Government & Community Relations Manager, Duke Energy It’s been an immense pleasure to be involved with Polk Vision for the past decade and I’m excited about continuing the organization’s great work as Chair-Elect. Its strategy of collaborating with area partners and resources to achieve systemic change has proved time and time again to be successful. Our community will continue to benefit from these multi-faceted impacts for years to come. 3 LIZ ANTAYA BHP: Worksite Wellness Team Co-Chair Stahl & Associates Insurance JOHN BOHDE Leadership Polk Alumni Chair Polk County BoCC SARAH CASE Infrastructure Team Co-Chair Next Level Planning & Permitting PAM CRAVEN, Ph.D. Literacy Team Co-Chair Learning Resource Center Jim Freeman Director County Manager, Polk County BoCC Sean Malott Director CEO, Central Florida Development Council Greg Littleton Director CEO & President, Citizens Bank & Trust Teresa Martinez Director President & CEO, Institute of Spanish Communication, Inc. Doug Lockwood Director Attorney, Straughn & Turner, P.A. Rick Wilson Director Commissioner, Polk County BoCC Larry Madrid Director President, Madrid Engineering Group, Inc. Lynn Wilson Director Chair, Polk County School Board MARY CROWE, Ph.D. Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Team Co-Chair Florida Southern College SHANNON GILLESPIE Attendance Team Co-Chair Polk County Public Schools CHRISTINE GODING Government Advisory Team Co-Chair Community Volunteer JOY JOHNSON Quality of Life Team Co-Chair Polk County BoCC JENNA KACZMARSKI BHP: School Health Team Co-Chair Polk County Public Schools RYAN KORDEK Infrastructure Team Co-Chair Polk TPO ERIC LABBE Smart Communities Team Co-Chair City of Winter Haven JENNA LEVINE Liaison Florida Department of Health in Polk County MERI MASS Liaison Polk Arts Alliance JULIA DAVIS Liaison Polk TPO MATT MUCCI Government Advisory Team Co-Chair AT&T TOM DEARDORFF Benchmarks & Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Team Co-Chair Polk County BoCC ANDREA NIKOLAI Liaison University of Florida/IFAS CHANDRA FREDERICK Attendance Team Co-Chair Polk County BoCC ORATHAI NORTHERN, Ph.D. Talent Pipeline Team Co-Chair Polk State College LINDSAY PERSOHN, Ph.D. Literacy Team Co-Chair Community Volunteer SARA BETH REYNOLDS Polk County School Board SHAWN SHERROUSE Leadership Polk Class XII Chair City of Lakeland LAUREN SPRINGFIELD Liaison Lakeland Regional Health HOLLY VIDA BHP: Primary Care Team Co-Chair Bartow Regional Medical Center – BayCare STEVE WARNER, Ed.D. Polk County Public Schools SUZANNE WRIGHT BHP: Primary Care Team Co-Chair Florida Department of Health in Polk County KATHLEEN WRIGHT BHP: School Health Team Co-Chair Polk County Public Schools DEBBIE ZIMMERMAN BHP: Worksite Wellness Team Co-Chair Community Volunteer TERRY BRIGMAN Operating Board Chair CIO & Director of IT, City of Lakeland What a pleasure it is to see dedicated people tackle the toughest problems in our community. The focus, the cooperation, and the tireless effort to continue the work necessary to make measurable improvements is a breath of local fresh air in this time of seemingly ongoing turmoil. Polk Vision provides the glue, the connectivity, and the networking necessary to engage the best and brightest minds and hearts to maximize our combined efforts. Alignment minimizes wasted or duplicated effort and ensures all LEAD Teams are moving toward our mutual goals. We can be proud as we reflect on the accomplishments over the past year. I’m confident that every leader involved will move forward with enthusiasm to achieve even greater things in the new year. Thank you to each of you for caring and for making a tremendous difference. CHAD TAGTOW Operating Board Chair-Elect Smart Communities Team Co-Chair CIO & Senior Vice President, Citizens Bank & Trust Polk Vision does an excellent job bringing together leaders from across the county, both public and private, to focus on the issues, opportunities, and challenges facing Polk County. It is through these collaborative efforts that we align in the common goal of making Polk County the best it can be. The hard work of the staff, and the diligent efforts of the numerous volunteers on the various Teams is to be commended. It is in these Teams that candid discussions turn into real plans that are then executed to produce progress for the county. I am impressed with the accomplishments that came about as a direct result of volunteers, and the organizations they belong to. We are able to accomplish so much more working together than we could individually. I encourage you to get involved to help make a difference in our community. 4

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