Ricardo Forbes of Baptist Health South Florida; Bill Diggs of the Miami-Dade Chamber of Commerce; George Foyo of Baptist Health South Florida; Brad Rinzler of Odebrecht USA.

Executive Vice President & Chief Administrative Officer of Baptist Health South Florida and One Community One Goal (OCOG) Co-Chair George Foyo engaged an audience of more than 150 business leaders and university students at the Miami-Dade Business in the Black Membership Expo on May 16, hosted by Florida Memorial University.  Foyo spoke about the OCOG strategic plan and the positive impact this initiative has achieved via the generation of new jobs and investments throughout Miami-Dade County.  He encouraged the audience to get involved with the new OCOG committees, whose purpose is to assist with the implementation of the 80 OCOG recommendations that resulted from the strategic plan.

» Click Here to watch the One Community One Goal video

Juan Brown – Finance Major

Tizania Cameron – Business Administration Major

Aida Diop – Finance Major

Kimberley Green – Finance Major

Shesla Jeudy – Finance Major

Cindy Lozano – Accounting Major

Takiya Moore – Accounting Major

Bruno Munoz – Finance Major

Malainy Ndiaye – Business Administration

Tisharee Rogers – Accounting Major

Samantha Storr – Accounting Major

Tynetta West – Finance Major

Finance (FMA) 2013 Inductees

Aida Diop – Finance Major

Kimberley Green – Finance Major

Shesla Jeudy – Finance Major

Bruno Munoz – Finance Major

Tynetta West – Finance Major

Financial Management Association International (FMA) is an organization for finance and economic students and professionals. Its primary objective is to encourage and recognize academic and professional excellence in the finance field. FMA promotes the study and practice of financial education. They also provide opportunities for personal growth, service and association between members and practicing professionals.

The City of Miami Gardens recently hosted A Visual Display:  My Black History — an evening of art, photography and spoken word performances by local artists. Several participants competed for prizes and enjoyed poetic expressions from local artists. Performers included Florida Memorial University’s Chapter 3 Poetry Troupe, Germaine Coleman, and Shamele Jenkins. Revelers were surprised by a performance by Miami Gardens Mayor Oliver Gilbert III. The mayor performed an original piece entitled, “I think, I know, I live, I love.

— Photo courtesy Zachary Rinkins

MIAMI GARDENS, FL – The Florida Memorial University (FMU) School of Education (SOE) is preparing to launch Project Preparing Leaders to Execute Effective Actions in Special Education (PLEEASE) to train local special-education leaders. The project is funded by a $1.25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education, through the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS). Project participants will earn a master’s degree in Exceptional Special Education (ESE), with a focus on leadership. The grant will provide full funding to train 50 ESE leaders over the next five years.

“We, at FMU are thrilled to help the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services advance its mission of fully integrating people with disabilities into all facets of community living,” said Makola Abdullah, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs. “With this grant, we are working to enhance personnel development and give leaders the resources they need to improve educational results for children with disabilities.”

A congratulatory letter from the Education Department noted that 95 applications were reviewed, and only 13 were funded. FMU’s proposal team was composed of four SOE professors: Tamar Riley, Ph.D., co-director; Annamaria Jerome-Raja, Ph.D., co-director; Yvonne Campbell, Ph.D. and Althea Durden, Ed.D. Riley said the program will emphasize a special focus is on providing leadership to urban school personnel.

“Our biggest objective is to increase the number of special-education leaders in the local community to improve the quality of education and outcomes for students with disabilities in K-12 classrooms,” said Riley, associate professor of special education.

The grant offers full tuition and includes stipends for travel and books. The first group of participants will begin January 2013. The second group will start in August 2014 and the final group will begin May 2016. Prospective candidates are required to hold a degree or certification in ESE; currently teach or provide leadership in ESE; be recommended by their principal or supervisor; and meet FMU graduate-program admission criteria.

“Participants will enjoy a five-semester program with an engaging and interactive curriculum,” Riley revealed. “We will teach and collaborate with leaders from Miami-Dade and Bro-ward county school districts. We will also connect participants with industry mentors.”

SOE is a Florida Department of Education-accredited school that offers 11 undergraduate and four graduate degrees. The school is hosting an information session next month. For more information, contact Tamar Riley at Tamar.Riley@FMUniv.edu.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Florida Memorial is advancing to the NAIA Men’s Soccer National Championships after a big win over top-seeded St. Thomas (STU) this weekend that resulted in them winning the Sun Conference Men’s Soccer Championships at Bobcat Field.

“We just beat a top 25 nationally ranked team. What our boys have done is remarkable and cannot be overstated,” said FMU Head Men’s Soccer Coach Fernando Valenzuela. “We do not have any seniors in our starting lineup. These kids have made their mark on FMU history with this victory. The example they have set for years to come is huge.”

St. Thomas (12-4-1), the three-time Sun Conference champions, was no match for the seventh-seeded Florida Memorial (8-10). The Lions blanked the Bobcats and finished with a 2-0 victory.  FMU’s Jose Bazterrica scored the game-winning goal in the first minute of the game on a header off a cross by Martin Scapparone. The score remained 1-0 until “an own goal” by St. Thomas gave the Lions a 2-0 lead with 15 minutes to play in regulation.

“I commend Coach Valenzuela for building a highly-skilled and competitive team. Our kids play to win,” said Robert Smith, FMU athletic director. “We believe in our team, so, it was no surprise that they won the conference.”

FMU goalkeeper Pablo Terminiello recorded the shutout. St. Thomas had 13 shots on goal, yet only two required saves by Terminiello. St. Thomas goalkeeper Lyle Howe made nine saves and allowed one goal on 11 shots on goal by the Lions. The university’s athletic chief has a stern warning for competitors.

“We are the most dangerous team in the tournament. If I were coaching another team, I would be afraid to coach against FMU. I would not want to play us,” Smith said.

Florida Memorial beat the odds en route to the conference championship. The championship run began with a win at No. 2-seeded SCAD Savannah on Nov. 3 in the tournament quarterfinals. The Lions defeated the Bees on 5-4 on penalty kicks in a game that ended in a 1-1 tie. The Lions moved on to the Sun Conference final four hosted by regular season champion St. Thomas. The eventual champions defeated Embry-Riddle 2-0 on Friday, setting up Saturday’s championship game vs. the top-seeded Bobcats.

“I am very proud of our team. We have scaled a higher mountain,” Valenzuela added.

The Lions are now headed to play Auburn University at Montgomery (Ala.) in the NAIA Men’s National Championship. The tournament comprises 32 teams and the competition continues until there is one winner.

Marshall has spent 35 years at Florida Memorial and 33 as the head of the women’s basketball program, accumulating 471 victories, the fourth-most amongst active NAIA II coaches.
“Coach Kenneth Marshall has demonstrated a strong desire to work with, teach and mold young athletes to become productive citizens of our community,” Florida Memorial Athletic Director, Robert Smith said. “There have been hundreds of graduates from Coach Marshall’s teams that have either gone on to graduate school to obtain advanced degrees or have started their professional careers in fields such as medicine, law enforcement and education.”

Gregory Stanback, an assistant coach on Marshall’s staff, echoed his athletic director’s sentiments, “Coach Marshall is unquestionably a coach of integrity and character with his players and in life. Clearly embracing the five core values of the NAIA Champions of Character initiative, his methods of teaching character through the game of basketball shows his players what it means to have integrity.”

“Coach Marshall has been a coach, mentor, confidant and truly my farther figure over the past eight years,” Latara King, former player and now assistant coach on Marshall’s staff said. “He is definitely a coach of integrity and character on and off the court. His structure of drills and life lessons all come together like puzzle pieces that make up a beautiful picture of life. His coaching techniques teach you to understand the game and also to prepare you for life as a young adult outside of college.”

The criteria for the NAIA Coach of Character Award is stated as follows: the nominee must be a head coach at the NAIA institution; the nominee must have been employed by the institution a minimum of five years; the nominee must be clearly outstanding in embracing the five core values of the NAIA Champions of Character initiative (respect, integrity, responsibility, sportsmanship and servant leadership), outstanding in methods of teaching character through sport, and outstanding in community leadership through volunteering, service or other means.