Three major Jacksonville organizations named new leaders Monday.
The Jacksonville Port Authority board voted unanimously Monday to hire Eric Green as CEO after a national executive search. Green was appointed interim chief executive officer in March after Brian Taylor left the post.
Green joined the port in 2005 and served as senior director of government and external affairs, leading the effort to gain authorization and funding to start the Jacksonville harbor deepening project to take federal shipping channel to 47 feet. JaxPort said construction will begin in a few months.
“Eric Green has demonstrated in his period of service to JaxPort, and his period as interim CEO, that he will be a great asset to this port as CEO,” said board chairman Jim Citrano.
Board member Joe York said Green “earned the right to be the next CEO of JaxPort.”
Green, a Jacksonville native, previously worked for the city, including as deputy chief administrative officer.
Carson JAA board chair
Also Monday, the Jacksonville Aviation Authority board unanimously elected business immigration and compliance attorney Giselle Carson as the board chair for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1.
Carson is a shareholder of the Marks Gray firm. She replaces chair Pat Kilbane, who will continue to serve on the board.
The seven-member board also elected Jay Demetree as vice chairman, Russell Thomas as secretary and Teresa Davlantes as treasurer. Three members are appointed by the mayor and four by the governor. Carson is a gubernatorial appointee.
UF health picks Haley
UF Health Jacksonville’s board voted Monday to name Dr. Leon L. Haley Jr. as chief executive officer starting Jan. 1 after the retirement of CEO Russ Armistead.
The appointment comes less than a year after Haley was named dean of the University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville, which is a position he will continue to hold.
Dr. David Guzick, president of UF Health, senior vice president for health affairs at the University of Florida and chair of the UF Health Jacksonville board, said Haley “has brought such positive energy and expertise to the college that we felt it made perfect sense to have him lead this great organization, a model that follows how many other academic health centers are structured.”
During Haley’s tenure as dean, UF Health opened the inpatient unit at UF Health North, a 92-bed facility that is part of a North Jacksonville medical complex.
Haley will lead an organization comprising more than 6,000 employees, including physicians, nurses and other health care providers and support staff.
Haley said the organization plans continued investment in its clinical programs at its Downtown and North campuses.
“We want to strengthen our educational programs at the College of Medicine, College of Nursing, the College of Pharmacy and our hospital allied health programs, and increase our research portfolio through discovery and innovation,” he said in a news release.
Haley came to the UF College of Medicine — Jacksonville in January, following a career at Emory University and the Grady Health System in Atlanta.
He earned his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh and his master’s degree in health services administration from the University of Michigan. He completed his residency in emergency medicine at the Henry Ford Health System, serving a year as chief resident.
Haley is board-certified in emergency medicine and a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians.
