by Mike Sharkey
Staff Writer
Getting nominated as a member of a Leadership Jacksonville class isn’t tough. Making the cut is — and it’s a long process.
This year’s class is the 31st and is comprised of 56 area business and community leaders. There are a handful of attorneys, a couple of local elected officials, a pastor, community volunteers and plenty of small business owners and big business CEOs.
Leadership Jacksonville Executive Director Isabelle Owen Spence said she received 192 nominations.
“I think this is the most,” she said. “It’s way more than any other year.”
Spence said the record number of nominations took a long time to cull though. However, getting almost 200 nominees is also indicative of Leadership Jacksonville’s reputation in the area.
“It makes the process of selection more difficult and it recognizes the value of our program,” said Spence. “We have to disappoint so many really talented people that get nominated.”
Leadership Jacksonville started taking nominations in late December and by mid-May the 2008 class was set. In between, nominees completed applications which were reviewed by teams of Leadership Jacksonville alumni that included 19 captains, each of whom read every application and rated the nominee.
“From that, about 90 nominees got letters asking them to come in for an interview,” said Spence.
Those interviews — combined with application ratings and a nominee’s ability to go through all nine programs and willingness to follow up on the required community service obligation — produce scores and ultimately the final class. The interviews are conducted by a team of 6-8 Leadership Jacksonville alumni and members of the Leadership Jacksonville staff.
“We carefully balance the class to be representative of the community,” said Spence, who sits in on the interviews but doesn’t play any role in rating or judging the nominees. “We have larger businesses, small businesses, for-profits, not-for-profits and people of different ethnicities.”
Spence said a majority of the applicants on paper are worth selecting for the class. However, intangible requirements often help narrow the field. Spence said nominees must be committed to the entire program and they must be willing to give back to the community. There is a policy in place that addresses unavoidable absences.
“They must demonstrate leadership in some role – the community, volunteering or religion,” said Spence. “The timing has to be right. It’s a huge commitment.”
Over the course of the program, the class of 2008 will participate in 11 mandatory events — an opening and closing retreat and nine programs. Covered in those programs are the following: trusteeship, education, poverty, social justice, economy, economic development, preservation, arts, leading from within, understanding each other, health and family.
The following is the entire Leadership Class of 2008 and their professional or civic association:
• Bryan Barker — owner/partner, Argus Holdings
• Ann Bittinger — attorney/owner, The Bittinger Law Firm
• Carolyn Broughton — public information administrator/cable franchise manager, City of Jacksonville Public Information Office
• John Bryan — owner, Improv! Corporate Workshops
• Susan Burns — retail sales manager, EverBank Community Banking Division
• Margarita Cabral-Maly — president Kent Campus, Florida Community College at Jacksonville
• Patricia Cannan — community volunteer
• Jennifer Chapman — senior manager public affairs, Fidelity Investments
• Valerie Critton — director of knowledge management, Holland & Knight, LLP
• Gloria Chu — consulting sales executive, IBM
• James Clark — account director, Harden & Associates
• William Cody — president division IV St. Vincent’s, North Florida OB/GYN Associates
• Meredith Connell — vice president of HR and planning, Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce
• Vilma Consuegra — director of corporate communications, Acosta Sales and Marketing Company
• Juan Diaz — corporate counsel, CSX Corporation
• Bruce Ferguson Jr. — president, WorkSource
• Michael Freed — Florida managing partner, The Brannan Manna & Diamond Law Firm
• Jim Fuller — Clerk of Court, City of Jacksonville
• Ed Gallegos — vice president service organization, BlueCross BlueShield of Florida
• Theresa Giles — chief business officer, Duval County School Board
• Randolph Gordon — enterprise account manager, Hewlett-Packard
• Rodney Grabowski — associate vice president for development, University of North Florida
• Holt Graves — vice president and controller, Reynolds, Smith & Hills
• Tracee Holzendorf — director of clinical services, Shands Jacksonville
• Mary Jarrett — assistant general counsel, City of Jacksonville
• Steve Jorgensen — chair of clinical operations, Mayo Clinic
• Rick Johnson — senior VP and chief programming officer, WJCT, Inc.
• Roger Kellogg — president, Kellogg Development Company
• Michael Killea — executive vice president and chief legal officer, Pacer International, Inc.
• Michael Lancashire — vice president of claims, Main Street America Group
• Linda Lane — vice president of national accounts, Medical Services Company
• Fred Lee — Neptune Beach City Council, Seat 4
• Brandon McCray — director of development, Shands Jacksonville and the University of Florida
• Mary Beth Mehaffey — vice president of human resources, Baptist Health
• Laurie Melancon — director of sales — Tabbystone Company
• David Miller — president/owner, Miller Insurance Group, Inc.
• Charles Moreland — division chief of rescue, City of Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Rescue
• Thuy-Ann Nguyen — managing attorney/owner, Tindale & Nguyen, PL
• Connie Phillips — community volunteer
• Jean Pyle — professor emeritus, University of Massachusetts
• John Rafferty — senior vice president and general manager, WJXT-TV
• Kyle Reese — senior pastor, Hendricks Avenue Baptist Church
• Bryant Rollins — president/CEO, Mountain Top Institute
• Mario Rubio — director of constituent relations, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida
• Troy Smith — attorney/shareholder, Rogers Towers, P.A.
• David Stevens — chief, Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office
• Odette Struys — national media relations, Nemours
• Anne Urban — president/owner, Destination Planning Corporation
• Herschel Vinyard — vice president of government affairs, Atlantic Marine
• Robin Wahby — managing partner, New York Life Insurance Company
• Benjamin Warner — deputy director, Jacksonville Community Council, Inc.
• Terry West — president/CEO, VyStar Credit Union
• Kimberlie Wheeler — account executive, professional engineer, JEA
• Dottie Wilson — Realtor, Coldwell Banker Walter Williams Realty, Inc.
• Sandra Wilson — director of development & marketing, The Cultural Center and Ponte Vedra Beach
• Chris Wirth — manager of channel marketing, Interline Brands