The Leader's Journey College of Business | University of West Florida

During the annual Women in Leadership Conference, we captured snips from the event. 
Leah Kinsella, Founder, Coach, Leader of Meditation - https://leahkinsella.com/Emily Ley, Founder, Simplified - https://www.emilyley.com/Moderator: Dannon Byrd, Owner, Tap the Coast Jacey Cosentino, Wealth management advisor, Peacock Wealth Management at Edward JonesKatie Garrett, Owner/Founder, Old Hickory Whiskey Bar, The Kennedy and OnassisStephanie Knight, Founder, Escape Wellness SpaJessica Lee, General Manager and Vice President, Kia AutoSportTia Robbins, Founder, Taste of PensacolaErik Stolhanske, Actor, Writer, Producer - https://erikstolhanske.net/Moderator: Nicole Stacey, Vice President of Destination Development, Visit Pensacola Holly Benson, Founder and CEO, Screen Corps, LLCJen Grove, Vice President of External Operations, Baptist Health CareRobin Reshard, Community Advocate, Kukua InstituteAlicia Tappan, Founder and CEO, Tappan Consulting, Inc. Pamela Barnum, Former Undercover Police Officer and Federal Prosecuting Attorney - https://pamelabarnum.com/Laura Hussey, Morning Anchor, WEAR ABC Channel 3Carmela Cook, Baptist Health Care

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Martha Dunagin Saunders is the sixth president of the University of West Florida.
In her 30-plus years in higher education, Dr. Saunders has served in academic and leadership roles at universities in Florida, Georgia, Wisconsin and Mississippi. Her area of academic expertise is in public relations and crisis communication for which she has won numerous awards, including two coveted Silver Anvils from the Public Relations Society of America.
Under her leadership, the University of West Florida has transformed into a first-choice institution. 
She led UWF to its status as a top-performing public university in the Florida Board of Governors performance-based funding metrics for three consecutive years. The University also ranked among the top 15 public regional institutions in the South in the 2020 and 2021 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges and was named a “Great College to Work For” by ModernThink and featured in The Chronicle of Higher Education. 
She established the state’s first doctoral program in intelligent systems and robotics in partnership with the Florida Institute of Human Machine Cognition. She also oversaw the development of Florida’s first bachelor’s in cybersecurity degree program designated as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity by the National Security Agency and U.S. Department of Homeland Security. 
As provost and executive vice president for UWF, Dr. Saunders established the Division of Student Affairs and Academic Engagement and the Center for Cybersecurity. Equity and diversity initiatives launched under her guidance propelled the institution to receive the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine six times. She also led the reorganization of the institution’s colleges and guided the establishment of two new named colleges—the Usha Kundu, MD College of Health and the Hal Marcus College of Science and Engineering. 
Dr. Saunders’ vision is for UWF to grow beyond its beginnings as a regional comprehensive university and receive recognition as a leader in innovation and cutting-edge academic programs. 
As an entrepreneurial leader, Dr. Saunders is passionate about creating innovative solutions for the dynamic challenges facing higher education. As a change maker, she drives action behind these solutions, propelling higher education into the future.
Dr. Saunders earned a bachelor’s degree in French from the University of Southern Mississippi, a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Georgia and a doctorate in communication theory and research from Florida State University. 
When Dr. Saunders is not attending to University needs, she and her husband, Joe Bailey, can be found walking, shelling, gardening, kayaking or fishing on her beloved Pensacola Beach.


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Dive into the wisdom of Ted Ent, a hospitality virtuoso with over three decades in the industry, who climbed the ladder from a pot washer at a state park to the CEO and President of Innisfree Hotels. Ted's philosophy "focus on the people first, and product will follow" resonates through his work, from his hands-on beginnings to executive roles in preeminent destinations. He's shaped experiences at renowned venues like Canyon Ranch and Hilton Worldwide, always with the belief that true hospitality can change lives. Join us as Ted shares insights from his illustrious career and his dedication to philanthropy, offering a blueprint for leadership that transcends business, emphasizing that by nurturing transformative moments in people, we craft a legacy of success.
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Tim and Aaron introduce The Leader's Journey from the Aylstock, Witkin, Kreis & Overholtz Center for Leadership, University of West Florida.

Together we will explore the true meaning of leadership. We will explore hard truths of leadership, wipe away the fog of leadership myths, and give you a clear vision of how you can be the leader of tomorrow. Let's embark on this journey together.
  

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Brian Wyer is the President/CEO of the Gulf Coast Minority Chamber of Commerce. He serves on several Boards; including United Way, Equality Project Alliance, Achieve Escambia, Baptist Health Care Inc., Mental Health Task Force, the Human Relations Commission and the Early Learning Coalition.  Brian was on the City of Pensacola Mayor’s Transition Team, was selected to the 2019 US Global Leadership Florida Advisory Committee, and is the 2021 Pace Award Community Advocate of the Year.  He has been married for 28 years to Harriett and has 3 children.




The views and opinions expressed on Leader to Leader are those of our guests and program participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or official policies of the College of Business or of the University of West Florida.
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Lisa Nellessen Savage is executive editor of the Pensacola News Journal, Northwest Florida Daily News and Panama City News Herald. She has been with Gannett and USA TODAY Network newspapers for 24 years including serving as the top editor at newspapers in Florida, Indiana and Wisconsin.

The views and opinions expressed on Leader to Leader are those of our guests and program participants and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or official policies of the College of Business or of the University of West Florida.

Theme music: "Beach Bum" by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Source: https://filmmusic.io/song/3428-beach-bum
Artist: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/
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