{"id":176818,"date":"2026-03-03T21:12:14","date_gmt":"2026-03-03T21:12:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/176818\/"},"modified":"2026-03-03T21:12:14","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T21:12:14","slug":"usfs-70-years-of-shaping-tampa-bays-economy-and-workforce","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/176818\/","title":{"rendered":"USF\u2019s 70 years of shaping Tampa Bay\u2019s economy and workforce"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Paul Guzzo<\/a>, University Communications and Marketing<\/p>\n

When an aeronautical firm toured the University of South Florida while considering
\n expanding to Tampa Bay, the lead engineer was impressed by a hallway photo of a high-tech
\n sailboat.<\/p>\n

Beatriz Bare, then with the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, said a dean opened
\n a nearby office and said, \u201cMeet the man who developed that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The unscripted moment led the company to open an office in Tampa Bay to tap into that
\n expertise.<\/p>\n

It was the kind of exchange that economic recruiters say has become routine for USF.<\/p>\n

\u201cBusinesses realize they can build a future in Tampa Bay because of USF,\u201d said Bare,
\n now a USF Research Foundation board member.<\/p>\n

As USF marks its 70th anniversary, a new economic impact report estimates the university
\n generates nearly $7 billion<\/a> annually in Tampa Bay.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Site Selection magazine ranked Tampa among the top five U.S. cities for
\n corporate headquarters, citing its skilled workforce.<\/p>\n

These accomplishments demonstrate how USF and the region are intertwined, with the
\n university serving as a talent pipeline that draws companies \u2014 which in turn attract
\n students.<\/p>\n

For Phil Pace, who moved to Tampa to attend USF in the 1990s and has spent his career
\n building one of the region\u2019s largest public companies, that pipeline is personal.<\/p>\n

\u201cUSF builds fundamentals \u2014 discipline, work ethic and the ability to collaborate,\u201d
\n said Pace, a USF graduate and chief accounting officer at Bloomin\u2019 Brands. \u201cThose
\n habits carry into the boardroom, shaping how leaders build teams and make decisions.\u201d<\/p>\n

Transforming downtown Tampa<\/p>\n

Downtown Tampa may be the strongest symbol of USF\u2019s relationship with the region,
\n said Pam Iorio, Tampa\u2019s mayor from 2003\u20132011.<\/p>\n

When USF opened in 1956, the skyline was modest.<\/p>\n

Growth unfolded over decades, but downtown\u2019s momentum accelerated in 2012 with the
\n opening of USF\u2019s $38 million Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt changed how people viewed downtown, and its innovation became a real selling point
\n for us as we sought to bring new industry,\u201d said Iorio, a USF graduate.. \u201cIt was also
\n a precursor to the larger medical center there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"tampa<\/p>\n

Downtown Tampa in the 1970s [Photo courtesy of USF Special Collections]<\/p>\n

\"Morsani\"\/<\/p>\n

Morsani College of Medicine in downtown Tampa in 2023 [Photo by Two Stories Media]<\/p>\n

A few years later, developer Jeff Vinik offered USF land in the Water Street district,
\n catalyzing the move of the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine and Heart Institute
\n downtown. The 13\u2011story facility opened in 2020 and now anchors Water Street.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat\u2019s good for Tampa is good for USF,\u201d Iorio said, \u201cand vice versa.\u201d<\/p>\n

This connection didn\u2019t appear overnight but grew from a series of decisions.<\/p>\n

The turning points that changed everything<\/p>\n

Few have seen that evolution more closely than Marvin Karlins, who has been a professor
\n in the USF School of Management since 1974.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt that time, neither USF nor Tampa drew the business community,\u201d Karlins said. \u201cIf
\n we were lucky, we got outer offices \u2014 not corporate headquarters.\u201d<\/p>\n

That changed in the 1990s when USF fully embraced its transition from a teaching institution
\n to a research university, Karlins said. \u201cIt was a 180\u2011degree turn. Research brought
\n money, prestige and expertise \u2014 and caught companies\u2019 attention.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another inflection point came in 1999, when then\u2011USF President Betty Castor and three
\n deans joined the Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce board, said former USF President Rhea
\n Law, then the chamber\u2019s president.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat gave the business community a window into what partnership with USF could look
\n like,\u201d Law said. \u201cUSF stepped into the region\u2019s economic conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n

Momentum carried into Judy Genshaft\u2019s presidency from 2000\u20132019 when she embraced
\n the university\u2019s role in corporate recruitment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI knew that if USF got stronger as a research university, it attracted talent, investment
\n and opportunity,\u201d Genshaft said, \u201cand lifted Tampa Bay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fueling the talent pipeline\u00a0<\/p>\n

Corporate recruitment is led by the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, which
\n manages relocation inquiries and organizes site visits that include campus tours and
\n meetings with university leaders.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s when we shine,\u201d said Craig Richard, the EDC\u2019s president and CEO. \u201cUSF is at
\n the table with us before the table is even set.\u201d<\/p>\n

In one case, Bare said a biopharmaceutical prospect was skeptical of the area\u2019s talent
\n pipeline \u2014 until a USF professor, from vague hints, correctly identified a confidential
\n process the company was developing.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was clear that the exchange that followed helped convince company executives that
\n USF could not only provide them with excellent job applicants, but that they could
\n partner with a university that was eager to offer and provide interdisciplinary research
\n resources,\u201d Bare said.<\/p>\n

\"Bare\"\/<\/p>\n

Beatriz Bare, USF Research Foundation board member<\/p>\n

\"Richards\"\/<\/p>\n

Craig Richard, EDC president and CEO<\/p>\n

Another time, a financial services firm questioned if the region\u2019s talent could support
\n their company if they had an office here. Prepared, Bare placed a box on the table
\n and dumped out hundreds of USF student r\u00e9sum\u00e9s she\u2019d collected in advance.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe pipeline wasn\u2019t theoretical,\u201d Bare said.<\/p>\n

And, as USF has matured, graduates have returned as architects of that pipeline.<\/p>\n

Alumni who built, then reinvested<\/p>\n

\"Mumas<\/p>\n

Les and Pam Muma – the namesake for the Muma College of Business, were students at
\n USF and graduated in 1966\u00a0 [Photo courtesy of Pam Muma]<\/p>\n

\"Moez-Muma\"\/<\/p>\n

The Mumas joined Limayem with his daughter following his selection as USF\u2019s 9th president
\n [Photo by Torie Doll, University Communications and Marketing]<\/p>\n

Class of 1966 graduates Les and Pam Muma credit the faculty\u2019s open\u2011door culture with
\n shaping their success. Les Muma went on to cofound Fortune 500 financial\u2011technology
\n firm Fiserv.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had plenty of mentors,\u201d Pam Muma said.<\/p>\n

Former athletic director Dick Bowers reconnected the Mumas to USF, drawing them into
\n financially supporting programs. Years later, the Mumas deepened their engagement
\n with the business college, culminating in 2014 with a $25 million gift to name the
\n USF Muma College of Business.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe weren\u2019t interested in just having a building with our name,\u201d Les Muma said. \u201cWe
\n wanted a great business school that produced qualified graduates \u2014 it\u2019s accomplishing
\n that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are grateful for Pam and Les Muma, who saw the College of Business was like a
\n rocket on the launch pad \u2013 engines built, countdown underway,\u201d said USF President
\n Moez Limayem, then-dean of the college. \u201cThey recognized a strategic inflection point,
\n a very good business school poised to become an elite college of business. Their transformational
\n investment accelerated the ascent.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Mumas\u2019 investment did more than elevate a college. It signaled to other alumni
\n that this was a moment to build alongside USF.<\/p>\n

Alumna Lynn Pippenger named the School of Accountancy and other major gifts followed.<\/p>\n

Alumna Elizabeth Krystyn\u2019s gift fueled the development of a risk management program
\n that is helping fill a talent gap in the insurance industry.<\/p>\n

A 1987 graduate, she cofounded The Baldwin Group, a national insurance advisory firm.<\/p>\n

In 2022, Krystyn and her partners made a $5.2 million gift to establish The Baldwin
\n Group School of Risk Management and Insurance, designed to graduate students with
\n practical experience.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis was about investing in the future of our industry,\u201d Krystyn said.<\/p>\n

Today, the Baldwin Group employs nearly 100 USF graduates plus interns.<\/p>\n

And Arnie Bellini, who earned his MBA in 1982, built ConnectWise into a billion\u2011dollar
\n technology company, selling it for $1.5 billion and creating 74 millionaires \u2014 many
\n who joined the company as USF interns.<\/p>\n

Bellini\u2019s USF gifts total more than $57 million and have been used to establish the
\n Bellini Center for Talent Development, which provides students access to holistic
\n career programming, and the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity
\n and Computing, which prepares students to become the workforce \u2013 positioning Tampa
\n Bay to be recognized as the industry hub, \u201cCyberBay.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Baldwin<\/p>\n

The Baldwin Group gifted $5.2 million to USF in 2022<\/p>\n

\"Bellini\"\/<\/p>\n

Arnie Bellini’s gifts to USF total more than $57 million<\/p>\n

\u201cSilicon Valley didn\u2019t happen by accident,\u201d Bellini said. \u201cUniversities pushed talent
\n and innovation into the economy. That\u2019s what USF can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

That idea is already more practice than concept.<\/p>\n

Internships that power industries<\/p>\n

Through off\u2011campus ReliaQuest Labs, USF interns receive hands\u2011on cybersecurity training,
\n and more than 300 graduates have been hired by global cybersecurity company ReliaQuest
\n since 2017\u201318.<\/p>\n

\"Reliaquest<\/p>\n

USF students in ReliaQuest Labs [Photo by ReliaQuest]<\/p>\n

\"Reliaquest\"\/<\/p>\n

A look inside ReliaQuest Labs [Photo by ReliaQuest]<\/p>\n

\u201cUSF is a key talent pipeline,\u201d said Kim Hill, ReliaQuest\u2019s chief of staff, a USF
\n graduate and former vice president for communications and marketing and chief marketing
\n officer for USF.<\/p>\n

USF\u2019s internship programs increasingly function as on-ramps to professional life,
\n embedding students inside companies early and intentionally.<\/p>\n

The Muma College formally partners with roughly 200 companies.<\/p>\n

At one, AmeriLife, USF students make up most summer interns and are treated as professionals,
\n not observers, said Kiersten Burstiner, the company\u2019s chief human resources officer.
\n \u201cThey\u2019re not getting coffee. They have a seat at the table and real responsibility.
\n That hunger and communication skills bring new ideas and immediate contributions,
\n and many convert to full\u2011time roles here.\u201d<\/p>\n

USF doesn\u2019t just educate entrepreneurs \u2014 it helps build them.<\/p>\n

Driving measurable growth<\/p>\n

In faculty\u2011guided MBA and upper\u2011level courses, student teams tackle live business
\n challenges, often delivering solutions companies implement immediately.<\/p>\n

At Sun State International Trucks, a six\u2011location operation with more than 250 employees,
\n that approach paid off.<\/p>\n

When Sun State president and USF Trustee Oscar Horton needed to overhaul sales training,
\n he turned to the university.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis wasn\u2019t theoretical,\u201d Horton said. \u201cUSF students took on a real business problem,
\n built a real solution, and we put it into practice. That sales program is still how
\n we train our people today.\u201d<\/p>\n

By early 2025, Sun State was on track to reach $250 million in revenue, up from $160
\n million in 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s experiential learning,\u201d said David Blackwell, the Lynn Pippenger Dean of the
\n Muma College of Business. \u201cStudents solve real problems for real organizations \u2014 experience
\n that goes straight onto their r\u00e9sum\u00e9s while helping companies in real time. It\u2019s one
\n of many reasons so many companies choose to locate in Tampa Bay \u2014 because USF is here,
\n and we work together.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Paul Guzzo, University Communications and Marketing When an aeronautical firm toured the University of South Florida while…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":176819,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[135,137,136],"class_list":["post-176818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176818","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=176818"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/176818\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/176819"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=176818"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=176818"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=176818"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}