Mayor Pam Iorio, Patrick Sobers - BOA Hillsborough President, Gus and Frances Stavros, COEDU Dean Colleen Kennedy, and other community leaders, business people, friends, and family were on hand for the celebration of five Student Leaders, five Local Heroes, and two Neighborhood Builders.

The Bank of America Neighborhood Builders program looks to develop and strengthen the leaders and infrastructure of special nonprofit groups in select markets. Puglisi states, “I am so pleased that the Stavros Center was selected as one of two Hillsborough County programs to receive BOA’s Neighborhood Builder’s Award;” the $200,000 grant will be distributed over two years and will help the awardees with operational support. The organizations selected have the ability to send selected leaders and senior executives to a development program crafted specifically for emerging leaders. The selection of awardees was conducted through an application process by which applicants shared their goals, commitments, and previous successes. A selection committee of local business people and community leaders reviewed award applications and chose the winners.

The mission of the Gus A. Stavros Center for Free Enterprise and Economic Education at the University of South Florida is to promote the integration of free enterprise and economic education into the K-12 curriculum in the ten school districts served by the University of South Florida. As one of nine centers for economic education in Florida, and one of approximately 300 centers in the nation, the Stavros Center serves the largest teacher and student population in the state, and is the only center housed in a College of Education. The USF Stavros Center is regarded at the state and national levels as one of the most productive and accomplished centers in the national network.

For more information contact the College of Education Communications Director.