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Tonjua Williams | |
---|---|
President of St. Petersburg College | |
Assumed office July 1, 2017 | |
Preceded by | William D. Law |
Personal details | |
Alma mater | Clearwater Christian College University of South Florida Barry University |
Tonjua Harris Williams is an American academic who became the President of St. Petersburg College in St. Petersburg,Florida in 2017.
Williams was one of the three children of her single mother who encouraged them to study. [1]
Williams began her career at the St. Petersburg College in 1986 after earning her bachelor's degree in humanities from Clearwater Christian College. She earned another bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Clearwater Christian,then a master's degree in Counselor Education from the University of South Florida. She studied at the Adrian Dominican School of Education to gain her Ph.D. in Higher Education from Barry University. [2]
Williams was the first woman and first African American to be a president of the college. [2] Dr. Williams worked as a Coordinator for Student Support Services,Sr. Vice President for Student Services,Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs and Provost at the college's Tarpon Springs campus. During that time,she initiated and oversaw several successful programs,including The College Experience student success initiative,which expanded partnerships between faculty and advisors,created an early alert system for struggling students and increased student visits to campus learning support centers.
Williams is an Aspen Presidential Fellow,a coach for the American Association of Community College's (AACC) Guided Pathways initiative,a faculty resident for the Community College Center for Student Engagement (CCCSE) institutes and is affiliated with several state and national organizations,often in leadership roles.
Her present affiliations include:
Pinellas County is a county located on the west central coast of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census,the population was 959,107,which makes it the seventh-most populous county in the state. It is also the most densely populated county in Florida,with 3,491 residents per square mile. The county is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater,Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area. Clearwater is the county seat. St. Petersburg is the largest city as well as the largest city in Florida that is not a county seat.
St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County,Florida,United States. As of the 2020 census,the population was 258,308,making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area,after Tampa. It is the largest city in the state that is not a county seat. Along with Clearwater,these cities are part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater Metropolitan Statistical Area,the second-largest in Florida with a population of around 2.8 million. St. Petersburg is on the Pinellas peninsula between Tampa Bay and the Gulf of Mexico,and is connected to mainland Florida to the north.
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County,Florida,United States,west of Tampa and north of St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2020 census,the city had a population of 117,292. Clearwater is the county seat of Pinellas County and is the smallest of the three principal cities in the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater metropolitan area,most commonly referred to as the Tampa Bay Area.
Gulfport is a city in Pinellas County,Florida,United States,bordering St. Petersburg,South Pasadena,and Boca Ciega Bay. The population of Gulfport was 12,029 at the 2010 census. Gulfport is part of the Tampa–St. Petersburg–Clearwater metropolitan statistical area.
Pinellas Park is a city located in central Pinellas County,Florida,United States. The population was 53,093 at the 2020 census. Originally home to northern transplants and vacationers,the hundred year old city has grown into the fourth largest city in Pinellas County,the most densely-populated county in Florida. The city and surrounding areas are almost completely urbanized. Pinellas Park contains a substantial portion of the Gateway area of the county,targeted for future infrastructure,residential,and commercial development as it sits roughly in the middle of the Tampa Bay area's over two million people. Though land-locked,its borders lie only a few miles from Tampa Bay to the east,and Boca Ciega Bay and the Gulf of Mexico to the west. The city is known for its popular equestrian facilities and events,and many residents also participate in fishing and water activities in nearby venues.
The Tampa Bay area is a major metropolitan area surrounding Tampa Bay on the Gulf Coast of Florida in the United States. It includes the main cities of Tampa,St. Petersburg,and Clearwater. It is the 18th-largest metropolitan area in the United States,with a population of 3,175,275 as of the 2020 U.S. Census.
St. Petersburg College (SPC) is a public college in Pinellas County,Florida. It is part of the Florida College System and one of the institutions in the system designated a "state college," as it offers a greater number of bachelor's degrees than traditional community colleges focused on associate degrees. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and enrolled about 29,000 students in the fall of 2018.
Pinellas County Schools is the public school district serving Pinellas County,Florida. The district is based in Largo. With over 104,000 students served in more than 140 schools and centers,the district is the 7th-largest in Florida and 26th-largest in the nation. It includes the entire county.
The University of South Florida (USF) is a public research university with its main campus located in Tampa,Florida,and other campuses in St. Petersburg and Sarasota. It is one of 12 members of the State University System of Florida. USF is home to 14 colleges,offering more than 240 undergraduate,graduate,specialist,and doctoral-level degree programs. USF is classified among "R1:Doctoral Universities –Very high research activity" and is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. USF is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is designated by the Florida Board of Governors as one of three Preeminent State Research Universities.
Peter Nehr is an Austrian-born American politician and former Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives who represented the 48th District of Florida from 2006 to 2012.
The Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail is a rail trail in Pinellas County,Florida. It stretches from Tarpon Springs in the north to St. Petersburg in the south,passing through the towns of Palm Harbor,Dunedin,Belleair,Clearwater,Largo,Seminole,South Pasadena,and Gulfport. It is utilized for walking,jogging,and cycling. Some trail users are able to commute to work using the Pinellas Trail instead of a motor vehicle.
The Florida education system consists of public and private schools in Florida,including the State University System of Florida (SUSF),the Florida College System (FCS),the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida (ICUF) and other private institutions,and also secondary and primary schools as well as virtual schools.
The Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Florida is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) in Florida which extends from Marco Island on the south,to Brooksville on the north,and inland to Plant City,Arcadia and LaBelle on the east. As part of the ECUSA,the diocese is a constituent member of the worldwide Anglican Communion.
Carl Martin Kuttler Jr. is the former president of St. Petersburg College in St. Petersburg,Florida,which he headed from 1978 to 2009.
C. Bette Wimbish was one of the leading African-American woman activists in Florida promoting the desegregation of schools and civil equality. She was most commonly known as a civil rights activist,a politician,and the first African American on the St. Petersburg,Florida city council. As well as being the first African-American to hold elected office in the Tampa Bay area in the 20th-century,Wimbish was also the first black female lawyer in Pinellas County,Florida. She was the wife of Ralph Wimbish and the mother of three children.
The Orange Belt Railway was a 3 ft narrow gauge railroad established in 1885 by Russian exile Peter Demens in Florida. It was one of the longest narrow gauge railroads in the United States at the time of its completion in 1888,with a mainline 152 miles (245 km) in length between Sanford and St. Petersburg. It carried citrus,vegetables,and passengers;and it interchanged with two standard gauge lines:the Jacksonville,Tampa and Key West Railway at Lake Monroe,and the Florida Central and Peninsular Railroad at Lacoochee.
A special election for Florida's 13th congressional district was held March 11,2014,to elect a member of the United States House of Representatives,following the death of incumbent Republican Congressman Bill Young on October 18,2013. Primary elections were held on January 14,2014. Young,who had already announced that he would not be running for re-election in 2014,was re-elected in 2012 with 57 percent of the vote. With 100% of the precincts reporting,David Jolly was declared the winner of the special election.
The Tampa and Gulf Coast Railroad (T&G) was a railroad company in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida in the United States. It initially built and operated a line that ran from the Tampa Northern Railroad main line in Lutz west to Tarpon Springs and into Pasco County. Additional track starting from Sulphur Springs running west towards Clearwater and south to St. Petersburg was built shortly after. The railroad was informally known as the "Tug n' Grunt". While it was the second railroad to serve St. Petersburg and Clearwater after the Orange Belt Railway,it had the advantage of being the first to connect the area directly with Tampa.
Gus A. Stavros was an American businessman and philanthropist. He founded the company Better Business Forms in the 1960s and later sold it. He founded the Stavros Institute and was a founding chairman of the Pinellas Education Foundation to improve the quality of local public education. He also served on the board of trustees of the University of South Florida and the governing board of USF St. Petersburg. He was also a part-owner of the Tampa Bay Rays baseball team.
St. Petersburg,Florida,held an election for mayor on August 24,2021. Incumbent Democratic mayor Rick Kriseman was term-limited and could not seek re-election to a third term in office. Municipal elections in St. Petersburg are officially nonpartisan. All candidates appeared on the same primary ballot,and because no candidate garnered at least 50% of the vote,the top two vote-getters advanced to a runoff election on November 2,2021. Former Pinellas County commissioner Ken Welch easily defeated city councillor Robert Blackmon in the runoff and became the first black mayor of St. Petersburg.