Janelle Irwin Taylor
The Florida Board of Governors appointed Tampa businessman Mike Griffin to the University of South Florida Board of Trustees on Thursday.
Griffin will fill the vacancy created when Brian Lamb left the board earlier this year to join the Florida Board of Governors that oversees the state university system.
Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed Lamb, a Fifth Third Bank executive, to that board.
Griffin’s appointment is effective immediately and runs through Jan. 6, 2020.
The Florida Board of Governors had previously appointed Griffin, a Tampa real estate executive, chair of USF’s Consolidation Planning Study and Implementation Task Force. That committee oversaw details concerning USF’s consolidation of its three regional campuses into a singular accreditation.
Griffin replaced Dr. Jonathan Ellen who resigned after controversy surrounding his leadership of All Children’s Hospital.
He resigned his position on the Port Tampa Bay Board of Directors last year to focus more of his volunteer efforts on USF.
Griffin is Senior Managing Director for Savills Studley Occupier Services, a full service real estate solutions business in Tampa.
He also previously served as Chair of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce and worked with Tampa business leaders on the Tampa Bay Rays stadium site selection process.
The USF Board of Trustees is responsible for making cost-effective policy decisions that fit within the school’s mission and maintain high-quality education programs. The board also has hiring and firing authority over the USF system president.
