District Board of Trustees

Chair Michael Bell was originally appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor Scott in August 2017, and reappointed by Governor DeSantis in July 2021. He was elected chair of the District Board of Trustees in August 2021, previously serving as vice chair for Nassau County from August 2019 to August 2021. Mr. Bell is Vice President of Public Affairs and Communication at Rayonier, Inc. In this capacity, he is responsible for planning, developing, implementing and directing the government affairs, issues management, public relations and community affairs functions for Rayonier. Mr. Bell serves as corporate spokesperson, provides counsel to regional and corporate management and administers the company’s charitable giving program.

Over the last 15 years, Mr. Bell has been heavily involved in workforce and economic development in Northeast Florida. He received his Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of Maryland.

Mr. Bell currently serves on the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Florida Forestry Association (Past President), the Boards of the Georgia Forestry Association (Past Chairman), Florida Land Council and the Operating Committee of the National Alliance of Forest Owners (Chairman).

Vice Chair Rod Odom was appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor DeSantis in October 2019. He was elected vice chair of the District Board of Trustees for Nassau County in February 2023, and as a committee member for the Board’s Finance & Audit Committee in August 2021. Mr. Odom is a retired CEO at AT&T Southeast. Previously, he served in various roles at Bellsouth, including Director of New Venture Planning, Executive Vice Present of Network Operations and President of Network Services.

Mr. Odom is a member of the University of Florida Dean’s Leadership Council and a trustee emeritus of Oglethorpe University in Atlanta. He earned his bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the University of Florida.

Vice Chair Wayne Young was originally appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor Scott in February 2018, and reappointed by Governor DeSantis in July 2019 and July 2021. He was elected vice chair of the District Board of Trustees for Duval County in August 2019, as a committee member for the Board’s Finance & Audit Committee in August 2018, and served as chair of the Committee from November 2020 to September 2021. He previously served as a member on the Board of the Florida State College at Jacksonville Foundation. Mr. Young currently serves as the Vice President of Environmental Services for the Jacksonville Electric Authority (JEA), where he has spent more than a decade of his career, after retiring from his more than 30 years of honorable service with the United States Navy.

Mr. Young is a Jacksonville native and graduate of the United States Naval Academy where he earned his Bachelor of Science in Management Technology. He also holds two master’s degrees, a Master of Science in Telecommunications Systems Management and a Master of Arts in National Security and Strategic Studies.

During his career, Mr. Young commanded two naval warships and completed a tour of duty at the Pentagon. He also served as the Commander of a Navy School Command and Regional Director of Admissions at the Naval Academy, where he was directly responsible for education and training, student development and recruitment. Mr. Young also has extensive experience working closely with federal agencies and branches, local governments, faith-based and community organizations and private sector businesses. He is a member of the Military Officers Association of America, American Legion, disabled Veterans of America, Leadership Florida and Leadership Jacksonville, and serves on the Boards of the American Red Cross (Northeast FL Region) and Year Up.

Trustee Jennifer Brown was appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor DeSantis in July 2019. She previously served as the District Board of Trustees’ liaison to the Foundation Board from August 2019 to August 2021. Dr. Brown is the executive director/CEO of KIPP Jacksonville Schools, which opened the first KIPP schools in Florida, and currently educates Kindergarten through eighth grade students from the north and west sides of Jacksonville. KIPP, the Knowledge Is Power Program, is a national non-profit network of college-preparatory, public charter schools with a 25-year track record of preparing students in educationally-underserved communities for success in college and life.

Bringing almost two decades of experience to her current role, Dr. Brown has worked as a teacher, curriculum specialist, and instructional coach in rural and large urban school districts. Prior to joining the KIPP Jacksonville team in 2015, she served as program director for education non-profit organizations, including New Classrooms Innovation Partners and New Leaders. Dr. Brown earned both a B.A. and M.A. in English from Winthrop University, and the Ed.D. in Education Leadership and Policy from Vanderbilt University.

Dr. Brown also served in the U.S. Army Reserve for 8 years and deployed in 2003 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. She is very engaged in the local community, serving on the boards of Northeast Florida Women Veterans Association and Young Life Central Jacksonville, as well as being an active member of church and various social organizations. Dr. Brown was welcomed into the New Member Class of 2022 for the Jacksonville Women’s Network in December 2021.

Trustee Thomas McGehee, Jr. was originally appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor Bush in 1999, and reappointed by Governor Crist in July 2007, by Governor Scott in August 2011 and May 2017, and by Governor DeSantis in July 2019. Mr. McGehee was elected District Board of Trustees’ liaison to the Foundation Board in June 2022. He previously served as chair of the District Board of Trustees from August 2019 to August 2021, as vice chair for Duval County from August 2016 to August 2019, and as a committee member for the Board's Finance & Audit Committee from August 2015 to July 2017. Additionally, he served as the Board's liaison to the Foundation Board from August 2014 to July 2015. In 2008 to 2010, Mr. McGehee served as chair of the Board and as vice chair for Duval County from 2007 to 2008. He was the former executive vice president of Mac Papers, Inc., a family-owned paper distribution company. The company was founded in 1965, with Mr. McGehee having worked there from 1981 through 2020.

Mr. McGehee serves as Foundation Board Chairman of the Ascension St. Vincent’s Healthcare Foundation and as a member of the Ascension St. Vincent’s Medical Centers Board of Directors. Previously, he served as chair of the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce Military Affairs Committee, president of the Navy League of Jacksonville and as a member of the Printing Association of Florida Board of Directors. Mr. McGehee earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management from the University of Florida.

Trustee Aaron Miri was appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor DeSantis in October 2022. Mr. Miri is the Senior Vice President and Chief Digital and Information Officer for Baptist Health. In this position, he is responsible for creating the future of Baptist Health from an information technology perspective, with an emphasis on digital strategy, innovation, cybersecurity and integration of technology across the enterprise.

Mr. Miri has more than 20 years of health care and technology experience. Prior to joining Baptist Health, he served as the Chief Information Officer for the University of Texas at Austin, Dell Medical School and UT Health Austin (Texas). His roles prior to UT Austin include Chief Information Officer for Imprivata, a health care IT company based in Boston, Massachusetts; Chief Information Officer for Walnut Hill Medical Center in Dallas, Texas; and Chief Technology Officer for Children’s Health System of Texas in Dallas.

Mr. Miri received his MBA with distinction from the University of Dallas, and his Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from the University of Texas at Arlington. He is a Certified Healthcare Chief Information Officer (CHCIO) through the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives, a distinguished Fellow with the Health Information Management Systems Society (FHIMSS), a distinguished Fellow with the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (FCHIME), and is a Project Management Professional (PMP) with the Project Management Institute. He serves on the federal Health IT Advisory Committee (HITAC) and the Health IT Policy Committee, is an advisor to the National Academy of Medicine and also serves on many not-for-profit boards.

Trustee Andrew Shaw, M.D. was appointed to the Florida State College at Jacksonville District Board of Trustees by Governor DeSantis in July 2021. Dr. Shaw is a Medical Doctor and Neurosurgeon with Lyerly Neurosurgery at Baptist Health. Previously, he practiced at Ocala Health Neurosurgery and Ohio State University Medical Center.

Dr. Shaw is a member of the American Board of Neurological Surgery, American Association of Neurological Surgeons and the National Association of Spine Surgeons. He completed his doctor of medicine, fellowship and residency at the Ohio State University College of Medicine.

To be announced

To be announced