Sylvia Wilson Thomas

Advisory Board

Sylvia Wilson Thomas

Sylvia Wilson Thomas

Interim Vice President for Research & Innovation
President & CEO of the USF Research Foundation, Inc.

University of South Florida

Sylvia Wilson Thomas, Ph.D. was appointed interim Vice President for Research & Innovation and President & CEO of the USF Research Foundation, Inc. on November 10, 2021. Dr. Thomas directs aspects of USF’s research enterprise as a member of USF’s presidential cabinet.

Dr. Thomas is a Professor in Electrical Engineering, leads the Advanced Materials Bio and Integration Research (AMBIR) laboratory at USF, and formerly served as Assistant Dean of the USF College of Engineering. She has contributed to USF’s efforts for research innovation, strategic planning and renewal, faculty success, consolidation, cultural transformation and economic development among underserved communities, and student recruitment and workforce development.

Having over 25 years of global experience in academia and industry, Dr. Thomas is the author of numerous peer-reviewed journal articles, proceedings, presentations, and six book chapters, and her creative, current affairs-driven projects have been supported by a wide-range of funders, from the USF seed grant programs to the National Science Foundation. She is a Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE), a Senior Member of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI) and Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). She is currently Vice President of the USF Chapter of the National Academy of Inventors. She is the recipient of the 2020 Black Engineer of the Year (BEYA) Education STEM Educational Leadership Award from US Black Engineer and Information Technology Magazine.

As a longtime leader in the effort to bring more diversity to engineering, Dr. Thomas has melded her mentoring of students and an ambitious range of projects that has her lab at the forefront of exploring new ways to solve global technological challenges and broaden participation. More recently, Dr. Thomas’ lab has led several high-profile projects applying advanced circuitry, materials, and data analytics to the COVID-19 pandemic, partly supported by a grant from the USF Pandemic Response Research Network (PRRN).  

As an advocate for innovation and collaborative engagement, she has produced 12 patents and patent disclosures, and assisted in the success of such companies and organizations as Agere Systems, Lucent/Bell Labs, Kimberly Clark Corporation, IBM, and Procter & Gamble. Dr. Thomas is also the USF GEM Consortium Representative and mentor for the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation University Center for Exemplary Mentoring (UCEM).

Dr. Thomas’ research and teaching endeavors are focused on bio (biomedical, biological) and nano electronic device integration using advanced membrane/material systems to meet global technological challenges for alternative energy sources, sustainable environments, and bio-applications. Her research explores the synthesis and device integration of inorganic and organic thin films and nanofibers. Thomas’ research group specializes in characterizing, modeling, and integrating materials that demonstrate high levels of biocompatibility, thermal reflectivity, mechanical robustness, and environmental sustainability. Her research is interdisciplinary in nature and fosters collaborations across One USF, regionally, nationally, and globally.

Dr. Thomas is involved in various organizations, having served as the first female chair and Florida Senate appointee to the Florida Education Fund Board of Directors and the Engineering Workforce Commission of the American Association of Engineering Societies. Additionally, she serves as the President of the IEEE’s Engineering in Medicine and Biology Florida West Coast Section; advisor for the Society of Women Engineers and National Society of Black Engineers; and a member of the Board of Directors for Black Girls Code. Dr. Thomas has been director/co-director of three NSF Research Experience for Undergraduate Program sites, NSF Research Experience for Teachers programs, NSF ADVANCE, and a current NSF Florida Alliance for Graduate Education in the Professoriate (FL-AGEP) Transformation Alliance. Her outreach includes international efforts in Italy, Singapore, Portugal, South Korea, Mexico, and South Africa.

She holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Vanderbilt University, where she was a Patricia Roberts Harris Fellow, and received her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Howard University, as a NSF Materials Research Center of Excellence Fellow.

James Howard

Advisory Board

James Howard

Executive Director
Black Inventors Hall of Fame

James Howard is a lecturer, design historian, industrial designer, inventor and entrepreneur. He has designed more than 300 products and has 20 patents. He owns and operates entrepreneurial U, a specialty private career school of Design Thinking. Howard’s course, “Bridge” Exploring New Career Pathways, takes students through the problem-solving processes: problem/necessity, solution, and execution and leads them to new career pathways and job opportunities. James Howard serves as Executive Director of the Black Inventors Hall of Fame, (www.BIHOF.org) a virtual museum devoted to immortalizing African Americans whose noteworthy inventions have improved lives yet gone unnoticed. James also serves on the Board of Directors for the United States Intellectual Property Alliance, and recently assisted the National Inventors Hall of Fame to curate their very first Black Inventors exhibit Breaking Barriers. James was listed on the advisory panel for the American Institutes for Research, addressing the question, Does Race and Gender of the Patent Examiner Matter for Innovation? He is also the recent recipient of the TAGGIE award for his documentary film, The GATHERING, and the co-producer of the groundbreaking film, The Great Equalizer, examining fairness in the patent system. James has served as a subject matter expert on Design thinking for the Keller Innovation Center at Princeton University. He is also a visiting lecturer for the University of Texas Center for Integrated Design. James earned a Master’s and Bachelor of Fine Arts – Industrial Design at the University of Illinois, Urbana, IL. James was recently awarded Honorary member of the National Academy of Inventors, and he served on the panel for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the innovation ecosystem. He is also a recent recipient of the Inspire Top 100 award. For the past two years, James has served as a keynote speaker for various USTPO Black History Month symposiums.

Marco Carvalho

Advisory Board

Marco Carvalho

Executive Vice President and Provost
Florida Institute of Technology

Marco Carvalho (Ph.D., Tulane University, 2006) became executive vice president and provost at Florida Institute of Technology in 2020 and was named chief operating officer in 2022. He came to Florida Tech in 2012 as an associate professor of computer science. He was a professor of computer science and cybersecurity in 2014 when he was named executive director of the L3Harris Institute for Assured Information and the L3Harris Chair for Assured Information, positions he continues to hold. After serving briefly as acting dean of the School of Computing, Dr. Carvalho was named dean of the College of Engineering and Science in 2017, a position he held until 2020.

Prior to Florida Tech, Dr. Carvalho was a research scientist at the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition from 2000-2012. He earlier worked as a network operations manager for DURO Communications and director of technology for DotSTAR Communications L.C., both in Pensacola. From 1995 to 1997, he was a research engineer at Federal University of Brasilia (UnB) in his native Brazil. 

The holder of multiple patents, Dr. Carvalho’s research interests include cybersecurity and critical infrastructure protection, tactical and cognitive networks, multi-agent systems for enterprise security and distributed data processing, and intelligent data understanding and applied machine learning. He has conducted research sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, the Air Force Research Laboratory and DARPA.

Dr. Carvalho has published over 170 papers and journal articles in peer review venues covering multiple areas including cyber resilience, cybersecurity, AI and machine learning, distributed systems, and tactical communications. Additional publications include three edited books and several book chapters.

He is a member of the Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society and IEEE.

Rhea F. Law

Advisory Board

Rhea Law

Rhea F. Law

President
University of South Florida

Rhea Law is a proud fifth-generation Floridian who is passionate about the success of the state. Actively involved in corporate, public policy, civic and charitable work, Law holds top leadership positions with many Florida-based organizations. She received gubernatorial appointments to serve on the inaugural Board of Trustees for the University of South Florida, as well as the Board of the Florida Council of 100, the public policy liaison with Florida’s governor, cabinet, legislative leadership and Supreme Court. Rhea served as Chair of the Board for both organizations. Further, she served on the Presidential Search Committee for the University of South Florida in 1999 and 2019. In addition, she was a two-time Chair of the Tampa Hillsborough Economic Development Corporation and the Tampa Bay Partnership during times of reorganization and expansion. She also served as Chair of the University of South Florida Health Professions Conferencing Corporation which operates the Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation and Chair of the Stetson University College of Law Board of Overseers, as well as serving on the Board of Trustees of Stetson University.
 
Currently, Law serves on the Board of Directors of Tampa Electric Company, which supplies electricity to the Tampa area, and Peoples Gas, which provides gas throughout Florida. She also serves on the Executive Committee of the Tampa Bay Economic Development Council, the Tampa Bay Chamber, and on the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center Board of Directors and National Board of Advisors. As a member of the USF President’s Council Society, she is among honored donors who have made a lifetime commitment of $100,000 or more or a legacy gift to USF.

Law is the former CEO and Chair of the Board of Fowler White Boggs, a Florida law firm. She led the merger of Fowler with a national firm, Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney in 2014 where she continued to serve as Chair, Florida Offices until 2021. The consolidation of the firms created a powerhouse firm with law offices throughout the country and hundreds of lawyers who specialize in a broad spectrum of business areas such as Energy, Finance, Healthcare and Life Sciences. 

Her areas of practice included higher education, economic development, government, environment and land use. Over the course of her 35-year-plus career, Law has worked with clients on land use and strategic planning to meet the needs of a growing Florida.

Recent recognitions include:

  • Tampa Bay Business Journal: BusinessWoman of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award 2022
  • Florida Council of 100: Governor’s Business Leader of the Year Award 2021
  • Florida Trend magazine: Named to Florida 500 – Florida’s Most Influential Business Leaders – since 2018; Living Legend in 2021
  • Tampa Bay Business Journal: Named #6 in the Power 100 – Tampa Bay’s Most Powerful Business Leaders with greatest impact and influence on the local business community
  • Tampa Bay Times: Named one of the Top 25 Most Influential Business Players in Tampa Bay
  • The Best Lawyers in America® and Florida Super Lawyers since 2006; “Lawyer of the Year,” Best Lawyers list and in the Top 50 Female Lawyers

Paul R. Sanberg, Chair

Advisory Board

Paul Sanberg

Paul R. Sanberg, Chair

President, National Academy of Inventors
Executive Director, Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair
Distinguished University Professor
University of South Florida

Paul R. Sanberg, Ph.D., D.Sc. is Distinguished University Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery and Brain Repair, Morsani College of Medicine; and Executive Director of the Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair at the University of South Florida. His work has been instrumental in translating new pharmaceutical and cellular therapeutics to clinical trials and commercialization for stroke, ALS, Alzheimer’s, Tourette’s syndrome, and Parkinson’s disease. He has significant experience with start-ups, venture capital and pharmaceutical companies. He is an inventor on 55 U.S. and >100 foreign patents; author of over 700 scientific articles and 14 books. He has served on numerous national advisory boards, and on the editorial boards for over 30 scientific journals. He is a Fellow of 16 national and international academic and scientific societies, and has been recognized with numerous awards. His industry experience includes service as a founder of Saneron CCEL Therapeutics, Inc. (an affiliate of CryoCell), Scientific Director for CytoTherapeutics, Inc. (now Stem Cells Inc.), and CSO for Layton BioScience Inc., all of which were involved in cell therapy for degenerative disorders. He is also President of the National Academy of Inventors.

Phoebe Cade Miles

Advisory Board

Phoebe Cade Miles

Phoebe Cade Miles

President
Cade Museum

Phoebe Cade Miles founded the Cade Museum in 2004. She is also co-founder and vice-president of the Gloria Dei Foundation, a family-operated charity that awards grants to organizations that promote the common good in accordance with Christian principles.

Both Gloria Dei and the Cade Museum Foundation were endowed with gifts by Mrs. Miles’ parents, Dr. Robert Cade and Mary Cade. Dr. Cade, a University of Florida researcher and physician who passed away in November 2007, was best known as the leader of the team that invented Gatorade in 1965.

A native of Gainesville, Florida, Mrs. Miles has lived much of her adult life overseas, accompanying her husband to official postings with the U.S. Army in Nuremberg, Germany, and with the U.S. State Department in Bridgetown, Barbados; Berlin, Germany; and Buenos Aires, Argentina. She also spent a semester abroad as a university student in Heidelberg, Germany.

Fluent in German and Spanish, she earned a B.A. in History and a B.A. in German from the University of Washington in 1987. She is a 1981 graduate of Buchholz High School in Gainesville and has been married to Richard Miles, also of Gainesville, since 1985. They have three children, Christian, Cecelia, and Elena.

Kathy Castor

Advisory Board

Kathy Castor

Kathy Castor

U.S. Representative
Florida’s 14th Congressional District

Kathy Castor is the Tampa Bay area’s voice in the U.S. Congress. She is serving her fourth term and represents Florida’s 14th Congressional district, which includes Tampa, St. Petersburg and parts of Hillsborough and Pinellas counties. She was originally elected in 2006 and re-elected by voters in 2008, 2010 and 2012. Castor is the first woman to represent Hillsborough and Pinellas counties in the U.S. Congress.

Castor focuses on issues vital to Tampa Bay area families and businesses and is committed to building a stronger economy. She works on initiatives that create jobs, improve schools, provide access to affordable health care, and protect consumers and the environment.

Castor is an outspoken advocate on behalf of the hardworking families, students and seniors of the Tampa Bay region. She successfully worked to raise the minimum wage, cut taxes for middle-class families, increase the amount of Pell grants for students, improve Medicare and extend unemployment benefits. She hosted six foreclosure prevention workshops designed to help homeowners stay in their homes. In 2008, Castor successfully passed a new law that permits college students and their families to remain eligible for student loans during times of dispute with insurance companies over medical bills.

Michael J. DeLuca

Advisory Board

Mike DeLuca

Michael J. DeLuca

Intellectual Property Counsel
Florida Power & Light, NextEra Energy

Mike DeLuca graduated from Virginia Polytechnic School and State University with a B.S. in electrical engineering and earned his juris doctorate at Nova University in south Florida. He currently manages the intellectual property portfolio for NextEra Energy including its subsidiary Florida Power & Light. In addition to his IP management duties, DeLuca is inspiring a new generation of inventors at NextEra, helping them to cultivate their own creative problem solving abilities related to large scale clean solar and wind power. DeLuca began his career as an electrical engineer at Motorola, Inc. where he developed groundbreaking technologies for nearly twenty years. He then went on to invent for numerous assignees including SiriusXM, Google, BlackBerry, Interoperable Technologies, Vuzix, and PhotoNation. In 1997, DeLuca founded IdeoCo, Inc. to develop and manage his personal inventions including virtual reality, digital camera, flexible display, advanced acoustic, and automotive technologies. Inducted into the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame in 2017.

Elizabeth Dougherty

Advisory Board

Elizabeth Dougherty

Elizabeth Dougherty

Eastern Regional Outreach Director
United States Patent and Trademark Office

As the Eastern Regional Outreach Director for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), Elizabeth Dougherty carries out the strategic direction of the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO, and is responsible for leading the USPTO’s East Coast stakeholder engagement. Focusing on the region and actively engaging with the community, Dougherty ensures the USPTO’s initiatives and programs are tailored to the region’s unique ecosystem of industries and stakeholders.

A 27-year veteran of the USPTO, Dougherty previously served as the Senior Advisor to the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO. In this role, she worked closely with agency leadership to implement the policies and priorities for the USPTO. She began her career at the USPTO as a patent examiner after graduating from The Catholic University of America with a bachelor’s degree in physics. While a patent examiner, Dougherty obtained her J.D. from The Columbus School of Law at The Catholic University of America and served as a Senior Legal Advisor in the Office of Patent Legal Administration for a significant part of her career. She has also served in the USPTO’s Office of Petitions, the Office of Innovation Development, and the Office of Government Affairs.

Dougherty has dedicated much of her career to the USPTO’s outreach and education programs focusing on small businesses, startups and entrepreneurs. In this effort she has developed, implemented, and supervised programs that support the independent inventor community, small businesses, entrepreneurs, and the intellectual property interests of colleges and universities. Similarly she has spearheaded a number of special projects with federal, state and local governments, and private organizations to promote and support invention and innovation in the United States.

Dougherty is a member of the Virginia Bar, the Giles S. Rich American Inn of Court, the Pauline Newman American Inn of Court, the American Bar Association, the Federal Circuit Bar Association, the American Intellectual Property Law Association, the Patent and Trademark Office Society, the Supervisory Patent Examiners and Classifiers Organization, Women in Science and Engineering, Federally Employed Women, and the Network of Executive Women.

Kenneth Ford

Advisory Board

Kenneth Ford

Kenneth Ford

Founder and Director
Florida Institute for Human & Machine Cognition (IHMC)

Kenneth Ford is Founder and Director of the Florida Institute for Human & Machine Cognition (IHMC), an independent not-for-profit research institute with locations in Pensacola and Ocala Florida. IHMC has grown into one of the nation’s premier research organizations with world-class scientists and engineers investigating a broad range of topics related to building technological systems aimed at amplifying and extending human cognitive, physical, and perceptual capacities. Ford is the author or co-author of hundreds of scientific papers and six books. Dr. Ford’s research interests include: artificial intelligence, cognitive science, human-centered computing, and entrepreneurship in government and academia. He received a Ph.D. in Computer Science from Tulane University. Dr. Ford has served on the National Science Board (NSB), the Air Force Science Advisory Board, the Defense Science Board, and served as Chairman of the NASA Advisory Council. Dr. Ford is a Fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI), a Charter Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, and has received many awards and honors including the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal in 1999, the Doctor Honoris Causas from the University of Bordeaux in 2005, the 2008 Robert S. Engelmore Memorial Award for his work in artificial intelligence, the 2010 NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal, the 2012 Tulane University Outstanding Alumnus in the School of Science and Engineering, and in 2015 Dr. Ford received the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) Distinguished Service Award. Inducted into the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame in 2017.