Dean's Leadership Council
The College of Arts and Sciences is privileged to have the leadership and commitment of its Dean's Leadership Council. The Council's mission is to foster a vital relationship between the College and the community that it serves. The College is honored that the following individuals have given at least $2,000 per year to the College and have committed to serving the Arts and Sciences with their time and their talent:
- Beth Burwell* -- Vice President, Dental Operations, Florida Blue
- Sheila Hickson-Curran-- Medical Safety Officer, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care
- Carol Lakkis -- Clinical Research Fellow, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care
- Katie LeMaster – Retired Nurse and Social Worker, Mayo Clinic
- Shiv Mahadevan -- Senior Research Fellow, Materials Discovery, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.
- Christina McIntosh* -- Local Realtor and team leader for ENGEL & VÖLKERS Jacksonville
- Rhodes Robinson -- CEO, Environmental Services, Inc.
- Brian Rose -- Owner, Remedy Intelligent Staffing
- Bob Tonsfeldt – Retired Business Executive
* UNF Alumni
Elizabeth (Beth) Burwell
Occupation: VP, Dental Operations, Life & Specialty Ventures, L.L.C., an Affiliate Company of Florida Blue. Beth has served 28 years with Florida Blue in various roles including Technology Infrastructure, Operations, Partnership Management, M&A and Vendor Management.
Education: University of Florida, B.S., Computer Science Engineering; University of North Florida, M.B.A.
Personal: Beth is a native Floridian. She has been married to Richard Burwell for 31 years. Richard is also a UNF alumni with a B.S. and M.B.A. They have three children, Amanda, Sarah and David. Amanda is a Chemistry major and Sarah is a Sociology major both at UNF. David is a High School Senior who will be applying to UNF Coggin College of Business in 2017. Beth enjoys her family, the beach, camping, and outdoor activities.
Sheila Hickson-Curran
Occupation: Medical Safety Officer, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care
Education: City University London, Bsc(Hons), Optometry & Vision Science; British College of Optometrists, MCOptom, Optometric ;Diplomate, Section on Cornea, Contact Lenses and Refractive Technologies, American Academy of Optometry
Personal: For the last 14 years, Sheila and her family have called Ponte Vedra Beach home.
Dr. Carol Lakkis
Occupation: Currently a Clinical Research Fellow and Head of Applied Clinical Sciences in Research & Development at Johnson & Johnson Vision Care. Carol has previously held the positions of Director of Research, Australian College of Optometry, University of Melbourne and Assistant Clinical Professor at UC Berkeley School of Optometry. (Director, iBiomedical Consulting; Adjunct Professor, University of Houston College of Optometry)
Education: University of Melbourne, BScOptom, Optometry; University of Melbourne, Ph.D., Ocular Microbiology; University of Melbourne, PGCertOcTher, Ocular Pharmacology
Personal: Originally from Melbourne, Carol moved to Jacksonville in 2010. She enjoys cooking, music, theater, museums and watching Aussie Rules football.
Katie LeMaster
Occupation: Retired Nurse and Social Worker, Mayo Clinic
Education: Master of Social Work, Florida State University; Bachelor of Science, Social Work, Florida State University; Associate of Science, Nursing, Florida State University
Personal: Katie is a retired U.S. Navy Social Worker and currently works as a Registered Nurse at the Mayo Clinic. Her board affiliations have included the National Association of Social Workers, Catholic Charities, St. Johns County Historic Resource Board, and the Board of the Mental Health Resource Center. Katie is a 1990 graduate of Leadership Jacksonville.
Shiv Mahadevan
Occupation: Senior Research Fellow, Materials Discovery, Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc.
Education: Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry, 1996 -Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Master of Business Administration, 1991 - University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.A.; Master of Science in Chemistry, 1989 - Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, 1985 - University of Madras, Madras (Chennai), India
Personal: As a way of continuing Johnson & Johnson Vision Care’s strong relationship with the College, Shiv accepted the invitation to be on the Dean’s Council following Dr. Carol Lakkis. Shiv has a PhD in Chemistry with a focus in organic chemistry. Shiv has been a chemist for J&J Vision Care in Jacksonville since 2000.
Christina McIntosh
Occupation: Local Realtor and team leader for ENGEL & VÖLKERS Jacksonville. Serving the Jacksonville, St Johns, Ponte Vedra, Nocatee and surrounding areas. Specializing in New Construction, Listings, Relocations and buyers.
Education: Bachelor of Arts, Spanish, UNF ‘95
Personal: Married with four children, enjoys family time traveling and boating. Favorite hobby is to fish.
Rhodes Robinson
Occupation: Currently a Principal at Environmental Services, Inc. Rhodes is a wildlife biologist, Certified Environmental Professional, and Professional Wetland Scientist. During his career, he has conducted environmental studies throughout the Southeastern United States and Eastern Caribbean on over 1,000,000 acres of land. He has extensive experience in large-scale planning and permitting projects, conducting and coordinating master plans, developments of regional impacts, environmental impact statements, and mitigation banks.
Education: North Carolina State University, B.S., Textile Technology; North Carolina State University, B.S., Wildlife Biology; North Carolina State University, M.S., Wildlife Biology
Personal: Rhodes and his wife Sarah live in Queens Harbor.
Brian Rose
Occupation: Brian is the owner of Remedy Intelligent Staffing. Remedy provides strategic staffing solutions to clients from Jacksonville to Daytona Beach. Brian recently expanded his business by opening 3 offices throughout Kansas. Brian is a C.P.A. and began his career by spending 10 years with KPMG.
Education: University of Kansas, B.S. in Accounting; Rollins College, MBA.
Personal: Brian and his wife, Diane, live in Glen Kernan CC. They enjoy traveling to visit their son, Carter, in Atlanta, and their daughter, Taylor, a senior at the University of Kansas.
Bob Tonsfeldt
Occupation: As a retired business executive, Bob is currently attempting to perfect retirement. Bob’s career was rooted in the telecom industry with the last ten years of his career involved in cellular. Bob served as President of BellSouth Mobility.
Education: Bob earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Iowa State University in 1957. Bob took many short courses in marketing, and participated in an 18-month tour of education at Bell Labs.
Personal: Bob plays Gin Rummy three days a week, Bridge two to four days a week, and attends church on Sunday. He is also a frequent patron of the movies and enjoys classical music.