Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed two new members and reappointed three incumbents to the St. Petersburg College District Board of Trustees.
DeSantis announced the appointment of Richard Franz III and Danielle Marolf, along with the reappointment of Jason Butts, Katherine Cole and Thomas Kidwell.
Franz serves as Chief Operating Officer and Southeast regional managing partner at Sorren Inc. He is a member of both the American and Florida Institutes of Certified Public Accountants and previously worked as a CPA at PricewaterhouseCoopers. He earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Florida.
Marolf is President, founder and head of school for Wellmont Academy. She also serves as Vice Chair and Treasurer of the Florida Coalition of Christian Private Schools Accreditation. Marolf holds bachelor’s degrees in psychology and music from Houghton College.
Butts is President of SimplyIOA, a division of the Insurance Office of America. He’s a member of the Citizens Property Insurance Corporation Board of Governors and the Florida Association of Insurance Agents, and earned a bachelor’s degree in telecommunications from the University of Florida.
Cole is a lawyer and shareholder at Hill Ward Henderson. She is Chair-elect of the Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce, serves on the Morton Plant Mease Hospital Board of Directors, and has previously served on both the Pinellas County and City of Clearwater charter review committees. Cole earned her undergraduate degree from the University of Tennessee and her law degree from Stetson University.
Kidwell is Vice President of Wealth Management at Cyndeo Wealth Partners. His background includes time as an account Vice President at UBS and time as a minor league baseball player and coach within the St. Louis Cardinals organization. He earned a bachelor’s degree in American Studies from Yale University.
All five appointments are subject to confirmation by the Senate. If confirmed, the Trustees will help oversee governance, budgeting and strategic direction for St. Petersburg College.
