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Tim Beard

Panel discusses race, social justice issues in America

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Finding meaningful solutions to enduring race and social justice issues in America — begins first with open, honest, respectful conversations with one another.

That was the overarching theme of a group of panelists taking part in a virtual seminar called “Equity in our Nation.”

Tim Beard is president of Pasco-Hernando State College (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)

The Sept. 14 event, hosted by Pasco-Hernando State College, brought together local speakers of diverse race and religious backgrounds.

The panelists spent three hours expressing their views on the current state of America, and offering suggestions for how to improve systems to increase fairness, justice and educational equities.

Social justice issues have come front and center — in the wake of persistent nationwide protests in response to incidents of police brutality and other racially motivated violence against Blacks.

Having a safe haven in higher education and faith-based structures to debate differing ideas and have meaningful dialogue is the foundation to facilitate change in what’s become a nation divided in recent months, said PHSC president Tim Beard.

Beard, who is Black, put it like this: “We all perhaps would agree that our country is very divided right now. I’ve never seen it this divided in my little short 58 years. I think it’s going to take sessions and platforms to learn how to listen to each other. None of us know it all, but together, we can make America a great nation.”

James V. Williams is senior pastor of Clearwater’s Mt. Olive African Methodist Episcopal Church. (Courtesy of Mt. Olive African Methodist Episcopal Church)

That message resonates with Pasco Sheriff’s Office Cpl. Bryan Banner.

In a period rife with social unrest, Banner has “serious skin in the game” being a Black man who works in law enforcement, and who has three sons.

“I always say: I don’t think there’s much that can’t be solved over coffee and some conversations. That’s just my approach to life and problem-solving,” said Banner. “Before we point guns at each other, before we take up arms and kill each other, how about we attempt to have a conversation?”

Panelists also agreed that being humble and treating others how you want to be treated are paramount to improving society, on the whole.

Protesters stood on the side of the road at the intersection of State Road 56 and Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, chanting slogans during a peaceful protest on June 6 to try to raise awareness for the need to take action to end systemic racism. (File)

“When you have a problem, you don’t fix the problem by becoming the problem,” said James Williams, a Black senior pastor at Mount Olive African Methodist Episcopal Church in Clearwater.

“In this nation, we’ve come to a place where we reach conclusions about someone based on the narrative of the day. What do I mean? Instead of giving a person the opportunity to show you their character, we generalize them, we’ve come to a conclusion about them, based on a previous experience. …What if we give people the opportunity to show us their character, before assuming that they are what we’ve experienced?,” Williams said.

Rabbi Jeff Zaremsky of Beth El-Shalom in New Port Richey and St. Petersburg similarly observed “loving one another” and “having a heart that puts the other person first and cares about them” can collectively instill sustainable social justice throughout communities.

Black in America
A significant portion of discussion veered into the Black experience in America.

Pasco-Hernando State College trustee Al Hernandez (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)

AdventHealth West Pasco/North Pinellas community engagement coordinator Trevor Williams underscored the struggles people of color face today in the U.S., resulting from what he claimed is a nation originally founded “on racist beliefs and the notion of white supremacy.”

Those ideals, Williams said, remain steeped in policies and procedures “that are not made to factor in minorities and furthers the gap of equality.”

As an example, he said, “Black people who commit a crime are more likely to receive a harsher punishment compared to a white person who committed the very same crime with the same exact background.”

Williams, who is Black, also detailed how segregation is still prevalent in school systems, noting large percentages of Black and Latino students receive a weaker quality of education growing up in poorer communities, therefore placing them at a greater disadvantage in health and social outcomes compared to white counterparts.

He then summed up the obstacles overall: “Let’s just say that if my name was “Travaris” and not “Trevor” my chances of receiving a callback for an application would be cut in half.”

Pasco Alliance for Substance Addiction Prevention (ASAP) community health coordinator Bonni Snider supplemented those points — stating people of color have felt invisible and marginalized throughout American history.

“For years, minorities have been thought of as less than human; thought of as more of a condition than a person,” Snider said.

It’s something Snider has experienced firsthand, as a biracial woman.

“I have been asked numerous times, ‘What are you?’ and when I hear that question, it makes me think I’m seen more as an object than I am as a person. My response typically is, ‘I’m a human.’

“How many times can a non-minority, someone who’s Caucasian, say that they’ve experienced those same things?”

Snider went on to reference the provision of the original 1787 U.S. Constitution, which allowed Southern states to count slaves as three-fifths of a person in population counts.

Rod Cunningham, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) community outreach director (File)

The so-called Three-Fifths compromise, she reasoned, perpetuated the marginalization of Blacks for generations.

“If you fast forward, Blacks have often been seen for many years as waiters, cooks, shoe shines, field hands, service individuals, and when you think about service individuals, we don’t see them until we want something from them or until we want to ask them a question,” Snider said.

Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) community outreach director Rod Cunningham echoed those beliefs, too.

Cunningham, who is Black, shared how he’s been blessed to have a 29-year military career, received a quality education, robust financial situation and stable family life in the U.S.

But, he emphasized, “If I get pulled over (by police), I don’t feel so privileged, because my black skin won’t always get me out of that situation.”

Systemic racism and classism, Cunningham said, is underscored today in the U.S., via mass incarceration, privatized prisons, crime laws and so on.

He argued such systems have kept down people of color because society has been conditioned to reject convicts — through stripping voting rights and limited career prospects, exacerbating recidivism.

Cunningham observed: “At one point you’re gonna get frustrated making $9 an hour, and you’re going to do something illegal…”

Equity starts with personal responsibility
Preventing negative outcomes and other challenges minorities face can be mitigated with personal responsibility and demonstrating a strong moral and ethical compass, some panelists argued.

Al Hernandez, a member of the PHSC board of trustees, is an example of a minority living the American dream.

Hernandez, a Cuban immigrant, came to the U.S. “with two pennies and nothing else.”

Pasco Sheriff’s Office Cpl. Bryan Banner (Courtesy of Pasco Sheriff’s Office)

Today he’s a market vice president at Humana and proudly holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Nova Southeastern University.

With that, Hernandez pushed back on victimhood culture, which he believes has become all too prevalent in the U.S.

“We need to be careful, as we look at ourselves and our communities. The reality is, you’re going to make your life — you do have the responsibility and you do have the personal responsibility for yourself, for your family, for your kids.

“At the end of the day, we’re all Americans, and we’ve got to start seeing ourselves as Americans first, and really get to that point of view.”

He continued: “The reality is, we’re all going to encounter issues. We’re all going to encounter situations in life. Some of them, whether it’s fair or not, is somewhat irrelevant. It’s what you do with it, and how do you actually overcome these obstacles that are going to happen in your life.

“Personally, I don’t allow anybody or anything, regardless of whether I have an accent or not, to tell me or to change my career path or to change where I’m coming from. As a person, you have to have individual responsibility to work hard, to do what is required of you to be a good member of society.”

Zaremsky added onto those views.

“The change starts with us,” Zaremsky said. “We need to look at ourselves, and that’s where the change needs to take place, and having equal laws and equal ramifications for decisions—whether good decisions or bad decisions.”

Even with the ongoing calls for social justice, the Jewish leader put into perspective America’s eminence, also warning against the ills of socialism and communism.

“We’re the least prejudiced, with the least injustices. We’re the freest and most equal country in the world, thus we should not burn it down,” Zaremsky said.

“We keep from having an unjust balance of power by allowing freedom of speech—not censoring tweets of people we don’t like, or not allowing dissenting opinions on panel discussions or on college campuses.

“Echo chambers cause prejudice, injustice, and imbalance of power. Freedom — free speech, free market, religious freedom — are the best defenses against unjust, imbalances of power. Because of our wonderful constitution, every citizen can lawfully address injustices,” Zaremsky said.

Other panelists and speakers included Emery Ailes, PHSC LIFE (Linking Faith In Education) coordinator; Joe Bohn, University of South Florida College of Public Health professor and community engagement director; Shauna Hale, assistant U.S. Attorney, Middle District of Florida; Tonicia Freeman-Foster, Central Florida Behavioral Health Network change specialist; Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Judge Shawn Crane; and, Imam Hassan Sultan, CEO of the Muslim Connection in Tampa.

Published September 30, 2020

New PHSC president drafts game plan for success

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As a very young boy, Tim Beard would walk a mile each way to buy a newspaper at the store so he could devour stories about his beloved St. Louis Cardinals.

He admired such players as Lou Brock, Joe Torre and Bob Gibson — and delighted in reading about their pursuits.

Tim Beard is dressed casually during a summer day at his office at Pasco-Hernando State College. But the new president of PHSC is anything but casual in his ambitions for the college. (B.C. Manion/Staff Photos)
Tim Beard is dressed casually during a summer day at his office at Pasco-Hernando State College. But the new president of PHSC is anything but casual in his ambitions for the college.
(B.C. Manion/Staff Photo)

He recalled that he was only 5 or 6 years old when he was making those treks to the store.

Literacy and athletics were twin loves in his life, until Beard decided he would spend less energy on athletics and give his full attention to education.

He grew up in poverty in the Panhandle town of St. Joe — and now he leads Pasco-Hernando State College.

Before becoming president of the college on July 1, he served as a vice president at the college for eight years.

He claimed the role vacated by Katherine Johnson, who retired after a decade at the helm.

Beard is clearly excited about the possibilities.

As an internal candidate for the post, Beard said he had the advantage of understanding the college and knowing its pulse.

“I know the institution. I know the flow. I know the community,” Beard said.

As PHSC’s new leader, he’s already starting to carry out his game plan.

He’s identified key focus areas. Those include increasing student retention and degree completion rates, expanding partnerships, and securing more funding to support programs.

To help retain students, Beard is launching an initiative called Retention Behavioral Inventory, or RBI, for short.

He plans to have weekly conference calls with PHSC administrators to keep the goal of improving student retention and degree completion rates at the forefront for the college’s leadership team.

Together, they’ll review the data to see how the college is doing. And, they’ll discuss the numbers, talk about why students withdraw and examine if there is anything they could have done to prevent the withdrawals.

“The big piece is going to be a referral piece,” the college president said. “If we find out that a student withdrew because of finances, can we find a financial source within scholarships or other sources that would have helped this student stay in school?”

Over the years, he said he has observed that most of the time when a student withdraws, there is some type of problem in a personal relationship or a difficulty in paying tuition. Sometimes, students are struggling academically.

“We want to have a referral source, or sources, to make sure these students are receiving the kind of support they need to stay in school,” Beard said.

The college has a fund established by a donor that is specifically intended to help students, who for whatever reason, are not performing well, Beard said.

He wants to find more sources of additional funding for the college.

That could be in the form of private contributions, or through other opportunities available at the state, regional, national or international level, he said.

For instance, he said he recently served as a panelist at a conference for the National Association for Equal Opportunities.

While there, he met some federal officials and learned about some money that might be available for colleges with rural campuses. He plans to pursue that possibility.

He’s also talked with John Hagen, president and CEO of the Pasco Economic Development Council.

Beard said Hagen told him that “the federal government is coming into an agreement with some major companies across the world that want to relocate in the United States. They are talking about community two- and four-year colleges really being around the table to develop curricula and design programs to help meet their work force needs.”

PHSC facts Pasco-Hernando State College has: • A fall enrollment of about 12,000 credit and 4,000 noncredit students • Approximately 550 faculty and staff, plus about 200 adjunct staff members • An operating budget of about $48 million • Campuses in New Port Richey, Wesley Chapel, Dade City, Spring Hill and Brooksville
PHSC facts
Pasco-Hernando State College has:
• A fall enrollment of about 12,000 credit and 4,000 noncredit students
• Approximately 550 faculty and staff, plus about 200 adjunct staff members
• An operating budget of about $48 million
• Campuses in New Port Richey, Wesley Chapel, Dade City, Spring Hill and Brooksville

That fits in nicely with the kind of work the college is accustomed to doing, Beard said.

During the Great Recession, there was national recognition that college’s like PHSC can play a vital role in helping people learn new skills that equip them for today’s job market, Beard said.

“Our certification programs, our social science degree programs, are designed just for that. To take workers, retrain them, and get them back in the work force within a year,” Beard said.

Besides helping to train people who are in the work force or returning to the work force, the college also wants to help prepare young people for future careers, Beard said.

PHSC wants to partner with the Pasco and Hernando county school systems to begin working with students at a younger age.

“We want to start establishing career pathways with students as early as middle school,” Beard said. And that means making connections with the families of those middle school students, he added.

The idea is to start early, so students graduating from those counties can achieve a degree or certification by the time they’re 21, he added.

Partnerships are essential — to supplement and maximize the college’s resources, Beard said.

“We used to be state-supported, now we’re more state-supplemented. We’ve got to have greater partnerships — with private corporations, with manufacturers,” Beard said.

He also wants to get faith-based groups involved, to provide additional support for students.

Since assuming his post, Beard has been meeting with bankers, manufacturers, faith-based groups and civic organizations.

And it won’t stop there.

“We’re not limiting our connections to just local people, but also regional, state and national,” he said.

He is hopeful that making these connections will bear fruit, and he’s optimistic, too.

“We have some major prospects. So, you stay tuned,” Beard said.

Tim Beard bio
Tim Beard:

  • Holds a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree and a PhD from Florida State University
  • Has been married to his wife, Wendy, for 29 years; they have two daughters, Briana, 20 and Sierra, 17
  • Joined what was then Pasco-Hernando Community College in 2007
  • Became Pasco-Hernando State College’s new president on July 1

Fun facts about Tim Beard
Some fun facts about the new president of Pasco-Hernando State College, Tim Beard:

  • Enjoys peach cobbler and banana pudding
  • Calls intense cardio workouts his “getaway,” and says washing his car and mowing the lawn are “therapeutic”
  • Says a “church mother” gave him the best piece of advice he’s received. She told him: “Regardless of what you do in life, don’t be a hypocrite. Be real.”

(Courtesy of Lucy Miller, executive director of marketing and communications for Pasco-Hernando State College)

Published August 5, 2015

Stepping away, after a decade of progress

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When Katherine Johnson came to Pasco County a decade ago, the educational institution she was leading was known by a different name.

It had fewer campuses, fewer students and a smaller endowment fund, too.

When Johnson came on board, the college was known as Pasco-Hernando Community College and had three campuses.

Pasco-Hernando State College President Katherine Johnson poses with members of the Porter family during a school celebrating the new campus. From left are J.D. Porter, Bill Porter, Johnson, Don Porter and Quinn Miller. (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)
Pasco-Hernando State College President Katherine Johnson poses with members of the Porter family during a school celebrating the new campus. From left are J.D. Porter, Bill Porter, Johnson, Don Porter and Quinn Miller.
(Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)

In 2010, the college added its Spring Hill campus, and in 2014, it opened Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch.

The college also added baccalaureate degree programs in 2014 and changed its name to reflect its four-year degree programs.

During the past decade, the college increased its graduation by 43 percent — a statistic that is perhaps most meaningful to Johnson, who herself graduated from what was then called a junior college.

Johnson continued her education to complete a doctorate and become a college president, but it all began with the opportunity offered at the junior college.

She is passionate about the educational opportunities offered by institutions like Pasco-Hernando State College.

“My father couldn’t afford to send me to college. He was a railroad worker. My mother was a homemaker, and I didn’t have stellar grades. I wasn’t a poor student, but I wasn’t a stellar student, either,” she recalled.

“Sometimes, community colleges are viewed as the red-headed stepchild — that we take any and all (students) — but quite honestly, I think that’s a wonderful mantra.”

She believes that community colleges are sometimes the first option, sometimes the only option and sometimes the last option.

Some students choose to attend a community college because they are on scholarship. Others choose it because it’s their only feasible option. And, sometimes they choose it because they can’t get in any other postsecondary institution.

“We are an open-door institution,” Johnson said.

Besides being an option for students on a traditional path, schools like PHSC offer opportunities for people who are in the work force or who have lost their jobs and need to develop new workplace skills.

“We’ve had to adjust our programs of study, not just here at PHSC, but everywhere due to technology, the changing work force, certainly, the economics, particularly crawling out of this recession,” Johnson said.

Katherine Johnson, president of Pasco-Hernando State College, retires on June 30, after a decade of leading the school. (Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)
Katherine Johnson, president of Pasco-Hernando State College, retires on June 30, after a decade of leading the school.
(Courtesy of Pasco-Hernando State College)

“People had to learn to be flexible. They had to come back and learn new skills. And, so I think that the nimbleness of our institutions has provided access to perhaps many students who never even thought about coming back to college,” Johnson said.

She uses these three As to describe PHSC’s mission: “It’s accountability, accessibility and affordability. Those three As truly make an equation for success,” Johnson said.

“Those are the three As that I’ve always tried to tie our mission to, so that we don’t lose our way,” she said.

The college is focused on providing educational opportunities.

“Students, students, students – are at the heart of what we do,” Johnson said.

While she has played a visible role in steering the college through change and growth, she is quick to point out that there are many people behind the scenes who have played a vital role in the college’s daily operations, and its long-term success.

As Johnson prepares to leave her post, she’s delighted that the administration building at Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch will bear her name.

“I was shocked that that would be a recommendation by the board, and that it would be so warmly engaged and approved by the board. I’m obviously humbled and honored to have my name on one of the buildings at Porter,” she said.

She recalled meeting Don Porter on her first day as college president.

At that very first lunch, Porter told Johnson about his vision for higher educational opportunities for students living in the community. The family’s later contribution of 60 acres for the campus played an instrumental role in making that vision come true,

“Don Porter has to be smiling from up above because this was his vision. This was Tom’s vision, God rest his soul, as well, and certainly Bill and J.D.”

The campus could not have happened without the Porter family, Johnson said.

“We couldn’t have afforded to buy that land,” she said, and she thinks it is fitting that the campus bears the family’s name.

“To know that that gift, for perpetuity, will forever change lives of students is a pretty strong legacy that we’re delighted to have associated with the Porter family,” Johnson said.

Now, the campus serves not only students living in Pasco and Hernando counties, but also students from Hillsborough and Pinellas counties.

“We certainly have picked up tremendous enrollment from our sister counties,” Johnson said, noting that the campus is convenient and offers attractive programs.

As PHSC looks to the future, it will be under the direction of Tim Beard, who becomes the college’s fourth president, effective July 1.

Johnson plans to move to Gainesville to join her husband, who has already moved to their retirement home.

She plans to sit out a year because of the state retirement system requirements, but after that, she’s interested in working part-time training potential college administrators through the Institute of Higher Education at the University of Florida.

“I don’t see myself being idle,” Johnson said.

As she reflects upon her life as an educator, she said she’s grateful for both its challenges and opportunities.

She said she couldn’t have asked for a better career.

Retirement receptions for Katherine M. Johnson
Pasco-Hernando State College will host several upcoming farewell receptions for president Katherine Johnson:

Wednesday, June 17
9 a.m., West Campus in New Port Richey, 10230 Ridge Road

  • 9 a.m., West Campus in New Port Richey, 10230 Ridge Road
  • 12:30 p.m., North Campus in Brooksville, 11415 Ponce de Leon Blvd.
  • 4 p.m., Spring Hill Campus in Spring Hill, 450 Beverly Court

Thursday, June 18

  • 9 a.m., East Campus in Dade City, 36727 Blanton Road
  • 12:30 p.m., Porter Campus at Wiregrass Ranch in Wesley Chapel, 2727 Mansfield Blvd.
  • 4 p.m., West Campus in New Port Richey, 10230 Ridge Road

 

A decade of progress
During Katherine M. Johnson’s 10-year tenure, Pasco-Hernando State College has:

° Increased its graduation rate by 43 percent

° Increased its foundation’s assets by 50 percent

  • Added the Spring Hill and Porter at Wiregrass Ranch campuses
  • Transitioned to a state college offering baccalaureate degrees.

Published June 17, 2015