The USF Office of Supplier Diversity in partnership with Skanska USA is excited to announce recruitment for the 2024-2025 Mentor Protégé Program. The Tampa Bay Chamber is a proud community partner and will play a vital role submitting nominees for consideration. May 1, 2024 - June 28, 2024 is the application period for local construction-focused subcontractors.
In August, selected business owners will receive guidance in the fundamental areas of construction business management, with topics covering environmental health and safety, field management, human resources, marketing and business development, legal, project accounting and finances, project planning and preconstruction, and sustainability. In addition to the 10-weekly training sessions, they will have an opportunity to participate in hands-on clinical experiences and much more.
It's that hands-on aspect of the program that Avril Stinson describes as the "gift that keeps giving." She explained "This connectivity with the construction companies offers real-time training that helps participants be more competitive when bidding for projects with the university as well as others in the Tampa Bay region."
This Mentor Protégé Program is designed specifically for small and diverse owned construction-focused companies, in business for a minimum of one-year. "USF has long been devoted to helping small business succeed," said Stinson of the Chamber Member company of more than 30 years. "This will continue to open the doors of opportunity to smaller businesses, so they can work on larger construction projects." The Chamber has seen the effects first hand for two of our member companies participating in our Chamber's Minority Business Accelerator and Minority Empowerment Program - Cablelytics, LLC, a graduate of our MBA '23 Cohort, and DuCon, LLC, an MEP entrepreneur and MBA mentor.
DuCon was part of the university's 2021 Cohort, pictured here.
The application process is slightly different than most. USF and Skanska USA will not be accepting direct applicants. Applicants must submit the completed Application and a PDF copy of their business capabilities statement directly to any one of the program's six community partners. They are:
Tampa Bay Chamber, Vice President of Economic Inclusion and Leadership Avril Stinson
NAACP - Hillsborough County, President Yvette Lewis
Inclusive St. Pete, Supplier Diversity Manager April Harley
Women’s Business Enterprise Council (WBEC) - Florida, President & CEO, Nancy Allen
Prospera - Florida, Regional Vice President -West Coast of Florida Fabian Yepez
Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce, President & CEO Tarnisha Cliatt
Click here for partner emails.
Please note: Space is limited and USF will not accept direct applicants. Instead, applications must be submitted to program partners, which will help select cohort members. No applications will be accepted after close of business June 28. Construction companies selected from the pool of applicants will be notified by the first week of July.