Welcome Mike Weinstein

Tuesday, July 31, 2012

WE MEET AT RIVER CITY BREWING COMPANY

Lunch begins at noon - Meeting begins at 12:30 p.m.

Meet Mike Weinstein

Mike Weinstein was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 2008 serving District 19. He serves as a prosecutor and the Executive Director for the State Attorney’s Office.

Previously, Mike was President of Take Stock in Children, a position he formally accepted on September 2, 2003. Take Stock in Children is a scholarship and mentoring program that has purchased more than $90 million in scholarships, serving more than 13,000 low-income children in Florida.

Prior to joining Take Stock in Children, he served as president and CEO of the Jacksonville Super Bowl Host Committee, a private, an organization responsible for developing, organizing and implementing Jacksonville’s plan for Super Bowl XXXIX. Weinstein led the team responsible for developing the city’s successful bid application for the 2005 game.

With more than 30 years of financial and management experience, Weinstein has devoted much of his leadership and expertise to the public sector. In 1996, he was appointed by Mayor John Delaney to serve as executive director of the Jacksonville Economic Development Commission, an agency comprising 12 divisions dedicated to economic development.

Operating with the corporate philosophy that economic development molds and shapes our community’s future, his leadership negotiating with private companies brought Jacksonville more than $2 billion in private capital investment and created or retained more than 20,500 jobs from 1996 – 2001.

Prior to this position, Weinstein served as Director of the Administration and Finance Department under both the Austin and Delaney administrations. In this capacity, he was responsible for an operating budget of $129 million and a staff of 586 full-time employees, labor negotiations, and the development of the River City Renaissance Bond initiative. He also participated in negotiations and management of the city’s stadium lease, which led the National Football League to award Jacksonville the 30th NFL expansion franchise.

Weinstein also spent 15 years in law management as the executive director of the State Attorney’s Office, and six years as a college lecturer, where he published several articles on management. He was also a partner at Harris, Guidi, Rosner & Mordecai, P.A., where he specialized in government and environmental issues.

Weinstein earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science from Hartwick College in New York, a Masters of Science in criminal justice from California State University and a Juris Doctorate from the University of Florida. He has also completed two years of Doctoral Studies in criminology at Florida State University.

A strong proponent of equal higher educational opportunities, Weinstein is a Trustee of Florida Community College at Jacksonville and previously worked with Florida A&M University to raise money for scholarships for Duval County students.

He is also a member of the Police Athletic League and Florida’s First Coast Crime Stoppers. He is a graduate of the 1985 Class of Leadership Jacksonville and served on the board of the Air Service Development Task Force. He serves on the Board of the Salvation Army. He was a member of Downtown Rotary and volunteers his time with the Jacksonville Community Council, Inc. (JCCI) and the North Florida Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

He and Sara, his wife of over 34 years, have three children, Scott (Meg), Daryl (Mandy) and Danielle (Aaron) and three grand-children. Mike and Sara are active members of Christian Family Chapel in Mandarin.

Mark Your Calendar 

Rotary Leadership Institute - August 4th:  Rotary Leadership Institute Training at Orange Park - St. Johns River Community College from 7:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.  Register on line and support our Leadership Development goals at http://www.rlitraining.org/
Rotary Foundation Seminar - August 18th:  Rotary Foundation Seminar at the Thrasher Horne Center in Orange Park on College Drive.  Breakfast and lunch are provided and the club pays for anyone who would like to attend.

Recap of the July 24th Meeting

Greeters:  Dinkins Grange & Doug McCullough

The Pledge of Allegiance:  Toula Wootan

Prayer:  PP Lee Mercier

Introduction of Guests:  PP Gary Wilkinson

Received a Blue Badge:  Lynn Betros

Family of Rotary - Member Update:  Mary Alice Phelan

Web Site Update:  Joe Miller

Guest Speaker Introduction:  PP Robert Harris

Speaker: John Delaney

 

John Delaney, President of the University of North Florida, spoke about the state of UNF.