Mission Statement

Through advocacy, collaborations and diverse partnerships the Division of External Affairs creates opportunities for meaningful and enduring engagement between the University of South Florida St. Petersburg and key external constituencies. The division serves USFSP through development and stewardship, strategic communications, community involvement, public affairs and special events.

Development & Stewardship

The division’s development and stewardship efforts cultivate philanthropic investments by individuals, corporations, and foundations to help secure resources USFSP needs to fulfill its educational mission. There is a wide range of gift opportunities that allow donors to become a vital part of USFSP’s future.

To learn more about Development & Stewardship contact Sarah Purvis, Executive Director of Development, at (727) 873-4804 or spurvis@spadmin.usf.edu. Click here to visit the Development Web site.

Strategic Communications

The Strategic Communications function of External Affairs encompasses two areas:

• Media Relations
  As the primary liaison to external news media, we promote USF St. Petersburg as a whole, including the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education, the College of Business and the Nelson Poynter Memorial Library. We coordinate incoming media requests for faculty experts, USFSP information and other data. We initiate stories that convey the dynamic research, teaching and service that takes place at USFSP.

To learn more about Media Relations or suggest a story idea, contact Melanie Marquez at (727) 873-4456 or marquez@mail.usf.edu. Click here to visit the Media Relations Web site.

• Web Services
  Web Services is the starting point and a resource for Web development of official USF St. Petersburg Web pages. As part of the strategic communications effort within External Affairs, Web Services is responsible for innovating, directing and providing Web site functionality on the official USF St. Petersburg Web site.

To learn more about Web services, contact John Husfield, Webmaster, at (727) 873-4040 or husfield@mail.usf.edu. Click here to visit the Web services Web site.

Community Involvement & Public Affairs

The Division of External Affairs serves as the USFSP liaison to business, community, civic and public partners.

If you have suggestions or ideas, please contact Helen Levine, Regional Vice Chancellor, at (727) 873-4256 or hlevine@mail.usf.edu.

Special Events

• Commencement
  The Division of External Affairs coordinates the two USFSP Commencement ceremonies each academic year, one in December and another in May.

To learn more about Commencement, please contact Annette Hamon at (727) 873-4256 or Annette@spadmin.usf.edu. Click here to visit the Commencement Web site.

• University Events
  The Division of External Affairs provides organizational leadership, planning, support and assessment of many USFSP events.

To learn more about Special Events, contact Sudsy Tschiderer at (727) 873-4842 or tschider@spadmin.usf.edu.

Other Resources

USFSP Logos
Guidelines for use of official USF St. Petersburg Co-brand logos and symbols are outlined in the Visual Identity Standards. External Affairs can assist with questions about proper logo usage. We also direct the USFSP graphic identity program and authorize the use of USFSP marks, signing off on display advertisements prior to payment from purchasing.

Photo/Image Releases
Individuals featured in images for university brochures, advertisements and other publications need to sign a photo release. If you have questions about photo releases, please call Melanie Marquez at (727) 873-4456.
Adult Release (.pdf) | Minor Release (.pdf) | Legal Guardian Release (.pdf) | Image Release (.pdf)

Newsletter
eNews is the official USF St. Petersburg e-newsletter. This publication contains news, research updates and public event information. Faculty and staff are invited to submit their story ideas at http://www.usfsp.org/forms/news/news_submit.htm. A link to this page is also located on the home page.

External Affairs Team