In the paper - TWICE in one week! ... SS

It is always exciting to see a sister quoted in the paper for work or a happy occassion. Thank you Cynthia (Beta Eta, FSU) for being a Real. Strong. Woman. role model.

Fla. Lottery secretary touts contributions to education
By Kate Schofield
Democrat writer
11:16 PM, Jul. 29, 2011|

Ending her speech in front of the Economic Cub of Florida on Friday afternoon, Cynthia O'Connell had one simple request — she asked the audience to buy lottery tickets.

O'Connell, appointed secretary of the Florida Lottery by Gov. Rick Scott on Feb. 9, spoke to the club about the mission behind Florida's Lottery: to give funds to Florida education and to aid the Florida economy as a whole.

Last fiscal year, the lottery brought in more than $4 billion, and about $3.9 billion of that was injected into the state's economy, O'Connell said. That is the first time the lottery has brought in that amount since 2008.

The Florida Lottery has contributed $22 billion to education since 1988. O'Connell and her staff of 24 aim to reach the $23 billion mark by October or November.

For every dollar spent on Florida lottery tickets, she said about 62 cents are returned to players as prizes. Thirty cents gets transferred to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund (EETF), 5 cents are returned to retailers for commissions and bonuses, 1 cent is paid to game vendors and 2 cents are used for other operating costs (including staff salaries, advertising and all office operations).

The lottery also has funded a half-million students' Bright Futures scholarships, she added. Even with the recent changes the Legislature has made with Bright Futures, O'Connell said the mission to fund education is still at the heart of the Florida Lottery.

"The Florida Lottery is still important for education regardless of the changes the Legislature makes," she said after her speech. "It is our mandate to help fund education and we will continue to do that."

She said the Florida Lottery will use more social networks and mobile apps to expand demographics and be part of the 21st century world.

"We want to move Florida Lottery into the modern day we live in" she told the audience. The Economic Club of Florida tries to meet once a month and has had more than 400 speakers in its history including former Sen. Bob Graham and Clark Hoyt, public editor for The New York Times, said club chairman John Kurowski.


Lt. Gov. Carroll headlines panel featuring women in government

By Dana Edwards
Special to the Chronicle
Jul 27, 2011|

Jennifer Carroll told more than 300 Girls State delegates that being Florida's first African-American lieutenant governor was "never part of my personal plan — but, sometimes, you have to be open to higher plans."

Speaking on a panel organized by the James Madison Institute (JMI), Carroll retraced the steps that led to her election last November. She described her years serving in the Florida House, and how her early experience in the Navy helped prepare her to head the Florida agency in charge of veterans affairs.

She also admitted that public speaking came easily to her — after she had practiced in front of a mirror.

Carroll's remarks highlighted the James Madison Institute's annual "Women in Government" panel at Florida Girls' State.

This year's forum took place at FSU's Moore Auditorium and also featured Rep. Marti Coley of Blountstown, Florida Lottery Secretary Cindy O'Connell and Leon County Judge Nina Ashenafi Richardson.

Coley advised the young women to recognize that being a mother can aid one's experience rather than stifle opportunities. And Coley admitted that she, too, had never imagined running for public office — until the unfortunate death of her newly elected husband in 2005 prompted her to run for his House seat.

O'Connell noted that the diverse backgrounds of the JMI panelists — military, education, business, law — showed that there are many different routes to public service. She also shared her time-management techniques and how she weighs commitments in her personal and public lives.

Similarly, Richardson encouraged the students to invest time in something besides their future careers, offering her participation on the Tallahassee Symphony Orchestra Board as an example. She said the key to a successful career is choosing something you enjoy doing every day.

Each panelist advised the girls to take time for themselves each day, whether that is prayer, exercise or something else. Taking time for yourself, they said, helps you to be at your best for all the people in your life.

Alpha Chi Omega to head the Florida Lottery

On Wednesday, February 2nd, Florida Governor Rick Scott named Alpha Chi Omega alumna Cynthia O'Connell (Beta Eta, FSU) to head the Florida Lottery! Please join us in sending her our congratulations and best wishes for her new position!

Press release:

Today, Governor Scott named Cynthia F. O’Connell as Secretary of the Florida Lottery. O’Connell has an experienced record in lottery management, communications, and higher education that will allow her to improve the agency’s efficiency and core mission of raising revenues for Florida public education.

O’Connell has previously served as a Division Director of Research and Promotions for the Florida Lottery, where she developed the promotional launch of the Lottery’s instant and online games, and oversaw a staff of twenty with a multi-million dollar budget authority. She most recently served as CEO at O’Connell Consulting, where she managed consulting contracts for clients seeking significant re-branding communication programs.

Previously, she served as a Senior Vice-President/GM at Hill & Knowlton, where she oversaw communications strategies for major national and Florida accounts. In addition, she served as the Information Manager for the Olympic Athletes Villages and Southeast US manager of the Torch Relay for the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. She has vast experience as a branding, marketing, and communications executive with financial companies and higher-learning institutions.

Aside from her previous experience at the Florida Lottery, O’Connell has a long history of public service to Florida. She is an inaugural (2001-2011) Board of Trustee member of the University of Florida, where she oversaw committee assignments including educational policy and public relations including brand management. She has been a catalyst for numerous statewide philanthropic interests including the development of the Stephen C. O’Connell Supreme Court Reading Room at the University of Florida’s Levin College of Law. She serves as the Chairwoman of the Florida House in D.C, Florida’s embassy on Capitol Hill, where she oversees Florida House’s important mission of showcasing Florida’s cultural and economic resources to the nation’s capital.

“Cindy brings an impressive record of leadership and brand management to the Florida Lottery and will improve the agency’s important mission of maximizing revenues for the enhancement of public education in Florida,” Governor Scott said.

Alpha Chi in the News - Keeping Tallahassee Beautiful!

Great work by our ETE Treasurer, Jennifer (Theta Lambda, Clemson) quoted in Gerald Ensley's column in the Sunday Tallahassee Democrat! She volunteers one Saturday a month with the Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of North Florida to keep part of High Street free of litter. Thank you for your work, Jennifer, and for representing Alpha Chi Omega so well!

Citizens adopt good attitude about litter

GERALD ENSLEY/Democrat The city's Adopt A Street program for volunteer groups to pick up litter has been renewed in 2010. The Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of North Florida have been participating for six years, with monthly litter pickups along High Road between Tharpe Street and Old Bainbridge Road.

Nobody likes litter along the roads. And give Tallahasseeans credit: Many of them are willing to do something about it.

You saw that Wednesday evening at the Renaissance Center, where the city held a sign-up meeting for its renewed Adopt A Street program. More than 35 people showed up at Wednesday's meeting. And they represented a rainbow of civic groups and motivations.

There were teachers, such as Karen Metcalf of Cornerstone Learning Community, who want their students to learn community service. There were businessmen, such as Applebee's Restaurant manager Bill Schack, who want to be good neighbors. There were Masonic Lodge members, such as Melton Headley, who want to improve the Frenchtown community where they meet.

There were individuals who just want to make a difference.

[snip]

Hanson said Wednesday's meeting added 30 new groups to the 35 groups that were still active. She wants to find volunteer groups for the remainder of the 110 existing signed streets, then start adding more streets.

She expects to tap the many student, church and civic groups that participate in her clean-ups to volunteer for the Adopt A Street program – and she believes there is "lots of opportunity" to improve the appearance of the 6,700 streets and roads in Leon County.

"I would particularly like to see West Tennessee and all our corridors adopted, because that's where people come into town and we don't want them to look like a trash heap," Hanson said. "(Her organization draws) lots of high school and college groups and lots of groups with children. I have a perfect avenue and I'm going to make every effort I can to step it up."

Litter pickup programs, obviously, are meant to remove litter along roadsides. But as Tom Jackson, who oversees the county program, said, "I know if you clean (a road) today, it takes only one day for (litter) to be back."

So the real value of such programs is education and awareness, which, hopefully, lead to litter prevention. Florida Department of Transportation programs manager Steve Liner oversees the state Adopt A Highway program, which counts 1,200 groups covering 2,400 miles of state highways.

"The groups that go out there for three or four hours, especially in this hot sun, are going to think twice about littering," he said. "And the driving public will think twice because they see volunteers giving their time to keep a community free and clear of litter."

It does seem to work. The Returned Peace Corps Volunteers of North Florida organization has participated in the city program for six years, picking up litter on High Road from Tharpe to Old Bainbridge. They do it the third Saturday of every month. Besides being good exercise, fun fellowship and a great way to "bond with the neighborhood," it's been effective.

"The (amount of litter) waxes and wanes, but we definitely see less than when we started," said Jennifer Butler, a member of the group.

That's the goal.

(Read the full article here.)

Alpha Chi Omega Actress in the News

There's a great new article/interview with Tallahassee native Alpha Chi Omega alumna Maddy Curley (Epsilon Chi, UNC-Chapel Hill) in International Gymnast's online magazine. Here's an excerpt. Read the full article here.

Gymnast-turned-actress Maddy Curley spoke with IG this week about her recent projects, including a gymnastics-themed screenplay she hopes will get produced before the 2012 Olympics.

From the set of NBC's "The Event," gymnast-turned-actress Maddy Curley spoke with IG this week about her recent projects, ranging from parts in "The Office" and an unofficial "Footloose" remake to a gymnastics-themed screenplay she hopes will get produced before the 2012 Olympics.

Curley has enjoyed steady work in Hollywood since she earned a B.F.A. in Drama and International Studies at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, where she competed in gymnastics from 2000-2004. She made her professional acting debut in 2006 with a co-starring role in "Stick It," Touchstone Pictures' gymnastics-themed film starring Academy Award winner Jeff Bridges.

Among Curley's more recent credits, she played a pivotal role in the two-part season finale of CBS's "Cold Case" last year, and recreated Kevin Bacon's classic dance-and-gymnastics scene for the unofficial "Footloose" remake that premiered in Los Angeles and New York this summer. She is currently shooting an episode of NBC's "The Event," a conspiracy-thriller series that is scheduled to debut on Sept. 20.

See also Cupcakes and Cold Case.