Students Greet Former Gubernatorial Candidate Alex Sink

March 31, 2011

Despite rainy weather, an audience of 85 appreciative students, employees, and community members greeted Alex Sink, former Democratic candidate for governor in the 2010 election, Wednesday night at University Campus.

University President Arthur F. Kirk, Jr., introduced Sink, who spoke on “Building Your Personal History” as part of a Women’s History Month celebration organized by the School of Arts and Sciences.

Sink told the audience that while she was growing up in North Carolina, there were few women role models in business or public service. Yet, after earning a degree in mathematics (with a minor in business), she was able to build a successful career in banking. Later, she was elected to the state post of chief financial officer of Florida, and then ran for governor in 2010. She lost by a narrow margin to current Florida Gov. Rick Scott, a Republican.

Sink advised audience members to consider their own influences and values in building their life stories, and to be open to the unexpected when planning for their futures.

She also urged young people to vote in greater numbers than in 2010. “If young people in our state had voted even a little bit more, I wouldn’t be standing here today. Or, I would be standing here, but with a different title,” she quipped