Latest news with #Hosseini
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
University of Florida trustees stand by their controversial choice for college president
Century Tower on the Gainesville campus of the University of Florida. (Photo by Jay Waagmeester/Florida Phoenix) University of Florida trustees on Thursday stood by their selection of Santa Ono as the next president, despite his nomination being denied by the State University System Board of Governors (BOG). Mori Hosseini, chair of the UF Board of Trustees and a proponent of Ono, defended the UF trustees' decision to forward Ono to the BOG for final approval. 'Our Board of Trustees stands by the integrity of the search, the strength of the candidates it produced, and the principles that guided our work,' Hosseini said during a lengthy board meeting. 'This outcome is deeply disappointing to our Board of Trustees.' Ono was rejected by the Board of Governors in a 6-10 vote after he was questioned for hours about his conflicting stances on diversity, equity, and inclusion. The UF board voted unanimously in favor of Ono the week prior. Back to the drawing board: UF presidential finalist nixed for conflicting DEI stances Had he received the job, Ono's contract would have provided him about $3 million annually. 'We believe Dr. Ono was uniquely qualified to lead this university at this moment,' Hosseini continued. 'The symbolism and substance of the sitting president of a university as prestigious as University of Michigan, choosing to come to University of Florida should not be lost. It was a powerful signal that Florida's model for higher education grounded in merit, academic excellence, institutional neutrality, and accountability to students and taxpayers is earning the trust and interest of top team leaders across the country who are ready to advance this vision.' The UF presidency is being filled on an interim basis by former President Kent Fuchs. The permanent job has been open since July, when former U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse resigned from the presidency. 'We will continue to pursue the kind of bold principle and forward thinking leadership that Gator nation deserves,' Hosseini concluded. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
UF trustee chair calls Ono rejection ‘deeply disappointing'
The chairman of the University of Florida's trustees on Thursday called the decision to vote down the confirmation of Santa Ono as the university's next president 'deeply disappointing.' 'Our board of trustees stands by the integrity of the search, the strength of the candidates it produced and the principles that guided our work,' said Chairman Mori Hosseini, at a UF board of trustees meeting in Gainesville. 'This outcome is deeply disappointing to our Board of Trustees.' Florida's Board of Governors, which has final say on who leads the state's 12 universities, nixed Ono's appointment at a meeting Tuesday. Both the board of governors and UF's board of trustees are comprised largely of appointees from Gov. Ron DeSantis — who has been publicly mum on Ono's rejection. Hosseini — who sat next to Ono as he faced hours of intense questioning from the board — did not elaborate Thursday on the university's next steps in finding a new president. Ono, Hosseini and UF also did not comment after the 10-6 vote against the president-elect on Tuesday. Ono is a highly respected molecular immunologist who served as president at the University of Michigan, University of British Columbia and University of Cincinnati. UF's board of trustees selected Ono as the sole finalist for president on May 27, praising his 'record of academic excellence' and calling him 'the right person to build on UF's strong foundation.' But that announcement quickly met with backlash from many conservatives who deemed Ono too progressive for Florida as he had championed diversity, equity and inclusion programs at Michigan before saying he had 'evolved' on the issue. Florida has banned DEI, and UF and other state universities have dismantled their programs. Christopher Rufo, a New College of Florida trustee and conservative firebrand, for example, called Ono's selection a 'scandal', while Donald Trump Jr. dubbed Ono a 'woke psycho.' Sen. Rick Scott, a former state governor, criticized Ono's handling of protests on Michigan's campus in the wake of Hamas' October attacks in Israel, saying Ono 'stood by while a pro-terrorist encampment occupied the campus for an entire month' and questioning how Ono would protect Jewish students on UF's campus. Going forward, Hosseini said Ono's rejection would 'not diminish' UF's 'momentum.' 'Our responsibility now to move forward with a strength, purpose and unshakable belief in UF's future. We will continue to pursue the kind of bold principle and forward-thinking leadership that Gator Nation deserves,' he said. Not everyone shares Hosseini's optimism, however. After Tuesday's meeting, Amanda Phalin, a UF professor and former member of the board of governors, called Ono's rejection an 'embarrassment' that could hurt the university for decades and make it harder for the state to recruit highly-qualified university leaders. 'This portends more politics in the process, and more politicians in the process across the state, and less focus on academics and academic excellence,' Phalin said.
Yahoo
29-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Casey DeSantis to speak at Daytona economic summit on reducing childhood poverty
DAYTONA BEACH — Florida First Lady Casey DeSantis will be one of the featured speakers at the 2025 Florida Prosperity & Economic Opportunity Solutions Summit that will be held at Daytona International Speedway on Thursday. The event, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., is being put on by the Florida Chamber of Commerce to look at ways to reduce by half the number of children living in poverty in the Sunshine State by the year 2030, according to Kristina Donahue, the chamber's director of prosperity. More than 250 business leaders, community advocates and policy makers are expected to take part in the summit, which is held in a different part of the state each year. This will be the first time it is held in Volusia County. The event will "address the 10 root causes of generational poverty, the business impacts of poverty, and ways to get involved at the ZIP code level to create a pathway to prosperity for all Floridians," according to a statement put out by the chamber. "Our goal is for attendees to walk away and have a key action item they can implement within their community, to get them to say 'I can do this piece,'" said Donahue, in a phone interview. "It's really all about collaboration. No one sector can solve it alone, but if we work together, things can move in the right direction." The goal of reducing poverty levels is part of a statewide initiative called the Florida 2030 Blueprint that launched in 2018. According to the chamber, more than 730,000 children live in poverty statewide, including many in Volusia County. "32114 (in Daytona Beach) is one of the poorest ZIP codes in the state of Florida," said Forough Hosseini, the founder and chair of Food Brings Hope, a local nonprofit that provides food for families with children struggling to make ends meet. Hosseini is also the chair of this year's Florida Prosperity & Economic Opportunity summit. The summit will feature nearly two dozen speakers and panelists. Kevin Thompson of the Florida Prepaid College Board & Foundation and Frank Kelleher, president of Daytona International Speedway, will give the welcome and opening remarks. Mark Wilson, president and CEO of the Florida Chamber, will deliver a report on the current state of childhood poverty in Florida. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University President Dr. P. Barry Butler will moderate a panel discussion on how the space economy is driving Florida's workforce and economic opportunities. The panelists will include Robert Long, president and CEO of Space Florida, Brandon Burroughs of The Boeing Co., Jeanette Nunez, interim president of Florida International University, and Dr. Mark Rendell, superintendent of Brevard Public Schools. Casey DeSantis and Dr. Audrey Gregory of AdventHealth will give a presentation on "Hope Florida: Building Pathways to Prosperity Through Community Partnerships across Florida." Hosseini will give a talk on "Forming Impactful Partnerships to Create Prosperity & Homeownership." The event will include breakfast and lunch. For more information, including how to buy tickets to attend, visit the chamber's website or call Thelma Givens, the chamber's director of events, at 850-521-1284. This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Daytona to host economic summit to help reduce childhood poverty
Globe and Mail
15-04-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
TipRanks' All-Star Analyst – Who Is the Best on Super Micro Computer Stock (SMCI)?
The TipRanks All-star Analyst of the Day title goes to analyst Mehdi Hosseini of research firm Susquehanna. Remarkably, Hosseini ranks #363 out of the 9,418 Wall Street analysts tracked by TipRanks. One of the key stocks in his coverage is Super Micro Computer stock (SMCI), for which he is the Best analyst over a one-year time frame. Stay Ahead of the Market: Discover outperforming stocks and invest smarter with Top Smart Score Stocks. Filter, analyze, and streamline your search for investment opportunities using Tipranks' Stock Screener. Super Micro manufactures high-performance servers and storage systems optimized for AI, cloud, and enterprise applications. For a thorough assessment of the stock, go to TipRanks' Stock Analysis page. When we look at Hosseini's recommendation for Super Micro stock, he has had an 84% success rate on the stock for one year. Plus, he earned an average return of 26.94% in the said period. On an overall basis, copying Hosseini's trades and holding them for a year would give you an average return of 10.60%, with 54% of your trades generating a profit. Not Just SMCI Hosseini primarily focuses on covering the Technology sector in the U.S., France, and German markets. Importantly, his most profitable rating to date was a Buy on Nvidia Corporation (NVDA), a top chipmaker in the AI space. The analyst earned a massive 203.40% return on the call between July 13, 2022, and July 13, 2023. Following phenomenally successful analysts' ratings can add profit to your portfolio. Find the best analyst to follow for any stock by scrolling down to the ' Best Analyst Covering ' feature on its Analyst Forecast page. To follow the best Wall Street analysts, take a look at the list of Top Analysts on TipRanks.
Yahoo
09-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Fintech startup Ryft just raised $7.3 million to help marketplaces split payments. Here's its pitch deck.
Ryft just raised $7.3 million in Series A to scale its payment infrastructure platform. The startup helps financial institutions handle split transactions for booking apps and other platforms. Business Insider got an exclusive look at the 16-slide pitch deck used to close the round. UK fintech startup Ryft has raised $7.3 million in Series A funding to expand its payment-splitting platform into new markets. Founded by serial entrepreneurs Sadra Hosseini and Alex Mackenzie, Ryft provides tools for marketplaces, booking apps, and food delivery services to manage multi-party payments for what the startup calls "commerce 2.0." "Commerce 1.0 was simple — you sold a product and got paid," Sadra Hosseini, the startup's CEO, told Business Insider. "Now, in commerce 2.0, £100 might need to be split between a driver, a restaurant, and a platform." The name Ryft comes from "rift," as in a split — which Hosseini says reflects the startup's core product. The platform also handles compliance checks and real-time onboarding. Ryft makes money by charging fees on transactions processed through its infrastructure. It gives acquiring banks — financial institutions that process credit and debit card payments — and platforms the ability to add their own margin on every transaction. Ryft then gets a portion of that and also white-labels its platform to acquirers, who pay for access and usage. Ryft, which is based in London and Manchester, recently partnered with Clearhaus, Denmark's second-largest acquiring bank. It has The Series A was led by EdenBase, with participation from GPOS Investments, British Business Bank, Pembroke VCT, SidebySide, and Ingenii VC, an early backer of Starling Bank. Ryft also brought in US-based Victorum and a GP from PayPal Ventures. Hosseini said the startup is planning expansion into the EU this quarter and the US in the third quarter. "We didn't raise this to survive — we'd already broken even. This round is about scaling up," Hosseini said. "That means international growth, more hires, and launching omnichannel payments." Here's the 16-page pitch deck Ryft used to land the $7.3 million, or £5.7 million, shared exclusively with Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider Sign in to access your portfolio
