Former board chair returns to charter school

Roberto Villanueva is one of three members to be added to the school's board. He previously served in 2019.

By Business Observer Staff
| 2:04 p.m. August 6, 2021
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Courtesy. Pictured is Louis Parker, the Visible Men's Academy CEO. Three members were added to the school's board of directors last month, including a former chair.

Manatee-Sarasota

BRADENTON — Visible Men Academy (VMA) added three new board directors during the charter school’s quarterly meeting July 14.

The board unanimously approved the additions of Betsy Friedman, Dr. Janet Taylor and Roberto Villanueva, former board chair, to its ranks. The Bradenton K-5 charter school was founded in 2012 to provide boys with outstanding academic, character, and social education in a nurturing school environment, according to a press release.

“As we continue to build the VMA Board of Directors, we’re delighted to add two new members and welcome back an old friend who each brings a variety of skills and a shared passion for our mission,” Mark Smith, VMA board chair, says in the release. “Each of these new directors will strengthen our ability to provide a top- flight educational experience to our students.”

Friedman joins the board as a founding member and current nonprofits director of Impact100 SRQ, a philanthropic organization that provides grants to Suncoast charities.

“I’m excited to join the board of directors of Visible Men Academy,” Friedman says. “I’m looking forward to bringing my expertise in nonprofit performance and philanthropy to this new role. VMA has a strong history and a bright future – a future we can build together.”

Taylor is a psychiatrist and national speaker on health and wellness. As a psychiatrist with practices in both Sarasota and Bradenton, she has earned a Women Who DARE Award from the National Medical Association and serves on a number of national boards.

“Visible Men Academy is doing amazing work in the community, transforming the lives of young boys and lifting entire families in the process,” Taylor says. “I’m honored to join the board of a school that is making this kind of impact in the community and look forward to bringing a fresh perspective to the work being done here.”

This is Villanueva’s second time on the board as he served as board chair in 2019. He is currently the senior systems administrator for Great Bay Distributors Inc. of St. Petersburg. Villanueva has more than 30 years of experience running IT for large businesses up and down the east coast.

“I am honored to have been asked to return to the board of directors of the Visible Men Academy,” says Villanueva. “A lot has changed in the world over the past two years, and I am looking forward to working with CEO Louis Parker and the team at VMA to achieve what we all believe is possible.”