Leadership Team & Board

Jennifer Steans

Ms. Steans, Chairman of the Board, was an original organizer of USAmeriBank and has served as a director since the Bank was approved. From 1989 through 1993, Ms. Steans served as a Senior Consultant and Manager for Deloitte & Touche. Ms. Steans then served as Treasurer of Prime Graphics, Inc., from 1993 until founding Financial Investments Corporation ("FIC") in 1994. As President of FIC she oversees private equity investments and the Steans family office operations. Since inception, FIC has invested equity in over 200 transactions totaling $900 million. In 2000, Ms. Steans joined the Board of Directors of PCB Bancorp, Inc. Upon its sale to Colonial BancGroup, Inc. in 2004, PCB Bancorp, Inc. had grown to a four-bank holding company with approximately $675 million in assets. Ms. Steans' other business affiliations include service as a Director of Boulevard Healthcare, LLC, Chicago Deferred Exchange Corp., Dynamic Solutions Group, Mortgage Services Holdings LLC, Provest Holdings LLC, and Taylor Capital. In addition, she serves as an Advisory Board Member of Linden Capital Partners, LP, Prairie Capital Mezzanine Funds, Resource Land Fund III, LP, and Siena Capital Partners. Dynamic Solutions Group, Mortgage Services Holdings LLC and Provest Holdings LLC are based in Tampa, FL.

Ms. Steans also actively helps lead a number of nonprofit entities, including current service as Board member of Steans Family Foundation, Eleanor Foundation, The Ravinia Festival and Northwestern University, and past Board Chair of Leadership Greater Chicago. Ms. Steans holds a B.S. degree in mathematics from Davidson College and a M.M. from the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Business at Northwestern University.

John Russell Thomas

Mr. Thomas currently serves on the Business Council of Alabama and is the chairman for the 1831 Foundation of the University of Alabama. He has served on the Board of Visitors for the College of Commerce and Business Administration, the President's Cabinet at the University of Alabama, and the UAB President's Council. He also served on the UAB Health System board, and the board of directors for Russell Corporation.

Mr. Thomas recently retired from the board of trustees for both The University of Alabama and Alfa Corporation. He is past chairman of the Alexander City Board of Education. He is also a past president of the Alexander City Chamber of Commerce and the Alabama Bankers Association. He was a member of Leadership Alabama class of 1994. In 2009, Mr. Thomas was inducted into the Alabama Business Hall of Fame.

Joseph V. Chillura

Mr. Chillura graduated from University of Florida. He began his professional banking career in 1988 at First Union National Bank in the Corporate Training Program. Mr. Chillura was a successful corporate banker with First Union in Tampa, FL through 1997 when he joined Manufacturers Bank of Florida in Tampa. He served as Chief Operating Officer and Senior Lender as well as a member of the Board of Directors for Manufacturers Bank at the time Colonial Bank acquired Manufacturers in 2001. Until July 2007, Mr. Chillura served as Chief Executive Officer and President as well as a member of the Board of Directors for Colonial Bank's Florida West Coast Region where he managed over $3 billion in assets and over 400 employees. Mr. Chillura joined USAmeriBank in July 2007.

Mr. Chillura served on the Board of Trustees of St. John's Episcopal Day School, and is a member of the Jesuit Alumni Association, Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla, the Tampa Yacht and Country Club, and the Longboat Key Club.

Thomas (Brad) B. McMurtrey III

Mr. McMurtrey graduated from Florida State University. He was an original organizer of USAmeriBank and has served as a Director since the Bank was approved. He has 28 years of banking experience in Pinellas County.

He began his career with Barnett Bank in 1981, completing both management and credit training programs. In 1986, he joined First National Bank of Clearwater as a commercial loan officer and was subsequently promoted to Vice President, managing residential and commercial real estate divisions for the bank until its sale to AmSouth in 1992. In 1995, he joined Premier Community Bank of Florida as a Senior Loan Officer. He was promoted to President in 2003 and was actively involved in Asset Quality and Liability Review (ALCO) and other risk management and financial functions, until the bank was sold to Colonial BancGroup Inc. in 2004. As an Executive Vice President and a Senior Lender with Colonial Bank, Mr. McMurtrey managed the commercial lending function for the Pinellas County market.

Mr. McMurtrey has served Pinellas County in various positions with the local Chamber of Commerce, Rotary Club, and as a mentor and a tutor for children in the local public school system. Mr. McMurtrey previously served as the Board President of Big Brothers Big Sisters for Pinellas, Hernando, and Citrus Counties.

James T. Ayers

Mr. Ayers graduated from the University of South Florida in 1968. He has significant experience with community banks, serving both as a director and shareholder. Mr. Ayers was an organizing director, chairman of the audit committee and member of the loan committee for Premier Community Bank of Florida in Largo, Florida from 1984 to 2004. He was organizing director, corporate secretary and chairman of the audit committee for PCB Bancorp in Largo, FL from 1989 to 2004. From 2004 until 2006 he was a member of the West Coast North Advisory Board for Colonial Bank in Tampa, FL. Mr. Ayers founded the CPA firm Ayers, Saclarides & Company in Clearwater, FL, in 1983 and currently serves as President and Managing Director.

Mr. Ayers has served as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Largo Medical Center and Suncoast Hospital. He has also served as Chairman of the Largo Chamber of Commerce, as President of the National Alumni Association of the University of South Florida, and the Clearwater Beach Rotary Club.

George P. Bauer

Mr. Bauer graduated from Washington University with a B.S. in Engineering and received his Masters in Engineering from Washington University in 1957. He was an organizer of USAmeriBank and has served as a director since the Bank was approved. Mr. Bauer has significant experience with community banks, serving as both a director and shareholder.

Most recently, Mr. Bauer was a director and shareholder of PCB Bancorp, Inc. located in Largo, FL from 1996 through 2004. Mr. Bauer helped found and is a current owner of G.P.B Group, Ltd., a Connecticut-based investment banking firm.

Michael Benstock

Mr. Benstock attended Lehigh University, Tel Aviv University and served with distinction in the Israeli Defense Forces. He has spent more than 30 years in Seminole, FL employed by Superior Uniform Group, a global apparel design, manufacturing and distribution company, where he was appointed Chief Executive Officer in 2003. He is also an active Director of The Office Gurus, a nearshore call/contact center business located in Central America.

Mr. Benstock has served in many charitable capacities within Pinellas County and the West Coast of Florida. He has served on the Board at The Pinellas County Jewish Day School and multiple times on the Executive Board at Congregation B'nai Israel in St. Petersburg. He was also the West Coast Campaign Chairman of the Israel Development Corporation (Israel Bonds). He is a founding Board Member of Camp Ramah Darom in Clayton, GA, the conservative Jewish movement's first summer camp experience in the south. In addition, he has served for over 20 years as an Editorial Board Member of Apparel Magazine and its predecessor magazine, Bobbin Magazine.

John P. Connelly

Mr. Connelly graduated from the University of South Florida in 1977. He was an organizer of USAmeriBank and has served as a director since the Bank was approved. He has been a Pinellas County, FL resident since 1968. Mr. Connelly has started multiple businesses in the Tampa Bay area. He founded Connelly Insurance Group in 1982, which he sold to Brown & Brown in 2002. He is now managing partner of Connelly, Carlisle, Fields & Nichols. CCF&N has partnered with USAmeriBank to create a regional insurance brokerage, having also added the strength and experience of the Carlisle Fields and Nichols Insurance companies. CCF&N has offices in Clearwater and Tampa. Mr. Connelly is also the founding partner of two additional Tampa Bay area businesses: Labor for Hire, Inc. which provides labor to the construction industry throughout the state of Florida, and Dynamic Solutions Group, Inc. which provides information technology services to small businesses.

Mr. Connelly currently serves on the Board of Directors for House of Prayer, Colliers International Tampa Bay, Central & Southwest Florida, and Morton Plant Hospital. He is a graduate of Leadership Pinellas and a past President of the Florida Gulf Coast Museum of Art and Belleair Country Club. He has served 10 years on the Executive Board of the Clearwater Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Connelly currently sits as a member on the University of South Florida Athletic Department Board of Directors.

Robert C. George

Mr. George graduated from the School of Banking of the South at Louisiana State University in 1971. His 40-year career in banking took place in the Pinellas County market. In 1991, he joined Indian Rocks State Bank as Executive Vice President and was promoted to President & CEO in 1994. He was also elected to serve on the Board of Directors. In 1997, Indian Rocks State Bank was sold to F.N.B. Corporation, of Hermitage, PA. The bank changed the name to Indian Rocks National Bank and then to First National Bank of Florida. Mr. George continued to serve as President & CEO until 1998, when F.N.B. Corporation purchased and consolidated Bank of Seminole, of Seminole, FL and Citizens Bank and Trust Company, of Clearwater, FL. He then served as Chairman of the Board of Directors. In 2001, all Florida banks owned by F.N.B. Corporation were consolidated into First National Bank of Florida, of Naples, FL, and Mr. George was appointed as Area President & CEO of Pinellas County. He served in that capacity until his retirement in 2004.

In retirement, Mr. George has continued to be active in the community. He serves on the Board of Trustees of Sun Coast Hospital and Sun Coast Health Systems. Also, he serves on the investment committee for Upper Pinellas Association for Retarded Citizens and the finance committee for Oakhurst United Methodist Church.

Richard E. Hanan

Mr. Hanan, an original founder of Aliant Bank (then First Montgomery Bank), recently retired as Secretary-Treasurer of Loeb & Hanan, Inc., one of Montgomery's most established homebuilding companies.

He currently serves as Commissioner with the Alabama Department of Mental Health and Mental Retardation under former Governor Jim Folsom, Jr. Among many community accomplishments, he played a key role in starting the citywide recycling program in Montgomery.

Mr. Hanan serves in leadership roles for a number of community and statewide organizations, including as Chairman of the Water Works & Sewer Board for City of Montgomery, President of the Alabama Water & Sewer Institute, Chairman of the Board for Montgomery Association of Retarded Citizens (MARC, Inc.), President of H.E.L.P. (Handicapped Environmental Living Program), and President of the Special Olympics of Alabama.

His other current board memberships include the Montgomery Housing Authority, The Hope Project, AUM Advisory Board, Montgomery Chamber of Commerce and its Committee of 100. His many previous involvements encompass everything from education and health care to philanthropy and governmental appointments. Mr. Hanan has received such awards as the Mankind Award, the Lotus Award, Humanitarian of the Year, and the Governor's Award for Outstanding Volunteer Community Service in Education.

Mark S. Klein

Mr. Klein graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Rutherford, NJ. He was an organizer of USAmeriBank and has served as a director since the Bank was approved. He has been a resident of Clearwater, FL since 1967. From 1974 to 1980, Mr. Klein worked in the commercial brokerage department of Rodgers and Cummings, eventually managing a branch office until the company was acquired by Merrill Lynch in 1980. In 1982 Mr. Klein started his own company, Klein and Heuchan, Inc. which focuses on the brokerage and management of commercial investment properties. Mr. Klein served on the advisory board of First National Bank of Clearwater in 1984 before it was acquired by AmSouth Bank. In 1997, Mr. Klein became a director of Premier Community Bank of Florida and later was elected as a director of PCB Bancorp, Inc. As a director of Premier Community Bank, Mr. Klein served as chairman of the Loan Committee and sat on the Audit Committee. He remained on the Board through PCB Bancorp, Inc.'s acquisition by Colonial BancGroup, Inc. and then served on Colonial Bank's Regional Advisory Board and Loan Committee.

Mr. Klein was a founding director of the Florida Gulf Coast Association of Commercial Realtors and is a past president and was a director of the Clearwater Association of Realtors. He has also been a director of the Mease Hospital Board of Trustees, The Morton Plant Mease Hospital Foundation, the Jewish Federation of Pinellas County, and Temple B'nai Israel.

Jerry C. Kyser

Mr. Kyser is CEO of Jerry Kyser Builder, Inc., a family-owned business he started more than forty years ago, and now a branch of The Kyser Companies, a collection of family-owned businesses offering products and services from fine furnishings to furniture leasing.

Mr. Kyser served as chairman of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, was a member and chair of the Montgomery Committee of 100, is a Life Director with the National Association of Home Builders, was a president of the Capitol City Kiwanis Club, president of the Presidents Council of Montgomery, and has served in various leadership roles with a multitude professional builder associations. Other past and present board memberships include: Alabama Kidney Foundation, Montgomery Housing Authority, Montgomery Area Council on Aging, Voluntary Action Center, and Montgomery Airport Authority.

M. Barnett Lawley

Mr. Lawley graduated from Auburn University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration. He is the former Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Mr. Lawley founded M.B. Lawley, Inc., and ran the company for more than 30 years as its president.

Mr. Lawley created the St. Clair County Wildlife Management Area in association with the Department of Conservation, he received Treasure Forest designation for management of W. B. Lawley Estate property, and he was awarded the Certificate of Appreciation by the Department of Conservation for efforts in wildlife and natural resource conservation.

Larry C. Morgan

Mr. Morgan graduated from the University of Missouri with a B.S. in Business Administration and Economics. In 1991, Mr. Morgan acquired a retail tire business located in Clearwater, FL, which he grew from 33 to 600 stores under the Tires Plus name and which generated $1 billion in sales. In 2000, Mr. Morgan sold the company to Bridgestone. In 2001, the tire industry recognized Larry Morgan and named him "Tire Dealer of the Year". In 2008, he was inducted into the Tire Industry Association's Hall of Fame. In 2004, he was recognized regionally by being inducted into the Tampa Bay Business Hall of Fame. Mr. Morgan and his son, Brett Morgan, now own and operate six automobile dealerships under Morgan Auto Group. Their dealerships include Toyota of Tampa Bay, BMW of Sarasota, Lamborghini Sarasota, Honda of Ocala, Wade Raulerson Honda, and Wade Raulerson Buick GMC. In 2008, Toyota and Time magazine recognized Larry Morgan for his outstanding sales, customer service, and contributions to the community. In 2009, Tampa Bay CEO Magazine named Larry CEO of the Year in Retail Services and one of the Top 100 Most Influential Business Leaders in Tampa Bay. Mr. Morgan's non-automotive businesses include: a multi-use office and warehouse park known as ComPark 75 located in Pasco County; a highway specialty contractor; a sales and manufacturing company of mailbox systems and signs; and a speech therapy provider. The Morgan businesses are known as LCM Investments II, which is also known as Larry Morgan Family Enterprises.

Mr. Morgan is Chairman of the Board of Directors of Morton Plant Mease Health Care, Inc., Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bay Care Health Systems, Inc., member of the Executive Board of Directors of the Transitions Championship PGA Golf Tournament; and member of the Board of Directors of the Florida Council on Economic Education. Mr. Morgan and his family also made a gift of $5 million to Morton Plant Hospital to build the Morgan Heart Hospital and a majority of the funds to build a new church for the Grace Fellowship congregation in Largo, FL.

Daniel L. Moultrie

Mr. Moultrie graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Business Administration. He is the founder of Moultrie Feeders, an international provider of wildlife management products, the No. 1 seller in its industry, and the preferred choice by at least one former U.S. President.

Mr. Moultrie garnered some of his business acumen through such past roles as Internal Auditor, Benefits Analyst, and Senior Stock Representative. His other current involvements include Summerfield Plantation, a world-class and award-winning full-working farm; and Summer Oaks, highly specialized producer of Summerfield Peanut Oil and a leading national supplier in retail and institutional distribution.

John E. Oliva

Mr. Oliva graduated from University of Florida with a degree in Engineering. He is a Tampa resident and President and CEO of Oliva Tobacco Company, a grower and supplier of cigar tobacco from Central America, South America, the Caribbean, Connecticut, and Indonesia. Prior to joining Oliva Tobacco Company, he served as Sectional Vice President for Computer Complex, Inc., a computer timesharing company from Houston, Texas, primarily servicing the Oil and Aerospace industry. He served on the Board of Directors of JRCIGARS, Inc., one of the largest cigar mail order companies in the world, from the time it went public until it was reacquired by the original owners. Mr. Oliva served on the Board of Directors of the Independent Bank until its acquisition by The Bank of Tampa and also served as Financial and Management consultant to Cox Wholesale Seafood.

Mr. Oliva holds memberships in The Jesuit Alumni Association, The University of Florida Alumni Association, The University of Florida Lettermen's Club, The Tampa Chamber of Commerce, The Ybor City Chamber of Commerce, Exchange Club of Tampa, Palma Ceia Golf and Country Club, The Cuban Club, The Centro Asturiano, The Italian Club, The Krewe of Sant Yago, The Knights of Columbus and is a member of St. Patrick's Catholic Church.

Harlan C. Parrish

Mr. Parrish graduated from Auburn University at Montgomery, and is an honors graduate of the Bank Administration Institute (BAI) Graduate School of Retail Banking. His distinguished career in banking includes senior executive roles with Bank United, BB&T, and Colonial Bank. He has overseen management and growth of hundreds of branches on a statewide level for several states, including Florida and Alabama.

He currently serves on the Advisory Board for the Brock School of Business at Samford University and was recently appointed to the Board of Directors of the Birmingham Business Alliance. He has served on the board and as past chairman for the Foundation for Lee County Public Schools and on the board and the executive committee of the United Way of Lee, Hendry and Glades Counties. He has also served on the BAI Graduate School of Retail Banking Advisory Council, where he assisted in the development of the school's curriculum, was an Associate Director for the Graduate School of Retail Banking, and was appointed to the BAI National Board.

Andy Joe Scaglione

Mr. Scaglione is a Tampa Bay real estate investor, with active ownership of over 25 commercial and residential properties in Hillsborough and Pasco counties. A third- generation Floridian, Mr. Scaglione was born and raised in Tampa and graduated from Hillsborough Community College.

Mr. Scaglione currently serves as Director of the Tampa Sports Authority Board, previously serving as Chairman in 2009-2010. He is also Chairman of the City of Tampa Channelside District Community Redevelopment Agency, and Finance Chairman and Director of the Avila Homeowners Association. Local memberships include West Tampa Chamber of Commerce, Florida Gulfcoast Commercial Association of Realtors, Florida Association of Realtors, and Greater Tampa Association of Realtors.

Dawn Siler-Nixon

Dawn Siler-Nixon, Diversity & Inclusion Partner at the Tampa office of national labor employment law firm Ford & Harrison LLP, has over 16 years of experience in employment and labor litigation and a deep-rooted involvement in her community and practice. Siler-Nixon’s practice focuses on discrimination and harassment litigation at state and federal levels, handling trials related to such labor charges as wage and hour violations, medical leave issues, disabilities, sexual harassment and retaliation. She also counsels and trains employees on diversity and issues in the workplace.

In addition to the USAmeriBank board, Siler-Nixon is involved in such organizations as: Minority Corporate Council Association, Black Women Attorneys Network, Women’s Executive Club, National Association of African Americans in Human Resources, Women’s Chamber of Commerce, and Seminole Heights Baptist Church. Siler-Nixon earned her law degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Harrison I. Steans

Mr. Steans was an organizer of USAmeriBank and has served as a director since the Bank was approved. He is the Chairman of the Executive Committee of Financial Investments Corporation ("FIC") and Chairman of the Steans Family Foundation. FIC was formed in 1994 to serve as the Steans family office. From 1967 through 1988, Mr. Steans was Chairman of NBD Illinois, Inc. and its predecessor institutions. During his tenure, the organization grew from a single $40 million bank to a six-bank holding company with assets exceeding $1.8 billion. In 1987, the bank holding company was sold to NBD Corporation, which is now part of the J.P. Morgan Chase organization. From 1973 through 1978, Mr. Steans was also Chairman of LaSalle National Bank in Chicago, Illinois, which is now part of Bank of America. In 1994, a group led by Mr. Steans acquired a controlling interest in PCB Bancorp Inc., the parent bank holding company of Premier Community Bank of Florida (f/k/a Pinellas Community Bank). Mr. Steans served as Chairman of the Board of PCB Bancorp, Inc., which grew from a single-bank holding company with $64 million in assets to a four-bank holding company with approximately $675 million in assets. In 2004, PCB Bancorp Inc. and its subsidiary banks were sold to Colonial BancGroup, Inc. Mr. Steans' other business affiliations include service as a Director of Boulevard Healthcare, LLC, Chicago Deferred Exchange Corp., Mortgage Services Holdings LLC, Provest Holdings LLC, and Taylor Capital.

Throughout his career, Mr. Steans has taken a leadership role in a variety of nonprofit organizations, with a particular focus on helping under-privileged communities. Some of Mr. Steans' nonprofit affiliations include serving as Chairman of the Education Committee of the Civic Committee, Chairman of the I Have a Dream Foundation/Chicago, Chairman of the Academic Affairs Committee for the Board of Trustees at DePaul University, past President and Life Trustee of Ravinia Festival, Life Trustee of Highland Park Hospital, Trustee of the Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs, Trustee of the Chicago Humanities Festival, Trustee of Leadership for Quality Education, and Trustee for The Ounce of Prevention Fund. Mr. Steans graduated cum laude from Princeton University with a B.A. degree in economics. In addition to maintaining a residence in Florida, Mr. Steans is active in two Tampa Bay area businesses, Mortgage Services Holdings LLC and Provest Holdings LLC.

William I. Sultenfuss II

Mr. Sultenfuss graduated from the University of Tampa. He is the founder of WISCO Holdings, Inc., a firm which purchases, repositions, and develops multi-family housing in Tampa, St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo and Temple Terrace, FL. Mr. Sultenfuss began his real estate career in 1986 in property appraisal. Mr. Sultenfuss served on the advisory board of Florida Capital Bank in 2006.

Mr. Sultenfuss is a member of Tampa Yacht and Country Club, Palma Ceia Golf and Country Club, Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla, and St. Andrew's Episcopal Church.

William B. Tiller

Mr. Tiller serves as President of Southeast Dairy Processors, Inc., a manufacturer of Grade A dairy products that are distributed throughout the Southeast United States. In addition, Mr. Tiller has been employed by Tiller Foods, Inc., since 1975. Tiller Foods was established in 1938 and is a manufacturer and distributor of food products. He also serves on the Board of Directors of InstantWhip Foods, Inc. of Columbus, Ohio, a position he has held since 1977, and the Florida Dairy Products Association, which represents dairy processors throughout the State of Florida, a position he has held since 1988. Mr. Tiller served on the Board of Directors of Plant State Bank from 1991-1995 until its acquisition by SouthTrust Bank.

Mr. Tiller is a member of Avila Country Club.