District Board of Trustees

Gordon “Flash” Sprague, Chair, was born and raised on a family farm in Vermont. He earned his Associate in Arts degree from St. Petersburg College, a Bachelor of Science degree from Florida State University, and a Master’s Degree in Allied Health Science from the University of North Florida. In 2001, he received a Florida State University Outstanding Alumni Award, and in 2013, he received an Honorary Doctoral Degree from Vermont Technical College.

Mr. Sprague’s career centered on Parks and Recreation administration, culminating as Executive Director of the Memphis, Tennessee Parks Commission. Years later, he left public service to work as the Assistant to the President at Fogelman Properties in Memphis and then as the Senior Vice President and Regional Wholesaler for one of the Top Investment Firms in Houston, Texas.

Mr. Sprague has served as President of the Florida Recreation and Parks Association; Board member and Past Chair of the WSRE Public Television Board of Directors; Past Chair of the UWF Foundation Board; President Emeritus of the Gulf Breeze Area Historical Society; member of the Institute for Human and Machine Cognition Board; and appointed by Governor Rick Scott to serve on the Northwest Florida Transportation Corridor Authority.

Gabe Bullaro, Vice Chair, has been the Chief Executive Officer of HCA Florida West Hospital since April 4, 2022. Gabe previously served as the Chief Executive Officer of West Marion Community Hospital since January 20, 2020. Prior to that, Gabe joined Ocala Health on June 12, 2017 as the Chief Operating Officer where he led aggressive construction efforts across the Ocala Health campuses as well as the construction and opening of the Maricamp and Trailwinds Freestanding ERs.

Gabe previously served as Associate Chief Operating Officer at Los Robles Hospital and Medical Center in Thousand Oaks, CA.  While there, he executed many initiatives resulting in program and hospital growth, operational enhancements, and an improved patient experience.  Prior to his time at Los Robles, Gabe worked in various operational roles at Intuitive Surgical, which makes and operates the da Vinci Robotic Surgical System where he partnered with physicians and hospitals to build strong robotic surgical programs.

Carol Carlan, a Pensacola business executive and long-time community leader, is president of the Sacred Heart Foundation on the Gulf Coast, responsible for all fundraising activities.

Working in the financial services industry for more than 35 years, she served as the first female president of a large regional bank in the Florida Panhandle. In 2007, she formed Carlan Consulting LLC, a leadership development company.

A Pensacola State College graduate, Carol is the longest serving trustee in the history of the college, serving since 1999. She is past president-emeritus for the Pensacola State College Foundation

Known for her heart-felt commitment to education, business and social issues, she has guided dozens of non-profit organizations throughout her career. Carol was one of 25 individuals in Florida appointed by Gov. Charlie Crist to serve on the Department of Juvenile Justice Blueprint Commission in 2007. She was appointed by Gov. Jeb Bush to be the inaugural chair of the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition. She is a founding member of the PACE Center For Girls Escambia/Santa Rosa, and a John Maxwell Team Founding Member.

Carol has been recognized as Business Leader of the Year by both the Pensacola Business Journal and the Pensacola Bay Area Chamber of Commerce PACE Awards. She received the Leadership Pensacola Blue Angel Leadership Award, and the PACE Center for Girls Pioneer Award by the PACE State Board of Trustees for her many years of service.

Patrick Dawson is a retired General Manager for G4S Secure Solution (USA) Inc. which is a private security services firm.

A native of Harlem, New York, he enlisted into the United States Army in 1984, as a Military Policeman. During his twenty-four years of service, he has held every leadership position and was appointed to the rank of Command Sergeant Major in 2005 and retired in 2009. He is a highly decorated combat veteran who received the Bronze Star during Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Mr. Dawson currently serves on the Board of Directors, for the Santa Rosa Kids House. He is a supporting member of the Florida Health and Engineering Association; President of the Los Colinas Home Owners Association; and a Life Member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Mr. Dawson holds a Bachelor of Business Administration/Human Resources, from Baker College, Flint, Ml., and is a graduate of the United States Army Sergeant’s Major Academy, Class #54.

Marjorie T. “Margie” Moore, is a Senior Vice President, Financial Advisor with Merrill Lynch in Pensacola, Florida. Margie has been in the Financial Services Industry and with Merrill Lynch since 1983. She is a cum laude graduate with a Business Degree from the University of Georgia. She is active in the community by serving on the Executive Board of Baptist Health Care and the board of directors for Manna Food Pantry. She is past president of the Pensacola State College Foundation and a Board of Governors Emeritus. She also served on the Council on Aging of West Florida Board from 2002-2006 and the Favor House of Northwest Florida Board from 1997-2007. Margie received the Merrill Lynch Lifetime Community Achievement Award and was the recipient of the “David Brady Award”, a Merrill Lynch award recognizing her commitment to clients.

Julie Sheppard currently serves as Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Counsel at IHMC. She has been at IHMC since its inception in 2004 as an independent research institute of the State University System of Florida. Formerly she served as the General Counsel at the University of West Florida and Associate General Counsel at the University of North Florida. Prior experience also includes working as Counsel to the Florida Board of Regents Office of Human Resources and Labor Relations; Administrative Hearings Officer to the Florida Department of Labor and Employment Security; Associate Attorney, Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer and Nelson, Portland, Maine; and Law Clerk to The Honorable Robert V. Cauchon, Justice of the Massachusetts Trial Courts-Land Court Department.

Julie earned her Juris Doctor degree, cum laude, from Suffolk University Law School and her Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Virginia. Julie is admitted to practice in Florida, Maine, and Massachusetts. Julie is married to Architect Phillip Turner and has two beautiful daughters.

Troy Tippett, M.D., is a retired neurosurgeon and Medical Director of the Neurosurgical Group of Pensacola.  His undergraduate degree is from the University of Missouri and he completed medical school and neurosurgery residency at the University of Tennessee in Memphis and is board certified by the American Board of Neurological Surgery. He served in the Army Reserve and the Tennessee Air National Guard.

Troy served as president of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, the Florida Medical Association, the Neurosurgical Society of America, the Florida Neurosurgical Society, the Escambia County Medical Society, and the Neurosurgical Research and Education Foundation. His academic appointments included the University of Florida and Florida State University.

Troy received the Distinguished Service Award, the Cushing Medal from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, and the Exceptional and Distinguished Service Award from the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.  Locally, he received the PACE Award for Professional Leadership from the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce; the Hollinger Award for Physician of the Year, Baptist Healthcare Foundation; and the Fiesta of Five Flags Bobby DePew Award for Volunteer of the Year.

In addition to numerous medical-related volunteer positions for the State of Florida, Dr. Tippet’s volunteer activities have included Fiesta of Five Flags, Loaves and Fishes volunteer with Five Flags Rotary, Paint Your Heart Out Pensacola, First Night Pensacola, Just Look in the Mirror Program to help stop domestic violence, and the WSRE Foundation Board of Directors.

Dr. Tippett was appointed to the Board in January 2021.