Alumni and Friends

Alumni Events

The Entrepreneurship Center strives to maintain and foster close relationships with alumni of the program. Alumni are invited and encouraged to attend events held in the Lowth Center and the Annual Alumni Awards to keep Spartan entrepreneurs connected.

Annual Entrepreneurship and Small Business Owner Alumni Achievement Event

The Entrepreneurship and Small Business Owner Alumni Achievement awards was established by the Entrepreneurship Center in 2012 to honor alumni who have made significant professional and personal achievements in the years since graduation. 

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2020 Innovator Entrepreneur Award Jon Anselma ’93

Jon Anselma ’93 co-founded Paragon Financial with Michael Rossi in 1994, after working for other factoring companies for a few years. The idea for the company had been conceived as they studied finance together at The University of Tampa. Their goal was to give growing businesses an alternative to conventional bank financing and provide better service through direct access to decision makers. The firm is deeply rooted in that philosophy and has factored over $1.5 billion dollars for small to mid-sized companies.

2020 Family Business Award Danny Mastronardo ‘07

Danny Mastronardo ‘07 is an entrepreneur who took $6,000 and turned it into a multi-million-dollar company. Mastronardo and his three brothers embarked on a journey from making skincare products in the kitchen to striking a deal with Barbara Corcoran from ABC’s hit show, Shark Tank. His company, Nardo's Natural, created in their home has transformed into what is now a household name. His mission is to enlighten consumers while providing the purest skincare derived from nature.

2018 Lowth Entrepreneurship Center Service Award Paul Heth '90  

Paul Heth '90 is a leading global executive in the entertainment industry, with more than 20 years of success in operational management, finance, marketing and leadership. Heth is widely respected for his extensive entrepreneurial success in the industry on a global scale, creating and successfully deploying innovations that improve profitability, optimize the excellence of the customer experience and achieve long-term growth. As a leader and a partner with several Fortune 50 companies, Heth brings his high-energy and passion for the industry to the Patton Vision, LLC consortium as its founder and principal.  

2018 Young Entrepreneur Award Djimo Serodio '15

Djimo Serodio '15 was born and raised in Mozambique, where he developed a deep passion for the natural environment. He moved to Tampa in 2011, after which he graduated from The University of Tampa in 2015 with a degree in entrepreneurship. His career is focused on driving change through consumer behavior in different facets of the food and agriculture industry. He believes that food production represents the biggest challenge that society faces in the 21st century, as well as the single most responsible human activity contributing to the environmental crisis. Through his ventures, Djimo hopes to educate and inspire change to fight this growing concern. 

View Past Award Recipients

Alumni Advisory Board

We actively seek advice from the business community, parents and alumni. If you have an interest in helping us improve the entrepreneurship program at UT, contact the center at ecenter@ut.edu for more information.