Samantha Lane became the Director of Marketing, Branding, and Creative Services at Florida Polytechnic University in January 2023. With over 25 years of experience in marketing and communications across Florida’s top industries—higher education, tourism, and agriculture—she brings a wealth of expertise to the role.
Before joining Florida Poly, Lane served as the Director of Global Marketing at the Florida Department of Citrus for nearly nine years. In this role, she led strategic marketing, public relations, and retail programs to promote Florida Citrus products in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Japan, and South Korea. She also managed significant communications challenges for Florida Citrus, the state’s leading agricultural commodity. Prior to this, Lane was the Public Relations Manager for LEGOLAND Florida, where she led successful PR campaigns, including theme park expansions that achieved global media coverage.
Lane’s career began at the University of South Florida Polytechnic (now Florida Polytechnic University), where she held various positions over 11 years, ultimately becoming the Director of Marketing and Communications.
A graduate of the University of Central Florida, Lane lives in Lakeland, Florida, with her husband, JR, and their two sons, Trey and Toby.
Awards and Honors
Community Involvement
Education
This session will demonstrate that practical risk management is for everyone, regardless of a formal program. Attendees will learn actionable and simple strategies that are easy to implement, enabling them to start immediately by focusing on their top risks to build greater operational resilience and ensure the sustained success of their auxiliary enterprises.
Michelle Powell serves as the pioneering Risk Manager at Florida Polytechnic University, the state’s sole 100% STEM-dedicated institution. Having been with the university for nearly 11 years, Michelle transitioned from a leadership role in Admissions in October 2023 to establish and evolve the risk management function from the ground up. In this solo capacity, Michelle builds robust frameworks for our dynamic, young university, overseeing our insurance portfolio, consulting on third-party and event risks, and developing critical campus-wide training programs. Michelle has obtained the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations (COSO) Enterprise Risk Management certificate and the Associate in Risk Management (ARM) and Construction Risk and Insurance Specialist (CRIS) designations. Her distinct background in mathematics and engineering, combined with extensive higher education leadership, brings an analytical and strategic approach enhancing the institution’s resilience.
