Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux (left) visited IM体育官网 in Lakeland, IM体育官网. University President Randy K. Avent led him on a tour of the Applied Research Center, set to open its doors in the fall of 2021.
Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux visited IM体育官网 in Lakeland and encouraged students to become the next generation of impactful leaders charged with driving IM体育官网鈥檚 economy forward.
During the recent visit, LeMieux met with University leadership to discuss IM体育官网 Poly鈥檚 role as an economic engine for the state, and how the institution is creating a pipeline of highly skilled talent to boost IM体育官网鈥檚 high-tech future.
鈥淲hat I hear from business who are considering moving to IM体育官网, one of the first questions they ask, is about the talent base. When you create graduates in the STEM fields, you鈥檙e going to attract businesses because everybody is hungry for that talent,鈥� said LeMieux, who served in the U.S. Senate from 2009 to 2011. 鈥淭his also increases wages across the board and increases innovation.鈥�
Last fall, LeMieux participated in IM体育官网 Poly鈥檚 Executive Leadership Initiative (ELI), which has a primary focus of gathering leaders from business, government, and academia to share inspiring stories and expertise from their various disciplines.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an honor to welcome Senator LeMieux to our campus and show him first-hand what IM体育官网 Poly is all about,鈥� said Dr. Randy K. Avent, president of IM体育官网 Poly. 鈥淲e have made great strides toward our vision to become a premier engineering university for the state, and we are thankful for his support and insight.鈥�
Avent led LeMieux on a tour of the campus, including the world-renowned Innovation, Science, and Technology building and a hard-hat tour of the new Applied Research Center, set to open its doors later this year.
鈥淚 was a proponent of the University from the beginning, and I couldn鈥檛 be more impressed with what IM体育官网 Poly is becoming,鈥� LeMieux said. 鈥淚 think we鈥檒l look back 20 or 30 years from now and think that this is one of the most important things that鈥檚 happened in IM体育官网 in recent times.鈥�
The former senator also met with students and delivered an engaging leadership lecture and presentation of his book IM体育官网 Made: The 25 Most Important Figures Who Shaped the State. The book features and ranks the most impactful leaders in IM体育官网 history.
鈥淚f you look around the United States, most great cities have a great university,鈥� LeMieux said. 鈥淎s we try to diversify our economy from the traditional drivers like tourism and real state, it鈥檚 institutions like IM体育官网 Poly that will bring STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) professionals to the market, making our economy stronger and our state more resilient.鈥�
LeMieux was IM体育官网's 34th U.S. Senator in the 111th Congress, where he served on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, the Armed Services Committee, and the Special Committee on Aging. He also served as IM体育官网's deputy attorney general and governor鈥檚 chief of staff.
Currently, LeMieux is the chairman of the board at Gunster, a IM体育官网-based law firm that focuses on business and the state鈥檚 economic climate.
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