Board

Michael English was one of the original incorporators of THS, Inc. in 2000, and has served on the Board of Directors since then; and has served as Board president most of that time. He was instrumental, along with Board member David Mechanik, in developing the original THS funding plan for Mayor Dick Greco and then-CEO Sharon Dent, including the Endowment Fund and the Special Assessment District. Mr. English, a certified city planner, and urban anthropologist, also serves on Board and Executive Committee of the Tampa Downtown Partnership, and the Advisory Board of the Florida Center for Community Design, USF.

Abbey Dohring Ahern is a principal of the commercial brokerage division of The Dohring Group, which she launched in 2005. The Dohring Group has been in business for over 25 years in the Tampa Bay Area with headquarters in downtown Tampa. Mrs. Ahern’s experience is in Landlord and Tenant Representation, with a focus on office and retail properties primarily in downtown Tampa. Mrs. Ahern is immensely involved in her community, evidenced by her participation and leadership roles including Vice Chairperson for the Downtown Community Redevelopment Agency Advisory Committee; a board member of the Tampa Downtown Partnership and Chair of the Special Service District Committee; as well as the founder and past President of DRANA, an association of property owners focused on improving downtown’s commercial district.

Brandon Campbell is the Director of Transportation Services at the City of Tampa, where he oversees the two of the five divisions of the City’s Mobility Department. Among his responsibilities is Tampa’s transportation capital program, currently consisting of $12m in annual local funds and over $50m in federal grant funds. He leads a team of approximately 100 engineers and technicians pursuing safe, context-appropriate transportation options ranging from multi-modal network improvements to smart cities infrastructure while directing his team through planning, design, construction, operation, and maintenance of transportation assets in pursuit of Mayor Castor’s vision to Transform Tampa’s Tomorrow.
Brandon is a licensed Professional Engineer in both Florida and Missouri and is certified as a Professional Traffic Operations Engineer and a Road Safety Professional. He is currently serving as a Discipline Director elected to the Transportation Professional Certification Board. He earned his BS in Civil Engineering and a Master of Public Affairs from the University of Missouri—Columbia. He spends his free time volunteering at his church and pursuing outdoor activities with his wife and three kids.

David Mechanik was one of the original incorporators of THS, Inc. in 2000, and has served on the Board of Directors off and on since then. He practices in the areas of land use, environmental, real estate transactions, governmental relations, local government law and government relations, including economic incentives. Mr. Mechanik is also a Certified Planner (AICP), as designated by the American Planning Association and a Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Court Mediator.

Mr. Mechanik has previously served as a Chairman and member of the HART Board of Directors and President of Tampa Historic Streetcar, Inc.is also active in community activities.

He has also served on many other boards and committees, a few of which are:

• Member of Super Bowl XXXV and XLIII Task Forces
• Chairman and member of the Tampa Sports Authority Board of Directors
• Founding member and Chairman of the Tampa Downtown Partnership; currently serves on its Executive Committee and Board of Directors
• Chairman of the Growth Management and Planning Implementation Councils; of the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce; currently co-chairs the Policy Council and member of the Board of Directors
• Vice-Chairman of the Hillsborough County Charter Review Board
• President of the Westshore Alliance; currently serves as an Ex Officio member of the Executive Committee and member of the Board of Directors

Guido Maniscalco was born and raised in Tampa and is the son of Cuban and Italian immigrants. Guido attended and graduated from Tampa Catholic High School, Hillsborough Community College, and obtained a degree in English from the University of South Florida.

He served as Chairman of the Tampa City Council from May 2020 to May 2021. He was the President of the MacFarlane Park Neighborhood Association from 2013 to 2015, served as a member of the City of Tampa Code Enforcement Board from 2012 to 2015, currently serves as trustee chairman of the Sons of Italy Lodge, past treasurer of the Ybor City Lions, member of the West Tampa Optimist Club, Ybor City Round Table, and member of the Hillsborough County Human Rights Council.

Councilman Maniscalco is appointed to the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO), the Tampa Theatre Board, the Tampa Museum of Art, the Straz Center for the Performing Arts, and the Arts Council of Hillsborough County and previously served on the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission (PTC), the Tampa Bay Estuary Program Board, the Hillsborough River Interlocal Planning Board and the Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council.

A Tampa native, Councilmember Gwendolyn Henderson grew up in the working-class Carver City neighborhood. She attended Roland Park Elementary, Morgan Woods Elementary, West Tampa Junior High School, and Pierce Junior High School. After graduating from Jefferson High School, she received her Bachelor of Science degree in education from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU) and received a Master of Education and Education Specialist degree in educational leadership and higher education administration from Saint Leo University. She is an accomplished and highly effective educator with Hillsborough County Public Schools and owner of Black English Bookstore. Councilmember Henderson is a 32-year resident and pioneer of the revitalized historic Tampa Heights neighborhood, which she purchased with the support of Tampa Preservation, Inc., and the Mayor Sandy Freedman's Challenge Fund.
Henderson has been a member of Delta Sigma Theta, an international public service sorority for 29 years and serves on the Entrepreneurship in Education Advisory Board. She is a life member of the Florida A&M University Alumni Association, Saint Leo University Alumni Association, and American Booksellers Association.
In her appointed role on City Council, she also serves on the Hillsborough Transit Authority Board, Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, Public Safety Coordinating Council and Parks, Recreation and Cultural Committee, as well as being appointed board chair for the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA).

Ms. Williams is active in the Tampa Bay academic and volunteer communities. Named to the Board of Directors of the Hillsborough Transit Authority by Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn in 2018 and reappointed by Mayor Jane Castor in 2021 and 2023, Ms. Williams has served in many leadership roles such as Vice Chair of the Board as well as Committee Chair to committees including the Strategic Planning and External Relations, and Operations and Safety Committees.
In January 2020, Ms. Williams was invited by The Exceptional women Awardees Foundation to join the 2020 Cohort of Women Leaders, who recognized her for her “persistence, courage, intelligence and ambition.” Ms. Williams is equally dedicated to Frontier’s growth, as she is to celebrating the women who guided and mentored her by paying it forward to the next generation of women leaders. Ms. Williams is also a 2019 ONYX Magazine “Women on the Move” Honoree as one of Florida’s most influential women of color.
Throughout her career, Ms. Williams has focused her considerable energy on business success through transformational leadership, forward thinking strategy, employee training and empowerment, and executing on the basics. Her guiding principle is the response to the question “How can we help?” Ms. Williams received her Master’s degree in Professional Development from Dallas Baptist University, and earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Nova Southeastern University. With her husband Victor, four adult children and their 13-year old twins, Melanie enjoys precious family-time activities, including water sports.

Gil Schisler was elected to the Temple Terrace City Council on November 6, 2018. Mr. Schisler retired from Daniels Education Corporation as CFO and HR Director in 2015. He is currently the owner of GCS Financial Consulting LLC, a local accounting service for small business, and Treasurer for the Board of Terrace Community Middle School. Prior to his election to city council, Mr. Schisler served in many capacities to our city: on the Board of Adjustment; School and Improvement Task Force; as a founding board member of Terrace Community Middle School; on the TTGCC Advisory Committee; as a Orange River HOA board member; assisting with the Temple Terrace Little League and with various local school SACs. Mr. Schisler is a 1989 graduate of USF with a BS in Accounting, he is married to Lisa, and they have two children and four grandchildren, all of whom live in Temple Terrace.