Governor Appoints Rob Salonen to CareerSource Florida Board of Directors

Gov. Ron DeSantis has appointed Rob Salonen, Florida Tech’s director of government affairs and strategic partnerships, to the CareerSource Florida board of directors.

Salonen was one of four appointees DeSantis announced in late December.

Salonen has been with Florida Tech since 2014. During that time, he has consulted with companies, organizations and government to facilitate partnerships with the university’s principal offices and worked to connect Florida Tech’s talent and technology development capabilities to government and corporate interests.

Prior to Florida Tech, Salonen was director of business development for the Economic Development Commission of Florida’s Space Coast and a co-founder of the Brevard Regional Hyperbaric Center & Southern Aero Medical Institute.

A Melbourne resident, Salonen is a member of the Civilian Military Community Relations Council of the Space Coast and serves on the board of Circles of Care. He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Connecticut and a master’s degree in public administration from Florida Tech.  He earned his Certified Economic Developer professional certification through the International Economic Development Council.

In addition to Salonen, Gov. DeSantis also announced the appointments of Sophia Eccleston, Emmanuel Tormes and Patsy Sanchez to the board.

Tallahassee-based CareerSource Florida is the governor’s principal workforce policy and investment board, working in partnership with the Department of Economic Opportunity. It provides policy direction for talent development programs administered by the Department of Economic Opportunity, Florida’s 24 local workforce development boards and their 100 career centers.