BY ZOEY RITCHIE
Dr. Camesha Whittaker-Samuel has been selected as the new CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Volusia/Flagler Counties. With ambitious plans for the future, the new CEO plans to set a high standard as she steps into a major role in shaping the lives of youngsters.
Her appointment marks the first new CEO for the organization in over 30 years after the controversial retirement of former CEO Joe Sullivan. Sullivan came under fire by a subordinate and the Volusia County Council in October 2024 for alleged mismanagement of funding.
Whittaker-Samuel is ready to move the organization forward.
“It really is an honor. This is a legacy,” Whittaker-Samuel told The Beacon. “This organization has a legacy of transforming lives. And so, you know, for a foundation to be built for more than three decades, that says quite a bit.”
Before becoming the CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Volusia/Flagler Counties, Whittaker-Samuel served as the longtime chief learning and innovation officer at the Propel Center in Atlanta, a nonprofit organization that provides cutting-edge virtual and physical learning skills to students, as well as internship programs and grants. Those skills are something she is happy to work on bringing over to the Volusia/Flagler area.
“I’m really passionate about taking much of what I’ve done at the Propel Center and leveraging it for our young people here,” Whittaker-Samuel said.
On the topic of what she plans for the Boys & Girls Clubs, Dr. Whittaker-Samuel has her eye on the future, starting with implementing digital literacy classes. The aim is to teach youngsters skills for a workforce that continues to get more technically advanced by the minute.
“There’s no need to wait until they become college students to be able to upskill them. Our young people are already interfacing with digital technology, and so we need to be able to position them how to utilize these tools, how to learn from these tools, how to leverage these tools to become better entrepreneurs or entrepreneurial-minded in how they approach life,” Whittaker-Samuel said.
A lot of her ideas focus on educating children on how to adapt and exist in the future.
“I am so laser-focused on how do we prepare the next generation for their own entrepreneurial endeavors, for an inventive world, a world that they may have to create,” Whittaker-Samuel said. “They have to participate in the creation of the next iteration of what this world looks like.”
The goal is to bring in equipment to learn skills such as how to code, getting hands-on with computers and learning digital literacy with technology training and human-centered training.
The push for new technologies is balanced with the core values of human connection and respect the Boys & Girls Club has taught generations of children.
“The personal human touch, those soft skills, you know, how we resolve conflict, how we engage leveraging technology with a great deal of civility, human-centered, leadership. All of those things are still par for the course — are still critical areas that our young people need,” Whittaker-Samuel said. “They just don’t need to function in a world with zeros and ones and devices. But we utilize technology to aid in our relationships with people because at the cornerstone of all that we do is still people. It’s still about people.”
The Boys and Girls Clubs focus on creating connections with the kids within the program. That is not something that is going to end anytime soon in Volusia and Flagler counties.
Community connections
With all the big plans in the works, Dr. Whittaker-Samuel focuses attention on the role the community plays for the Boys and Girls Clubs. For the good of the children in Volusia and Flagler counties, it is crucial that county residents chip in and lend a hand to the youth organization.
“We have kids on waiting lists. We need to be able to serve more kids, and in order to do that, we’re going to need more resources,” Whittaker-Samuel said.
With the Florida Legislature cutting nearly $7 million of the $18 million it had previously provided to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Florida, Whittaker-Samuel is working with the funds she has now, and is hoping to reach out to their parts of the community to help provide the kids with the support they need.
“You have to use what you have and also invent something new to be able to reach the masses, scale and meet the need; that’s where we are,” Whittaker-Samuell said. “I am looking for partners and those who share the vision of positioning our kids for future success and believe in the mission of the Boys and Girls Club.”
Whittaker-Samuel is already talking with leaders and companies around Volusia and Flagler counties.
With an eye on the future, the CEO, who spent much of her young adult years in the area, is certain to implement changes to guide the Boys & Girls Clubs of Volusia/Flagler Counties into a new era.
The torch has officially been passed.
