State Legislator to address Saint Leo University grads at May 22 Commencement Ceremony in Madison

State Rep. Halsey Beshears, R-7th District, will give the commencement address to Saint Leo University’s Madison Education Center graduates at 7 p.m., Friday, May 22. The ceremony will be at Van H. Priest Auditorium on the North Florida Community College campus in Madison, Fl. About 50 members of the Class of 2015 will receive their degrees during the commencement, including three students who will earn their master’s degrees. Giving the Class of 2015 farewell will be Heidi Scuglia and Hunter Mead. Scuglia, from Mayo, Fl., will graduate summa cum laude with a 4.0 GPA with a Bachelor of Arts degree in elementary education. Mead also will graduate summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in human services. She is from Jasper, Fl. Both students were selected to address their class because they hold the highest GPAs of the Madison Education Center’s 2015 graduates. State Rep. Beshears was elected to the Florida Legislature in 2014. He represents House District 7— the largest geographical district in the state—which consists of Calhoun, Franklin, Gulf, Jefferson, Lafayette, Liberty, Madison, Taylor and Wakulla counties, as well as a portion of Leon County. He is chair of the Business and Professions Subcommittee, is vice chair of Energy and Utilities Subcommittee and serves on the Rulemaking Oversight and Repeal Subcommittee, Regulatory Affairs Committee and the Joint Commission on Public Counsel Oversight. Beshears is the owner of Sunshine Cycles and is an avid and competitive cyclist. He served as president of Total Landscape Supply through August 2013 and as CFO of Simpson Nurseries through May 2014. As a legislator, he was a 2013 recipient of the Leadership Award from the Small County Coalition and was selected as the 2013 Florida Forestry Association’s Legislator of the Year. State Rep. Beshears is a resident of Monticello in Jefferson County. He and his wife, Cristi, have three daughters; Grace, Turner and Suzanne. His family was named Farm Bureau Family of Jefferson County in 2008. Located on the campus of North Florida Community College, 325 NW Turner Davis Drive, the Madison Education Center offers flexible class schedules, affordable tuition, outstanding faculty and an environment tailored to busy adult students. Christy Roebuck is the center director.