Alexis Sikkema

Feb 27, 2024 | usforacle.com | Leah Meyer |Alexis Sikkema |Deja Wilson

Growing up just outside of Tampa in Brandon, Florida, USF alumna Felicia Sablan said she’d always had a desire to work in sports. After graduating from USF in 2017 with a mass communications degree, Sablan was able to live out her dream. She’s now the manager of production operations for Amalie Arena’s Vinik Sports Group and works with the Lightning. “I have lasting relationships with the people who impacted my time at USF, some of whom I still work with now,” Sablan said.

Feb 27, 2024 | usforacle.com | Alexis Sikkema |Joana Riva |Julia Saad |Delaney Torres

When anthropology professor Erin Kimmerle was approached by Hillsborough officials to research unmarked burial grounds in the county, she saw an opportunity to reconnect Tampa with its forgotten history. “There’s a lot of towns today that are either ghost towns or absorbed into Tampa and don’t exist anymore,” she said. “But those places used to be their own communities.