Carol Carlan joins IHMC as director of philanthropy

Carol Carlan has joined the Florida Institute for Human and Machine Cognition as director of philanthropy.

Carlan, who most recently had been president of Ascension Sacred Heart Foundation, brings a wealth of experience, knowledge, and a deep connection to the community to the new role.

“IHMC is a jewel of Pensacola. The team there has built an international reputation for excellence in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics,” Carlan said. “The healthspan, resilience, and performance research is on the same trajectory. The chance to be a part of IHMC, and to tell its story, was a thrilling opportunity. I can’t wait to get started.”

As director of philanthropy, she will share IHMC’s story and help to grow national and communitywide support for its work.

“Carol’s passion for improving the community is rivaled only by her commitment to the value of research and education as a tool to build not only an individual’s potential, but also a community’s future prospects,” said IHMC CEO and Founder Ken Ford. “We are fortunate to add an advocate of her skill and expertise on our team.”

“As IHMC has grown, so too have the opportunities for the community to support our work grown,” Ford said. “Carol was IHMC’s inaugural board chair. She has been with us from our beginnings and is uniquely qualified to share the story of how the footprint of our work has evolved over time.”

Carol is a longtime community leader and successful business executive.  Her banking career spanned more than 35 years as the first female president of a large regional bank, and for the past 10 years as the President of the Ascension Sacred Heart Foundation. She led one of the largest capital campaigns in the region which resulted in a new children’s hospital and expansion of children’s services in the Destin market.  Under her leadership the foundation generated more than $62 million dollars of philanthropic dollars during her tenure.

As President of Carlan Consulting, a leadership development company, she is a founding member of the John Maxwell Team, a global training organization for leaders with more than 50,000 members worldwide.

As a community leader she has served on more than 35 not-for-profit organizations during her career and is an Emeritus member of the Pensacola State Foundation, a founding member of The Pace Center of Girls Escambia/Santa Rosa, long time member of the Pace State Board of Trustees, Inaugural Chair of the Institute of Human and Machine Cognition (IHMC), 125^th Chair of the Greater Pensacola Chamber and is currently the longest serving Trustee of Pensacola State College Board of Trustees.

She has received numerous awards and recognition for her work to name just a few.

Pensacola Chamber PACE Awards recognized her as the Spirit of Pensacola and Business Leader of the Year, she was recognized by her peers of Leadership Pensacola with the Blue Angel Leadership Award, a participant of the Leadership Florida Class of XXX, recognized for her many years of work as a Trustee of the Pace Center for Girls State Board of Trustees she was awarded the 25^th anniversary Pioneer Award, the regional Pinnacle Award for her many years of service to state and local organizations.

IHMC is a not-for-profit research institute of the Florida University System where researchers pioneer science and technology aimed at leveraging and extending human capabilities. IHMC researchers and staff collaborate extensively with the government, industry, and academia to help develop breakthrough technologies. IHMC research partners have included: DARPA, the National Science Foundation, NASA, Army, Navy, Air Force, National Institutes of Health, IBM, Microsoft, Honda, Boeing, Lockheed, and many others.