Daniel Carpenter

Background

About Daniel Carpenter

Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, college internships in the U.S. Senate and Wisconsin State Assembly led me to a career in the political arena. Seeking greater opportunities to grow personally and professionally, as well as a desire to escape Midwestern winters, I moved to Tampa, Florida and enrolled in graduate school. It was the best decision I have made. My background and skill set is diverse, and I have proven experience providing communications, government affairs, community relations, campaign and reputation management, grassroots advocacy, event planning, fundraising, and research services in the public, private, and non-profit sectors. During my time as a legislative aide and registered lobbyist, I served my community as a local elected official on the city council where I had the privilege to represent 5,500+ residents at city hall. I was named Outstanding Graduate Student and graduated with highest honors from the University of Tampa in December 2021 with a Master of Arts in Professional Communication. I am proud to give back to my alma mater as an Adjunct Professor of Communication where I teach SPE-208, Speech for Business and the Professions. Helping to prepare hundreds of students from around the country for life after college is not only a privilege, it is an absolute pleasure. In my role as the Director of the Tampa Bay Automobile Museum, I am able to blend my educational background and professional experience with my passion for automotive history. However, it is not just about history of cars and manufacturers; there are mechanics, engineering, design, and the artistic and cultural history that matters as well. The history of automobiles is more than talking about a year, make, and model. There were people whose ideas became reality through creativity, ingenuity, advanced thinking, and persistence. This history matters and it is told with every car in the collection. One personal goal of mine is to visit all 50 states. I thought the best way to do this was to visit state Capitol buildings since that is the one thing every state has. So far, I have visited Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.