Real Estate Developer Mori Hosseini to Speak at Embry-Riddle Commencement

Mori Hosseini will be the commencement speaker. Hosseini, an Embry-Riddle alumnus, is the president and CEO of Intervest Construction Inc. (ICI), which he founded in 1980. Since then, ICI has built thousands of homes in Brevard, Duval, Flagler, Nassau, Orange, Osceola, Volusia, and St. Johns counties. It is the largest residential developer and homebuilder in Volusia County and was ranked by Builder magazine this year as the 88th largest homebuilder in the nation.

Hosseini has founded many other enterprises throughout Florida, including companies that specialize in cable television, lumber, title insurance, and water/sewer utilities.

His many awards for contributions to the industry and to the community include:

• 2001 Leadership Award from the Salvation Army for his fund-raising efforts for the new state-of-the-art Salvation Army center in Daytona Beach.
• 2000, 1999, and 1998 Recognition Awards from Habitat for Humanity for helping to build houses for the underprivileged by arranging donations of construction materials, labor, and land.
• 1998 Builder of the Year Award from the Volusia Home Builders Association.
• 1997 Enterprise Award from the Daytona Beach/Halifax Area Chamber of Commerce.
• 1994 Florida Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the construction and real estate category sponsored by Ernst & Young, Holland & Knight, Inc. magazine, and Merrill Lynch.

Hosseini serves on the board of commissioners of Halifax Fish Community Health and on the board of directors of the National Association of Home Builders, Pinnacle Bank, the Volusia County Association for Responsible Development (VCARD), and the Volusia Home Builders Association.

He has held leadership roles in the Daytona Beach/Halifax Area Chamber of Commerce, the VCARD Land Development Code Committee of the Volusia County Planning and Land Development Regulation Commission, the Volusia County Code Enforcement Board, the YMCA, and WCEU-TV Channel 15.

Hosseini was elected to Embry-Riddle's board of trustees in 1999 and is a member of its academic, development, and finance committees. He previously served on the president's advisory board at Embry-Riddle.

He earned a BS in aeronautical studies and an MBA in aviation, both from Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach, Fla., campus, and a BS in aeronautical engineering from the Chelsea College of Aeronautical and Automobile Engineering in London, England. Hosseini also holds a private pilot license.

Hosseini will receive Embry-Riddle's Distinguished Speaker Award, which recognizes individuals for their professional accomplishments, national or international stature, or exceptional contributions to society. The award is bestowed on an individual at the conclusion of a special presentation or lecture delivered at a major university function such as commencement, and is used to honor speakers for sharing their special insights with the university community, especially its students and faculty.

Embry-Riddle, the world's largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, meets the needs of students and industry through its educational, training, research, and consulting activities. Embry-Riddle educates 23,000 students through the master's level at residential campuses in Daytona Beach, Fla., and Prescott, Ariz., at more than 150 teaching centers in the United States and Europe, and through distance learning.