2006 Know Your Candidates

A fresh perspective vs. School Board experience

School Board: District 1

By EDDY RAMIREZ
Published October 25, 2006

The two candidates vying for the District 1 School Board seat share a similar devotion to children.

Not only are they parents of school-age children, but they are also teachers.

Paul Earnheart has taught physical education at Rock Crusher Elementary School for 10 years while incumbent Lou Miele has mentored and tutored students with special needs.

The choice for voters is whether they want a teacher with experience on the board or a teacher who could bring fresh ideas to the dais.

Miele, who narrowly missed winning the seat outright in the September primary, said he is the most qualified for the job because he has made sound decisions as a board member the past four years.

During the recent taxpayer revolt, Miele said, the board managed to strike a balance. Miele voted with the other board members to lower school taxes but made sure the trimming of the budget wouldn't hurt students.

"We did what we could do and I think people know that," Miele said.

Miele also is supporting a proposal to randomly test high school athletes for illicit drugs in the hopes of deterring students from substance abuse.

"I like giving kids an excuse not to do drugs," he said. "I want them to blame it on us."

Earnheart has not strayed from the core beliefs of his campaign.

He thinks the district is too focused on raising test scores. As a board member, he said, he would work with state lawmakers to place less emphasis on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

Too many students are leaving high school without knowing how to balance a checkbook or how to dress for a job interview, he has said in candidate forums.

Earnheart said he is also concerned with overcrowding. He has proposed better collaboration between the district and community.

Both men have made some poor choices in life, but say they have learned from those mistakes.

Miele was convicted twice of drunken driving while living in Connecticut.

Earnheart was charged in Pinellas County with possession and distribution of steroids. The judge in Earnheart's case withheld adjudication of guilt, but Earnheart was still ordered to serve a year of probation.

Paul Earnheart

Earnheart, 40, was born in Kansas City and lives in Citrus Springs. He graduated from Crystal River High in 1984 and earned an associate's degree from Central Florida Community College and a bachelor's degree from the University of Florida. Since 1996, he has worked as a teacher at Rock Crusher Elementary School. He previously worked as an instructor at the Key Pine Village and as a lifeguard for the county's parks and recreation department. He and his wife, Lisa, have two sons, Hunter, 10, and Dylan, 9. Assets: Home. Liabilities: Mortgage, credit card debt and auto loans. Source of income: Teacher salary.

Lou Miele

Miele, 47, was born in Huntington, N.Y., and lives in Beverly Hills. He came to the area in 1991 from Connecticut after his parents moved here. He worked as a teacher's aide at Rock Crusher Elementary School and ended up back in college, where he earned a bachelor's degree in elementary education from Saint Leo University. Crystal River Middle School offered him a job in exceptional student education. He also worked briefly at Forest Ridge Elementary School and two years at the Withlacoochee Technical Institute. In 2002, after receiving a master's in education from the University of Florida, he was elected to a four-year term on the School Board. He has served as the chairman the past year. He is also a real estate agent in Beverly Hills. He and his wife, Julie, have a daughter, Tiana, 10, and a son, Isaac, 6. Assets: Home, condominium, stocks and trust funds. Liabilities: Mortgage and auto loan. Sources of income: Realty business and School Board salary.

The job

Board member

Members are elected countywide but must live in the district. They set policy and approve the budget for the county's public schools. The term is four years, and the election is nonpartisan.

[Last modified November 3, 2006, 14:36:33]