Interesting endorsement

The Tampa Bay Times made an interesting endorsement recently. Times recommends: Peluso for Pinellas School Board

Peluso, 58, made an unfortunate misstep in August when twice in one day at public forums he professed support for teaching creationism alongside evolution, which would be a violation of the state’s science standards. The next day, Peluso clarified he supported teaching creationism only as part of a world religion course. That’s good, as the district has more pressing challenges than a culture war over widely accepted science.

About Brandon Haught

Communications Director for Florida Citizens for Science.
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3 Responses to Interesting endorsement

  1. zagrobelny says:

    Just posted my gripe in the comments there:

    Your endorsement rationale makes little sense. Would you endorse a retired history teacher for a state medical board with the reasoning that it would bring diversity to a board dominated by medical experts? This is disrespectful of the expertise of experienced educators.

    Sure, a non-educator can have a valuable perspective to bring to the table, but why should that non-educator be Peluso? His “unfortunate misstep” is a gigantic mistake regarding basic education policy, akin to that history teacher not knowing the difference between arteries and veins. There are plenty of non-educators who have a better grasp of education policy than this, so we don’t need to resort to this individual.

    I don’t know Billriis’ background in particular, but the Times is too dismissive of her educational experience. I won’t defend anyone’s failure to pay taxes, but I note that her “unfortunate misstep” has nothing to do with educational policy and the Times doesn’t jump to excuse her mistake like it does with Peluso.

  2. Chris says:

    zagrobelny,

    I can agree with your example of the retired history teacher on a state medical board, if that was the only qualifications to be considered. That’s almost as stupid as having a community organizer run a country.

    You don’t sound like you’ve looked at Peluso’s experience at all, and you’re unaware of the top down workings of a school board.

    Not to belittle any teacher, teaching experience would in most cases be and asset on any school board. But that in itself cannot provide the collective knowledge and ability nessassery to fill the CEO position a school board member.

    Peluso’s misstep as it is called would certainly turn the stomachs of the humanist crowd. His experience on a Christian school board may have given him insight into evolution’s impossibilities and unexplained shortcomings, prompting the comment. As you can see the radical left will attack even the thought that evolution’s message could be questioned. Not to worry, nothing will change.

    Billriis does have good experience, but with a $1.2 billion budget I wouldn’t want her anywhere near the checkbook. At 70, Nygren has some good qualification, but he might be a little more concerned with the engraving on his tombstone than education.

    Of the three canadents, the Times got it right.

  3. JTodd says:

    Chris,

    A school board member is not a “CEO position”, but more of a legislative/oversight one. The chief executive of a school district is the superintendent, which is selected by the school board in Pinellas. Even so, business experience is hardly a bad thing to have in a school board member (he ran his own Chiropractic practice). But Billriis was also Tarpon Springs mayor and owned a business herself (Sponge Merchant International, according to her campaign website). So you do nothing to explain why you would trust Peluso but not Billriis with the Pinellas County School District’s checkbook.

    As for Peluso’s misstep, it doesn’t just turn the stomach of the “humanist crowd,” but anyone that understands and values science and science education.

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