Additional Event Information

This presentation marks the 6th in a series of collaborations Carroll McKenney Public Media has initiated with the Oviedo/Winter Springs Florida Regional Chamber of Commerce through a series of on-going programs staged by the chamber to address a range of important issues relevant to the business community and the general population in the Oviedo and Winter Springs communities served by the chamber.

Here at the Heard in Central Florida Web site you may listen to the growing archive of previous chamber luncheon events featuring… the Oviedo and Winter Springs mayor’s “state of the cities” address, an overview of high-tech innovation along the 417 Corridor, a presentation regarding state constitutional amendments; comments from Donnie Jones, new head coach of the University of Central Florida Men’s basketball team; and an overview of broadband technology and it’s potential for the community.

Panel Discussion Summary

On May 27, 2010, the Seminole County League of Women Voters held another in their series of Hot Topic luncheons. This luncheon focused on the Judiciary and was attended by judicial candidates for both the circuit and the county court level. The program began with remarks by Judge Kenneth Leffler. Judge Leffler retired after many years of service on the bench in Seminole County.

Judge Leffler’s introductory remarks focused on his criteria for selecting a competent judge. Judge Leffler gave the audience a set of six categories a voter should consider when evaluating judicial candidates. First, a candidate must have legal acumen. A judge needs to have the ability to make good, timely legal decisions. The judge should be a good listener and be “steeped’ in the law. Leffler pointed to a judge’s ability to reason and to establish a foundation for decision-making based on reason and not prejudice or outside influences. Second, voters should look at the reputation of a judicial candidate. Good character and honesty are important for those seeking the bench. Judge Leffler quoted the philosopher, Sir Francis Bacon, when he wrote of judges, “integrity is their portion and proper virtue.” Third, judges must be fair and open-minded. Leffler stressed the necessity of a judiciary unbiased and apolitical. Fourth, a judicial candidate should have an open history. Leffler noted that a wide and varied experience is helpful to a judge when deciding cases. Voters should also examine a candidate’s memberships in organizations, honors received, and prior service to the public. Finally, Judge Leffler noted the need for judicial candidates to have a judicial temperament. Judges, in Leffler’s analysis, should be even-tempered, attentive, courteous, mature, and punctual.

Summary

Is Florida the worst? Yes, in nearly every measure of how our state pays for and provides care to vulnerable children, our state is at or near the bottom of the national rankings.

As the 4th largest state in the country, and one of the most prosperous, Florida should be a leader in the health, education, and investment we make in our children’s future.

And we once were: Florida led the country with innovative programs to make sure every child entered kindergarten ready to learn. We developed cutting-edge anti-smoking programs that cut the rates of teen smoking dramatically, using the money we obtained from suing the big tobacco companies to do it.
But now, instead of being first—or even among the upper half of states on indicators of the child well-being, we are in the bottom 10 to 15, competing for 50th with Mississippi and Texas in the percent of working parents who go to sleep at night worrying that if their kids get sick, they won’t be able to afford to take them to the doctor.

Those aren’t Florida values. We should be leading the nation in the quality of our schools and the health of our kids, not in teen pregnancy and juvenile incarceration. Middle class parents should be able to send their kids to public schools that will prepare them to compete in the 21st century global economy, and people who work hard but are still struggling to make ends meet, or are losing their jobs in these tough economic times, should know that their kids will have the ability to see a doctor and get the kind of education that will help them fulfill their God-given potential.

We should be investing in success—healthy, well-educated children—not paying for failure. We shouldn’t be spending our tax dollars on remedial education for kids when we could have spent a fraction of those dollars preventing the problems in the first place by making sure all of our children have a running start by the time they reach kindergarten. We shouldn’t be spending our tax dollars building new detention centers and prison cells for teenagers when, if we had intervened early, could have spent a fraction of those dollars building new college classrooms. And we shouldn’t be spending hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars on costly procedures to try to save sick infants when we could have prevented them from being born early and ill had we invested a fraction of that money in preventive care for unborn children. Investing in our children is not just the right thing to do. It’s also the fiscally responsible thing to do.

Additional Event Information

In this gavel-to-gavel presentation, the Oviedo-Winter Springs Regional Chamber of Commerce presents “The Future of University of Central Florida Men’s Basketball, featuring remarks from Donnie Jones in his first public speaking engagement as the new head coach of the UCF Knights. Jones’ remarks were recorded Thursday, April 15, 2010 at the Tuscawilla Country Club in Winter Springs, Florida, before a luncheon audience of 125 members and guests.

His 17-minute presentation includes remarks on his first several weeks on the UCF campus, his assistant coaching career at University of Florida and his head coaching career at Marshall University, his player recruiting initiatives, his preference for “short and fast” team play, and the positive impact players have had on his own life..

After coach Donnie Jones’ presentation, the remainder of the event, at a length of 4-minutes, includes a check presentation to the chamber by a prominent civic group – known as the Krewe of Leaders, and recognition by the chamber of its students of the month.

Voices you will hear facilitating this program are chamber executive director, Corey Skeates, and Cynthia Sucher, president of the Oviedo Winter Springs Regional Chamber of Commerce and associate vice-president of community relations for University of Central Florida.

This presentation marks the fourth in a series of collaborations Carroll McKenney Public Media has initiated with the Oviedo/Winter Springs Florida Regional Chamber of Commerce through a series of on-going programs staged by the chamber to address a range of important issues relevant to the business community and the general population in the Oviedo and Winter Springs communities served by the chamber.

While at the Heard in Central Florida Web site you may listen to the growing archive of previous chamber luncheon events featuring… the Oviedo and Winter Springs mayor’s “state of the cities” address, an overview of high-tech innovation along the 417 Corridor, and a presentation regarding state constitutional amendments.

This series has a companion page called Central Florida Matters. Click on the orange CMF logo in the upper left of the Web page and you’ll hear features important to those of us who live, work and raise our families here…because Central Florida matters!

Additional Event Information

On this Heard in Central Florida, you’ll hear a gavel to gavel presentation by Michael Ertel, Supervisor of Elections for Seminole County, Florida. His presentation lasts 20-minues and includes remarks on pending Florida state constitutional amendments, particularly related to fair state and federal districts and Hometown Democracy. He also speaks about the mission and role of his office as it relates to absentee balloting, early voting, voter registration and precinct boundary lines.

After Michael Ertel’s presentation, the remainder of the event, at a length of 12-minutes, includes introduction of new chamber members, chamber event announcements, and the unveiling of the Taste of Oviedo poster.

As you listen to this presentation, please note that the Heard in Central Florida webpage offers you relevant and helpful information regarding the issues discussed and there are still pictures of the event included in an on-line slide show.

The Heard in Central Florida site also offers a comment section, and the ability to email a link to the site to a person you know who may be interested in the issue of ballot initiatives.

This presentation marks the third in a series of collaborations Carroll McKenney Public Media has initiated with the Oviedo/Winter Springs Florida Regional Chamber of Commerce through a series of on-going programs staged by the chamber to address a range of important issues relevant to the business community and the general population in the communities served by the chamber.

Amendment 4 Ballot summary

Establishes that before a local government may adopt a new comprehensive land use plan, or amend a comprehensive land use plan, the proposed plan or amendment shall be subject to vote of the electors of the local government by referendum, following preparation by the local planning agency, consideration by the governing body and notice.

The proposal above will appear as a ballot initiative facing Florida voters on November 2, 2010. It is referred to as the Florida Hometown Democracy Land Use amendment. On Wednesday March 17, 2010 the Seminole and Orange County branches of the League of Women Voters presented a panel to debate the merits of this proposal. Supporters on the panel are Lesley Blackner, president of Florida Hometown Democracy and Beth Dillaha, Winter Park City Commissioner. Speaking in opposition to the amendment is Ryan Houck executive director of Citizens for Lower Taxes and a Stronger Economy. Also present heard is Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Mike Ertel who addressed the issue of implementation of the amendment 4 but took no position on its value.

The presentation, at the Seminole County Educational Support Center in Sanford, was attended by approximately 80 members of the league, the public, the media and local elected officials and candidates for elected office. Marilyn Crotty, director of the John Scott Daily Florida Institute of Government at the University of Central Florida, moderated the proceedings. The discussion begins with 7 minute opening statements by each panelist presenting the key elements of their support or opposition to the proposal.

Beth Dillaha began by describing her support based on conditions and concerns of local governments like Winter Park. Lesley Blackner, who has led the fight for Amendment 4 during the last four years, speaks of the failure of Comprehensive Land Use Plans to curtail sprawling growth because of the revisions and exceptions granted to developers by local officials. She supports placing the decisions on every modification of the comprehensive plan into the hands of local voters who live in the area controlled by that plan. Mike Ertel describes the potential costs of the voting that would be required if the amendment went into effect. Ryan Houck warns of unintended costs and consequences to the economy and local government from potential lawsuits and reduced economic development if Amendment 4 is approved.

After the opening statements, the panel responds to written questions submitted by the audience.

This presentation marks the fourth in a series of collaborations Carroll McKenney Public Media has initiated with the Seminole County Florida League of Women Voters through a series of on-going events produced by the League addressing a range of important community issues under the banner of their Voter Forum series.

This Heard in Central Florida site also offers a comment section, and the ability to email a link to the site to a person you know who may be interested in the debate.

This series has a companion page called Central Florida Matters. Click on the orange CMF logo in the upper left of the Web page and you’ll hear features important to those of us who live, work and raise our families here…because Central Florida matters!

Additional Event Information

The Thursday, February 18, 2010 presentation, sponsored by the Krewe of Leaders, drew an overflow crowd of 140 Chamber members and guests for lunch at the Tuscawilla Country Club in Winter Springs.

Jim Spaeth of Remora Partners addresses key issues under the theme – The University Corridor: Achieving Prosperity in the Innovation Economy. Those issues include an explanation of the differences between the old and new economy, the components of an innovation ecosystem, the economic characteristics of the University of Central Florida corridor area, and the challenges and concerns confronting the corridor.

John M. Jones of Land Design Innovations offers remarks under the theme – Making State Road 417 the Next Technology Hot Spot. Jones discusses the scope of the consultancy with the cities of Oviedo and Winter Springs, noting the accomplishments to be achieved: establishing each city as a “quality place,” the creation or maintenance of economic partnerships, the identification of targeted industries for the area, and the identified sites for their location. He closes with a review of economic projects currently underway

As you listen to this presentation, please note that this Heard in Central Florida webpage offers you relevant and helpful information regarding the principal speakers plus links to external websites providing you useful information to the subjects addressed by each speaker.

In that regard, each speaker used a graphic presentation to focus their remarks. We have included a downloadable copy of each speaker’s graphics in a PDF format. You are encouraged to view those pages during their remarks, paying careful attention to the corresponding page number provided in the voice narrative.

Additionally, there are pictures of the event provided by chamber member, Charles Wells Photography. The Heard in Central Florida site also offers an on-line comment section, and the ability to email a link to the site to anyone interested in the subject matter.

After the remarks, Cory Skeates, executive director of the chamber, calls upon chamber members to recognize the student and teacher of the month and the Krewe of Leaders briefly honors a group of local citizen advocates for their work in the community. These concluding segments total an additional 11 minutes.

Panel Discussion Summary

At the January 28, 2010 “Hot Topics” luncheon for the League of Women Voters, Beth Davalos of the Seminole County Florida Public Schools was the guest presenter. Ms. Davalos, a school social worker, directs the program for homeless students called Families in Transition. This program provides services to homeless students attending Seminole County Public Schools.

In 2003 only 3 students were faced with concentrating on academic achievement while also facing the anxiety and embarrassment of homelessness. Today in Seminole County schools there are 904 such students and the number is rising. They come from all areas of the county, from every city. Each child must find some way to make it through the school year in a situation of insecurity and tension as their family struggles to find shelter.

In the current economic situation many families with school age children have lost their home and have struggled to find living facilities. Seventy six percent of these families end up in shared housing with all the attendant over-crowding and loss of privacy. The homeless shelter in Seminole county separates families by gender and has too few beds even then, but 9% of the students live there. Many other families live in temporary shelter in a single hotel room.

As a result, these homeless students are performing 1.7 grade levels below other students. Twenty-one percent of homeless children become homeless adults. Their social life is almost non-existent because they can’t bring friends “home.”

Ms. Davalos’ not only presented the disturbing statistics but described the action taken by the schools to provide the unique services that these children in need. The passage of the McKinney-Vento Act set federal requirements and guidelines to meet this crisis. Services provided by Families in Transition include:

• Continuation in their school of origin no matter where they moved to find shelter so they don’t have to disrupt their school environment. Transportation provided
• Free breakfast and lunch each day
• Some new clothing, backpacks and hygiene products.
• Counseling and tutoring to help with academics and behavior
• Coordinated assistance from community agencies at all levels of government.
• Pathways to Home, a pilot program to provide 30 case managers to serve 130 homeless families.

Many families are new to the economic crisis of homelessness and don’t know where to turn. Each year the school system sponsors a Families in Transition event at Winter Springs High school where 300 volunteers and social service agencies gather to provide information and services to 900 local families who find themselves homeless or in need.