Orlando Sentinel Endorses Frank Wood for Florida House of Representatives, District 25

Online, September 27, 2010 (Newswire.com) - The Orlando Sentinel endorsed Frank Wood, an award winning 30-year veteran Economics teacher at Mount Dora High School, in his run for the Florida House of Representatives, District 25, which includes portions of Lake, Volusia and Seminole counties.

In endorsing his candidacy in the general election for the Florida Legislature, the Sentinel editorial board described Wood as "...an economics teacher who makes a convincing case that his financial expertise could benefit a fiscally suspect Legislature. So would his environmentalist's sensibility."

"'Fiscally suspect' is an accurate description of the current team in Tallahassee," Wood said. He pointed out that in the more than twelve years that they have held power, Florida ended up with huge budget gaps, along with one of highest unemployment and foreclosure rates in the nation. "Something is broken in Tallahassee," Wood said. "I hear from working families, homeowners, and retirees from all political persuasions who want it fixed."

Wood, a former Lake County Teacher of the Year and holder of the prestigious National Board of Professional Teaching Standards certification, has been urged for years to run for the legislative seat.

"This cuts across the political spectrum," Wood said. "Voters are telling me they want to strengthen public education, cut top-heavy wasteful bureaucratic spending and stop handing out huge tax breaks to the wealthy while hiking fees on working families and retirees. Florida must stop neglecting our schoolchildren. Our economy depends on it. One reason Florida's economy suffers is because the state's per pupil investment lags far below the national average. Quality schools attract businesses, entrepreneurs and jobs."

Wood believes voters are ready for genuine change in Tallahassee and are seeking plain talk, common sense, and balance. "More and more people believe government should be practical and useful, rather than bureaucratic and self-serving."

To read the Orlando Sentinel's full endorsement of Frank Wood for Florida House of Representatives, District 25, and to see a portion of the Sentinel's interview of Wood, visit http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/opinion/os-ed-state-reps-endorse-092410-20100923,0,6105051.story

For more on Wood's run for the Florida House, visit http://www.frankwood.org.