Platform & Issues
Three pillars.
No apologies.
This platform was not written in a campaign office. It was written in 30 years of Lake County classrooms. The data is real. The stakes are real.
Pillar 01
Learn it to Earn it
Lake County has a reading crisis. Only 39% of high school students and 51% of elementary students read at grade level. Florida’s reading trend ranked last among 35 states studied between 2022 and 2025. These numbers are the result of a system that moves children forward without ensuring they are ready — inflating grades, manipulating data, and producing graduates who cannot read a contract or a job application.
Eric’s position is clear: proficiency is not optional. No child advances without having genuinely earned it. But no child gets held back without genuine, documented support to help them get there.
He also opposes the misuse of standardized testing as a teacher evaluation tool. Tests measure a moment. A teacher’s impact spans a lifetime.
39%
Lake Co. HS reading proficiency
51%
Elementary reading proficiency
Last
Florida reading trend, 35 states
What Eric Will Fight For
Proficiency-based advancement — no social promotion that sets children up to fail at the next level
Transparent, honest data reporting that reflects actual student outcomes — not manipulated school grades
Science of Reading implementation with fidelity — phonics, fluency, and comprehension built from K through 3
High school mentoring and peer tutoring programs using Bright Futures service hours to support struggling students
End teacher evaluations based solely on standardized test scores for subjects they do not teach
Pillar 02
Teachers Are the Mission
Florida ranks 50th — dead last — in average teacher pay, at $56,600 compared to a national average of $74,400. In Lake County, teachers report pay below the poverty line, 35-student class sizes, no discipline support from administration, and a system that sides with disruptive behavior over teacher authority. They are leaving.
Eric has lived this reality for 30 years. He took a second job. His wife left teaching because two teachers’ salaries were not enough to support a family. He coached as a volunteer because he wanted students to have more support. He knows what it costs to dedicate a life to this work.
The board cannot hire its way out of a retention crisis. It must create conditions where teachers want to stay.
#50
FL teacher pay nationally
31%
FL teachers with <4 yrs experience
2x
Increase in uncertified teachers, 5 yrs
What Eric Will Fight For
Aggressive advocacy to the state legislature for competitive teacher pay — out of the bottom 10, toward the top 10
Restore meaningful planning time — cut unnecessary paperwork and mandates that consume teaching time without improving outcomes
Real student discipline enforcement — teachers deserve a classroom where they can teach, not a room where their authority is undermined daily
Community partnerships for teacher summer employment and income supplementation
Educator voice in every major district decision — no policy affecting the classroom made without the people in it
Multi-year contracts for high-performing, experienced teachers to reward retention over churn
Pillar 03
Income-Producing, Lifelong Learners
The ultimate measure of a school is not its state grade. It is whether the students who leave it can build a life. Eric’s vision goes beyond the test — producing human beings who can think, create, earn a living wage, serve their community, and keep growing for the rest of their lives.
That means investing in vocational and career-technical education pathways alongside academic tracks — not as a lesser option, but as an equally honored road. A student who graduates welding, coding, plumbing, or in healthcare is as successful as one who goes to a four-year university.
It also means investing in social and emotional intelligence as a foundational life skill. Children who understand themselves and communicate effectively become adults who can hold jobs, maintain relationships, and contribute to society.
33%
Lake Co. HS math proficiency
62
Schools in Lake County
48K+
Students whose futures are at stake
What Eric Will Fight For
Expand vocational and career-technical education pathways — trades, healthcare, technology, entrepreneurship
Dual enrollment and early college partnerships to give academically motivated students a head start
Real-world financial literacy in every grade level — budgeting, credit, taxes, contracts, entrepreneurship
Extracurricular investment — sports, arts, music, and clubs are pipelines for scholarships, discipline, and identity
Social and emotional learning woven into the school day — building the human foundation that makes academics stick
Freedom of religion protected in schools — student faith expression honored, not suppressed
Additional Positions
Where Eric stands on the full agenda.
School Safety
Licensed, armed school resource officers in every school. See Something, Say Something, Do Something is mandatory — and means something. Mental health support for at-risk youth identified early, before crises occur.
Parental Rights
Parents are the primary authority in their child’s education. Full curriculum transparency, parent review rights, and clear communication are not requests — they are requirements.
Fiscal Responsibility
Every taxpayer dollar spent on Lake County schools must reach the classroom. Administrative overhead must be audited and justified. The money is supposed to be for the children — and it will be.
Growth Planning
Lake County’s rapid growth demands long-range school planning tied to development approvals. Eric supports requiring developers to fund school sites — but the board’s focus must be on what happens inside those buildings once they are built.
Technology in Schools
Technology is a tool, not a replacement for teaching. Cell phone policies that reduce distraction must be enforced. AI literacy must be incorporated responsibly. Screen time must be balanced with hands-on learning.
At-Risk Youth
Identifying and supporting at-risk students early is not charity — it is investment. High school mentoring, community service hours, and real consequences for disruption give every student a fair shot at the classroom environment they deserve.
This platform was built in the classroom.
Now it needs to win at the ballot box.
Primary: August 18, 2026 · General: November 3, 2026