Does Polk State College president have clear, measurable performance goals?
Kudos to The Ledger and Gary White for fine, fair reporting [June 28] on the contentious debate over Polk State College President Angela Falconetti’s leadership.
From a management oversight standpoint, the debate raises useful questions for the college board of trustees.
Falconetti’s recent annual performance evaluation by the trustees was largely positive but seemingly lacks clear, measurable metrics. Most corporate CEOs are judged by measurable data such as revenue and profit growth, expansion, stock performance etc. Does she have measurable goals based on what trustees see as important data?
At Polk State, some trustees have concerns over enrollment growth, graduation rates and staff morale. If trustees believe those areas matter, then measurable data should be an important element of her annual performance review. The data should be benchmarked against state colleges of similar size. That annual exercise would be a clear, credible indication of how the college is performing.
As for staff morale, trustees should consider selecting an HR firm to perform periodic attitude surveys. Those results could pinpoint areas to study for improvement.
Steps like this will give trustees a valid, unbiased basis for measuring, guiding and judging Falconetti’s performance, and justifying her $310,000 salary.
Skip Perez, Bartow
The folly of an outdoor detention center in the Everglades
At the detention center in the Everglades, not only are there deadly creatures to provide security that DeSantis and Trump joked about—alligators, pythons, cottonmouth moccasins, and the latest invasive species. Nile monitor lizards grow to six feet. Dangerous as all those are, at least you can see them coming.
I grew up knowing about things in a swamp. In South Louisiana, while fishing in the Atchafalaya, I kept watch for poisonous snakes dropping from tree branches into the boat. I also learned about mosquitoes, so tiny you don’t notice them. Without repellant, your face, neck, hands, arms and legs are quickly covered in mosquito bites.
It’s the same inside the Everglades. Will the supposed “worst of the worst” inmates, housed in tents, be ignored and subjected to the torture of far too many stinging, itching bites? What about the unfortunate guards at the camp? Will their guns protect them from swarms of mosquitoes? Even more emerge after dark. Will Trump joke about how to zigzag away from that?
What about when hurricanes barrel across the Florida peninsula? They’re known to change directions without warning. Is there a conceptual plan to evacuate up to 5,000 inmates before the waters rise?
Jean Duhon Hanson, Dundee
Disruption vs. free speech
The recent headline, “After viral confrontation, LDDA seeks guidelines and legal options for handling disruptors” [June 29], misses the broader implication of the events it attempts to summarize. What was framed as disruption may, in truth, have been the courageous exercise of free speech.
A more honest and constitutionally aware headline might have read: “After viral confrontation, LDDA seeks guidelines and legal options for handling free speech.” In a time when democratic discourse is under strain, let us be cautious not to label impassioned civic engagement as disorder. We risk diminishing the very freedoms that define us.
Ed Shoemaker, Lakeland
Trump’s war with Iran
Donald Trump started a war with Iran without Congressional approval. The US Constitution does not give presidents the power to unitarily declare wars. Trump took an Oath at both his inaugurations to support our Constitution.
On June 19, he publicly stated that he would consider a possible attack on Iran for two weeks before acting. He struck 2 days later. He lied to Congress and to the American people. He also showed world leaders that his oaths and assurances can’t be trusted.
According to recent polling from the Economist/YouGov, an overwhelming majority of Americans oppose the conflict between Israel and Iran. Just 16% think the U.S. military should get involved. It is time for Americans to tell their congressmen to stop shirking their responsibilities and listen to their constituents.
Congress has stood silent as Trump has consistently defied our Constitution and taken on powers not granted to any president. Congressmen also took an oath before the American people to uphold the Constitution. Are their oaths also meaningless?
Congress must immediately use its constitutional authority to pull back and vote in favor of H.Con.Res.38 and S.J.Res.29 to immediately stop Trump’s unilateral war with Iran.
Bernice S. Warren, Bartow
Democrats are leaderless
Democrats have not a clue as to how to proceed in the face of the GOP’s governmental stranglehold over the executive branch, congressional branch and the judiciary.
The bread-and-butter issues of the past included the championing of labor issues, maintenance of a decent minimum wage, economic growth and international leadership. As of the last election cycle, the Democrats have lost any semblance of a coherent political message. Not only are they rudderless, they are leaderless.
In the absence of any coherent policy, I suppose the Democrats could wait until President Trump self destructs. Perhaps it’s just a matter of time? But the Democrats should be troubled by Trump’s capacity to overcome adversity. Like in the horror movies, just when you think the monster is dead, he pops back up again.
In time, the Republicans will increase debt, alienate labor, violate civil liberties, and restrict religious freedom. Their popularity should plummet. What will be the Democratic Party’s response? Who in the Democratic Party will deliver the message?
Paul Foks, Winter Haven
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This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Does Polk State president have measurable performance goals? | Voice of the People (July 6, 2025)
Reporting by Lakeland Ledger / The Ledger
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