Citrus County school board elections forum

In the first of the election year’s large public candidate forums, residents got to hear from candidates who will appear on the ballot Sept. 5, including School Board and County Commission hopefuls …

District 1 candidate Michael “Joey” White said Citrus schools should be allowed to teach intelligent design as an alternative to the theory of evolution.

“There’s certainly room for both of them at the schools,” White said to scattered applause from the crowd.

Incumbent Lou Miele responded that intelligent design should not be taught in Citrus public schools. The school district recently adopted a new science textbook for the secondary schools.

“As much as I believe in my faith,” he said, “there’s no place for that in school.”

Schools “need to teach facts to our children,” he said. “Our parents and churches can teach religion. It’s that simple.”

The third candidate, Paul Earnheart, said he also is a religious man but thinks teaching intelligent design in public schools would violate the separation of church and state.

Miele has been criticized for seeking a seat on the School Board even though his two children attend private Catholic school. White’s daughter is a kindergartener at a public school in Citrus. Earnheart has two sons enrolled in Citrus schools.