Special to The Laker/Lutz News

By B.C. Manion

The word went out last week about the specific positions being cut to help address an anticipated $54.4 million budget shortfall in Pasco County public schools — but the fallout from those cuts is only just beginning.

The district cut 513 positions, but the actual number of lay-offs was 470 because 43 of those jobs were cut through retirements or resignations.

Superintendent Heather Fiorentino sent a May 19 memo to district staff informing them that if they had not been notified by the end of that day that they were being laid off, then the district thinks it has a position for them.

The cuts include 249 employees who were on temporary service contracts (TSCs), 66 instructional employees, 94 school resource personnel (SRPs), 55 district level employees and six assistant principals.

Temporary service contract teaching positions taking double-digit hits are: elementary education (58), varying exceptionalities (34), science (19), social studies (17), mathematics (16) and language arts (15). Ten guidance counselors on temporary contracts were laid off, too.

The biggest hits in the district’s instructional division were teachers of varying exceptionalities (27) and physical education teachers (10). Eight media specialists and six art teachers were cut, too.

Among the SRPs, categories with the biggest cuts are: media specialist assistants (28), instructional assistants, exceptional student education (21) and, instructional assistants for basic education (19).

The district also cut 55 district-level jobs.

Besides hundreds of employees losing their paychecks, the cuts will have ripple effects throughout the district for some time to come.

The district now is engaged in going through its involuntary transfer process and layoff recall processes to match employees with openings.

Many of those who remain on the payroll will find themselves handling different duties, working at a different location, or both.

The process for reassignments is outlined in the district’s employee contracts.

The district also is making counseling available for employees who are affected by the layoffs or involuntary transfers.

The day that lay-offs were announced was a very hard day in the district, said Joanne Hurley, chairwoman of the Pasco School Board. “People were just fearful and didn’t feel like they could breathe.

“I understand how disheartening the entire process was,” Hurley added, noting it was a tough day for those losing positions, but also for the people delivering the news.

The district tried to take a humane approach, Hurley said, but at the end of the day, there’s no good way to tell someone his or her position has been cut.

The shortfall has forced the district to terminate people who have done an excellent job, Hurley said.

In addition to the disruption, the cuts in personnel will have a direct bearing on the district’s abilities to deliver services, Fiorentino told board members during a budget workshop a few weeks ago.

The impacts from those reduced services won’t be fully felt until the 2011-12 school year begins.

 

After nearly six decades of dentistry, Dr. Florentino Priede is retiring

By B.C. Manion

The drills were slower and the needles were duller when Florentino Priede took up dentistry nearly six decades ago.

Those were the days when drills turned about 50,000 revolutions per minute and needles had to be sterilized before every use, explained the dentist, who is laying aside his drill at his Lutz office sometime in June.

These days, high-powered drills turn at about 500,000 revolutions per minute — and disposable needles are now routine. Instead of being poked by a big dull needle, dentists use needles that are small.

And, the use of disposable needles is now routine, giving patients a fresh needle with a sharp tip every time, Priede said.

“There was a lot more trauma. Now, you can do the work much easier,” the dentist said.

At one point, Priede said he had considered a career in medicine. But he met a friend’s father, who was a dentist, and decided to change his path.

Priede, known by the nickname of Tino, has no regrets.

“I love dentistry. I’ve enjoyed every minute of it,” Priede said. “I was four years in dental school and 56 years of practice. Sixty of my 80 years have been involved with dentistry.”

After growing up in Tampa and graduating from Jefferson High in 1947, he was off to Tulane University where he graduated in 1951 and then, to dental school at Loyola University, where he graduated in 1955.

“At that time, they were still drafting physicians and dentists, so rather than start my practice and be called and drafted, I went ahead and decided to join,” Priede said.

He joined the U.S. Air Force and was stationed in Myrtle Beach, S.C.

“It was a wonderful place,” Priede said. “It was a very small base. I was the only dentist. Actually, it was like an internship for me. It set the stage for what I could expect in private practice.”

There was never a doubt in his mind that he would return to Tampa after his stint in the military, because his family has deep roots in the city.

For decades, he had his dental practice in South Tampa. After he sold it, his nephew, William Geyer, invited Priede to join his practice in Lutz.

That was 15 years ago.

Now, as Priede approaches his 81^st birthday, he’s decided it’s time to finally call it quits.

He can’t believe how quickly the decades have flown by, or how much has changed in the world of dentistry.

“We started with the dinosaurs really and we ended with the space age.”

Besides faster drills and sharper and smaller needles, the aesthetics of dentistry have changed enormously, too.

The introduction of fluoride in drinking water has reduced tooth decay and people have a much higher dental health IQ these days, he said. There’s also much less gold in dentistry and sophisticated ceramics.

Some things, such as extractions, are much the same as they were when Priede got into dentistry.

Over the years, Priede has had his hand in all sorts of dental procedures.

“When you start, you do everything. You did your own extractions, your own root canals,” he said. In recent years, however, he’s adopted a more leisurely pace.

“I don’t work too hard. I work three days a week. I work the hours that I want and have unlimited vacation time. I can’t believe that I’ve been here 15 years.”

As he looks ahead to life beyond dentistry, Priede said he’s not sure how he will fill the suddenly free hours.

Undoubtedly, he’ll spend more time with his family, Rosemary, his wife of 60 years; their son, John; daughter, Leslie; and three grandchildren, Allison and Matthew Priede and Trevor Gruber.

Priede expects to do some traveling, to read more and to play more golf.

The most difficult part about retiring, he said, is realizing he won’t see his patients, including some he has known for decades.

“They were little girls and now they’re mothers, and they’ve never seen another dentist.

That’s the hardest part about quitting. You make so many fantastic friends.”

 

By B.C. Manion

One wants to be a scientific researcher.

Another, a dermatologist or plastic surgeon. Others eye careers in chemical engineering and energy.

One’s main goal is simply to “be happy.”

Such are the aspirations of just a few of the thousands of Hillsborough and Pasco high seniors in the Class of 2011. They’ll be donning their caps and gowns and crossing the threshold into adult life this week during commencement ceremonies.

The settings will be different: The Tampa Convention Center, the Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall, W.F. Edwards Stadium at Pasco High and the Lakeland Civic Center.

But the atmosphere will likely be much the same: Graduates will march to pomp and circumstance, while proud friends and family member vie to get their attention.

People will capture video or take photographs. Songs will be sung. A speaker or two will talk too long.

As similar as the ceremonies may be, however, each graduate is unique.

Czarino Teano of Wesley Chapel High credits her parents for much of her success. They moved the family from the Philippines when she was 9 and now she “wants to make the best of what they did.”

Classmate Nick Cox eyes some kind of scientific breakthrough, but admits in his future he really just wants “to be happy.”

In addition to sharing the stage at Wiregrass Ranch High’s commencement, the top two graduates have another bond — the same favorite teacher, Nicholas Cuviello.

“He seems really experienced and he knows what he is talking about,” notes Fiona Chai about her AP Chemistry teacher.

“He enjoys what he does and he dedicates himself to it,” adds Levi Davidson. “He’s excited to teach so it kind of spreads throughout the classroom. He’s also funny.”

Echoing a theme from other grads, Chai and Davison also singled out their moms for their inspiration.

Class of 2011 sees a future bright with possibilities

By B.C. Manion

One wants to be a medical missions worker.

Another, a diplomat.

One pictures herself playing professional golf.

Others see themselves doing research, crunching numbers, performing surgeries or being social activists.

Such are the aspirations of just a few of the thousands of Hillsborough and Pasco high seniors in the Class of 2011. They’ll be donning their caps and gowns and crossing the threshold into adult life this week during commencement ceremonies.

The settings will be different: The Tampa Convention Center, the Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall, W.F. Edwards Stadium at Pasco High and the Lakeland Civic Center.

But the atmosphere will likely be much the same: Graduates will march to pomp and circumstance, while proud friends and family member vie to get their attention.

People will capture video or take photographs. Songs will be sung. A speaker or two will talk too long.

As similar as the ceremonies may be, however, each graduate is unique.

Take Ana Reyes, for example, the valedictorian at Gaither High who achieved an eye-popping weighted grade point average of 8.36 on a scale of 4.0.

Meanwhile, Laura Hogan, Gaither’s salutatorian carried on a family tradition of academic excellence. Her dad was the top in his class. So were a brother and sister. Another sister ranked third in her class. She may not have achieved No. 1 at Gaither, but her weighted GPA of 6.96 is No. 1 in her family, giving her bragging rights for decades to come.

At Land O’ Lakes High, three students tied in the race for the top in the school’s International Baccalaureate Program. Erin Chow, Wenyi “Wendy” Gu and Victoria Padgett, are co-valedictorians, each with a weighted GPA of 4.738.

Chow is interested in medical missions work, Gu has ambitions to be a diplomat or practice international law and Padgett is still pondering her future but thinks it likely involves science.

Some outgoing seniors have already left a mark.

Rebecca Hamilton, the salutatorian in Land O’ Lakes’ IB program, was inspired by a movie called “Invisible Children,” to help raise money for schools in northern Uganda.

Ella Berson, Freedom High’s valedictorian and Amy Kim, the school’s salutatorian also have used their time and talents to help bring about change.

Berson is involved in a club called Café Freedom that promotes literacy and spreads awareness about water safety and drowning prevention. Kim launched her own club, Less Than One, to provide basic necessities to children needing them.

A common feeling among this crop of graduates is one of gratitude. They appreciate the encouragement they got from their parents and the guidance that came from their siblings.

They are grateful for the teachers, who passed on a love for learning, who took the time to get to know them, who made them laugh.

 

By Kyle LoJacono

The Hillsborough County government recently began the task of redrawing its four districts for the next 10 years.

The county uses results from the U.S. Census to make the districts as close to equal in population as possible. Hillsborough has about 1.2 million residents, so each district will need to have 300,000 citizens.

Hillsborough has four districts, with one commissioner representing each. There are also three commissioners elected by the entire county as at-large seats.

Lutz, Odessa and the rest of northern Hillsborough west of SR 39 is located in District 2, represented by Republican Victor Crist. The commissioner said one of his goals in the redistrict process is to make it totally nonpartisan.

“Politics and political parties should have nothing to do with redistricting,” Crist said. “We owe that to every registered voter. We have a lot of other things to worry about right now, so we need to take care of this process as quickly and nonpolitically as possible.”

Crist was elected to represent District 2 last November, replacing northwest Hillsborough resident Ken Hagan as he moved to the at-large District 5 spot. Hagan is also a Republican and agreed with Crist about the task.

“As a countywide commissioner, it doesn’t affect who I represent, but it is still very important,” Hagan said. “I do know that all four commissioners who have sections of the county they represent follow the process of redistricting very closely. They have a vested interest to make sure it’s done right.”

The current District 2 has 323,264, up by 72,179 from 2010 Census figures. District 4 has 355,413 residents, an increase of 103,337 people in the last 10 years.

District 1 and 3 will need to add residents to get their population up to 300,000. District 1 has 284,518 residents, while District 3 has 246,122.

One of the difficulties with simply adding residents to District 3 is it was created under the Voting Rights Act as a minority district. Its lines were originally drawn to, in theory, increase the likelihood of a minority candidate representing those residents. It needs to maintain at least 58 percent of its population as minority to be in compliance with the act.

The federal definition of a minority includes both African-Americans and Hispanics, which make up 40 and 25 percent respectively of District 3’s population. Les Miller represents the district now and is the only minority on the Hillsborough Commission.

Miller said portions of Riverview are most likely to move from District 4 to 3. Riverview is 40 percent minority.

Miller said he would rather work with the current districts when making the new ones instead of starting from scratch.

“That would make it easier for the commission in two ways,” Miller said. “It makes it easier to redistrict and we already know a lot of the concerns of the people in our districts.”

The commission plays a big part in almost everything the Hillsborough government does, putting even more emphasis on redistricting. One of the board’s biggest duties include setting and approving the operating and capital improvements budget.

The county’s charter ordinance, which went into effect in 1985, also establishes the commission as the Hillsborough Environmental Protection Commission. The individual commissioners also serve on such regional committees as the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit Authority, Tampa Bay Regional Planning Council, Tampa Bay Water, Aviation Authority, Expressway Authority, Sports Authority, Port Authority, Arts Council of Hillsborough County, Children’s Board, Metropolitan Planning Organization, Economic Stimulus Task Force and the Council of Governments. In this way their authority reaches outside the county’s boundaries to affect regional planning.

When the county redistricted in 2001, the commission approved it by a narrow 4-3 vote without any public meetings. There have already been several meetings to show the public what proposed districts might look like. For more information on meetings or the new districts, visit www.hillsboroughcounty.org.

 

Friends, family aim to keep nurse’s spirit alive through scholarships

By B.C. Manion

It was Bettina Carroccetto’s day off from her job as a charge nurse in the pediatric emergency room at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Tampa.

The Wesley Chapel woman had spent the day at the beach and was on her way home when she lost control of her 2000 Isuzu sport utility vehicle on Interstate 275, near Bearss Avenue.

“Something caused her to lose control of the car. We don’t know what it was. We’ll probably never know,” said Susan Carroccetto, Bettina’s mother.

“She went off the road to the right,” Susan said. It wasn’t a steep incline, but the car hit the dirt and rolled.

Bettina was wearing her seatbelt, but was partially ejected from the car, Susan said.

Bettina was not speeding, her mother said. “There was no alcohol. No drugs. Not even an aspirin. She was fully rested. We know she wasn’t on her phone. She wasn’t texting.

“We thought it was a blow out,” Susan said, but it wasn’t.

“There were witnesses that were behind Bettina when this happened. They didn’t see anything to cause it to happen,” Susan said.

“Bettina died immediately,” her mother said. “She was 29. She is 29 forever.”

While her family and friends may never know what caused the accident, they do know this: The young nurse, who died on April 7, 2010, was devoted to providing care to others.

So, her family and friends are working to keep Bettina’s legacy alive by raising money for nursing scholarships.

The Bettina Carroccetto Memorial Fund for Nursing Excellence is having its first golf tournament to benefit St. Joseph’s Hospital’s Foundation on Monday, June 6. The tournament will be at the Westchase Golf Club, 11602 Westchase Golf Drive in Tampa. Registration is at noon and the shotgun starts at 1:30 p.m. The deadline for registration is May 27.

Bettina graduated from the University of South Florida with a biology degree and went on to become a registered nurse. After she obtained her nursing degree, she went to work for St. Joseph’s Hospital.

She was in the process of preparing to pursue a master’s degree at the time when the accident happened, Susan said.

“She loved medicine,” Susan said, and, “she absolutely adored children.”

“She was loved by her co-workers, her patients, her friends and obviously, her family,” Susan added.

Bettina was also a spiritual woman, her mother said. There was a prayer called “Mary, Help Me,” that she said all of the time, her mother said. “She had it on her refrigerator. She had it on her bathroom mirror. She had it with her in the car and she had it in her locker at work.”

The memorial fund aims to help others who want to be nurses, to carry on the kind of work that Bettina did so well, her mother said.

“It’s such an irony that she died in such a traumatic way, when she spent the better part of her days in a trauma room,” her mother said.

After the funeral, there was a memorial at St. Joseph’s Hospital and someone at the hospital took Bettina’s mom into the trauma room and told her about her daughter: “This is where she saved countless lives. This is where she did her best work. This is her room.”

For those wishing to find out more about the scholarship fund or the golf tournament, visit bmcmememorialfund.org, email or call (813) 928-0975.