earleansmiley.com - Qualifications

Qualifications

Why Dr. Earlean Smiley is qualified to be your next District 29 Florida State Senator...

Policymakers who possess the political will, expertise and personal skills to take on the challenges that are shaping Florida’s landscape must also have the capacity to be more flexible, innovative and adaptive.

Dr. Earlean Smiley’s thirty-three plus years in public education give her the professional skills to look at Florida’s issues creatively and help define solutions to the challenges. For the past eight years she has served as Deputy Superintendent for Curriculum & Instruction/Student Support for Broward County Public Schools. Dr. Smiley provides leadership to over 800 instructional and non-instructional staff in 29 departments. She manages a budget of $185 million within a district operating budget of approximately $5 billion.

As accountability demands grow, the changing roles and expectations of leaders shift from a unilateral focus in education on buildings, books, budgets and bonds to a joint focus on connections, communication, collaboration, community building, child advocacy, and curricular choices. These functions are viewed from the prospective of building capacity rather than regulating, and although they are not absolute, Smiley views them as a framework within which to guide any large bureaucracy.

“My training and experiences as an executive leader and manager have fully prepared me to guide the vision of District 29. Working collaboratively with all stakeholders to improve the quality of life for all is fundamental in a progressive system.”

Ever since she joined the Executive Leadership Team of Broward Schools eight years ago, Earlean Smiley has been described as a highly creative innovator and a cultural inspiration. She has achieved a tremendous amount of success in her professional life while balancing her commitment to civic leadership in this community. She has a proven track record of working well in a team environment, providing leadership for the analysis, development, interpretation, and implementation of policies and legislation. An ongoing part of her responsibility is to collaborate with parent organizations, other educational institutions, industry, and service/community agencies.

Her colleagues comment that in high stakes decision-making, they can always expect her to ask the tough questions.

“She is always thinking, thinking of things that the others miss.” “She is always the one who has the most common sense.”

Her strengths are creative problem solving, meeting the varied and often difficult demands of stakeholders, and being flexible enough to reach consensus while maintaining the focus on the core business. Throughout her thirty-three year career, she has worked well with all levels of the organization: middle management, line employees, teachers, students and the public. Her background and skills will be an asset not only to District 29 residents but also the State of Florida as a whole.

[ Back ]

Main Menu