East Lee County News endorses Carline Saintilus for Lee County School Board, District 5.
Saintilus is a Christian businesswoman and community advocate who has demonstrated a commitment to the families and neighborhoods of eastern Lee County. We believe her emphasis on student achievement, accountability, responsible spending, school safety and equal access to educational opportunities deserves serious consideration from District 5 voters.
The Lee County School Board election is nonpartisan, meaning candidates do not appear on the ballot with a political-party designation. However, voters should still carefully consider the values, experience, judgment and priorities each candidate would bring to the School Board.
District 5 includes communities facing distinct challenges involving academic performance, student services, transportation, school infrastructure and access to educational opportunities. East Lee County News believes Saintilus would bring an important perspective to these issues and serve as a strong advocate for students, parents, educators and taxpayers.
Editor’s Note: The endorsement above represents the editorial opinion of East Lee County News. The following is paid candidate commentary written and submitted by Carline Saintilus to explain her vision for the School District of Lee County.
Commentary: Progress Is Measured by Every Child
By Carline Saintilus
Candidate for Lee County School Board, District 5
Every parent wants the same thing: a safe school, caring and well-supported teachers and school personnel, and the confidence that their child will graduate prepared for life.
Every student deserves consistent access to the support they need to succeed, including high-quality services for students with exceptionalities, timely mental health resources, and early interventions that help every child reach their full potential.
Strong schools recognize that academic achievement and student well-being go hand in hand. They also recognize that every adult who serves our students, from teachers and paraprofessionals to bus drivers, counselors, cafeteria workers, custodians and support staff, plays an essential role in helping children succeed.
I appreciate every teacher, principal, paraprofessional, support employee, volunteer and school leader whose hard work has contributed to recent improvements across the School District of Lee County.
The district has earned its highest point total in a decade, 29 schools improved their grades, and no traditional school received a D or F this year. Those are encouraging developments worth recognizing.
But leadership is not measured only by celebrating districtwide averages. It is measured by asking whether every community is moving forward at the same pace.
In District 5, many schools continue to trail other parts of Lee County on state assessments. On several Florida assessments, District 5 schools remain approximately 17 to 20 percentage points behind higher-performing areas of the county.
Those students deserve more than the promise that things will improve someday. They deserve a focused plan now.
Graduation rates tell a similar story. Lee County’s graduation rate improved from 82.5% in 2022 to 89.8% in 2025, an increase of 7.3 percentage points. That progress deserves recognition.
District 5’s traditional high schools also posted impressive graduation rates by 2025, with most reaching 96% to 97%. Those accomplishments reflect the hard work of students, educators, families and school leaders.
However, graduation rates should never be viewed in isolation. Throughout this period, Lee County’s overall graduation rate remained below the Florida average.
More importantly, we must ask a deeper question: Are our graduates truly prepared for what comes next?
A diploma should represent readiness, not just completion. We should evaluate graduation alongside literacy, mathematics proficiency, attendance, career and technical certifications, dual enrollment success, military readiness, workforce preparedness and college readiness.
Every graduate should leave our schools equipped to succeed, whether their next step is college, technical training, military service or a meaningful career.
The vision of making Lee County one of America’s premier school districts is one I share. But achieving that vision requires more than setting ambitious goals. It requires ensuring every student benefits from measurable progress, regardless of where they live.
That starts with accountability.
Accountability means asking whether Title I resources are producing measurable gains in the schools serving our highest-need students. It means evaluating every budget decision by one simple question: Did this investment improve student outcomes?
School safety must continue to evolve as well. Security technology and trained personnel are important, but true safety extends beyond the schoolhouse doors.
For many District 5 families, a child’s school day begins long before the first bell rings. Safety starts the moment a student leaves home and continues until they return home at the end of the day.
That means investing in safe walking routes, sidewalks, crosswalks, well-lit bus stops with appropriate bus benches where needed, reliable transportation, effective emergency preparedness, and learning environments where students and teachers feel physically and emotionally secure every day.
Our educators deserve more than appreciation. They deserve competitive compensation, meaningful professional support, manageable workloads, and a School Board that treats teacher recruitment and retention as long-term priorities rather than recurring challenges.
Fiscal responsibility also requires more than promising transparency. It requires asking difficult questions, measuring results and ensuring taxpayer dollars are directed first toward classrooms, student services, school personnel and academic achievement.
When enrollment is declining, budgets are tightening and classroom positions are being reduced, the public deserves to know whether new six-figure central-office positions are truly necessary, whether their duties overlap with existing roles, and whether promised administrative savings were actually achieved.
Every position and every expenditure should be tied to a clear, measurable benefit for students. Every budget should be judged by one standard: Did the needle move for student outcomes?
I am not running to diminish the progress our district has made. I am running because progress should not depend on where a child lives.
Every student deserves excellence. Every neighborhood deserves opportunity. Every taxpayer deserves accountability.
The question before voters is not whether progress has been made. It has. The question is whether that progress has reached every child, every classroom and every neighborhood.
Until it does, our work is not finished.
As a community, we can build a school district where academic excellence is matched by fiscal responsibility, where students are supported academically, emotionally and socially, and where every family, regardless of where they live, has confidence that their child is receiving the education they deserve.
That is the future I believe Lee County can achieve, and it is the future I will work every day to build as your next District 5 School Board member.
Political advertisement paid for and approved by Carline Saintilus, nonpartisan candidate for Lee County School Board, District 5.
