A new political institute funded by the Tampa Bay area's biggest corporations has chosen more than 20 local residents it will groom for office.
The question is: Will the Tampa Bay Public Leadership Institute's students look out for the broader community when they run for office or the narrow interests of business?
Mark Mills, an Orlando public-relations executive, helped organize similar political institutes in Jacksonville and Orlando and has turned his attention to the Bay area.
He solicited contributions from the likes of Publix Super Markets, Outback Steakhouse, Progress Energy, TECO Energy and Verizon to pick up the costs for students.
A selection committee chose the institute's first class members out of a pool of 48 applicants, Mills said. They started off with a two-day boot camp at Eckerd College in June, the "Future Leaders School," and are meeting regularly through May.
Mills insists that his group chooses applicants based on business savvy and leadership qualities, not political party. Still, he acknowledges that of the students, 14 identified themselves as Republicans, six said they were Democrats and the others didn't disclose a party.
Mills said the corporate sponsors hope to encourage skilled businesspeople and leaders to run for office, but they have no set agenda.
"Our particular niche is the premise that if you've dealt with balancing budgets, creating jobs, you're going to understand those issues once you get into office," said Mills, once a staffer for former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack, R-Fla.
A Tampa-based consumer activist was skeptical Tuesday.
"This is what the Occupy Tampa people are concerned about," said Bill Newton, executive director of the Florida Consumer Action Network. "They see our politics being taken over by corporations."
Among notable members of this year's class are David Singer, campaign manager for Moving Hillsborough Forward, the unsuccessful effort to pass a new transportation tax in Hillsborough County; Alan Suskey, a lobbyist and former staffer for U.S. Rep. Bill Young, R-Indian Shores; and several former candidates for city councils, county commissions and the Florida Legislature.
Mills wouldn't say how much each corporate sponsor gave. He estimated that each student's training is worth $2,100.
The Tampa Bay Public Leadership Institute is organized under a nonprofit called the Political Leadership Innovation Institute, based in Orlando.
The institute took in $49,000 in contributions last year, according to financial-disclosure forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service.
The institute hasn't yet filed a disclosure form for 2011, and Mills would not say how much it has taken in this year.
One student, Tampa intellectual-property lawyer Christopher Paradies, said he has been impressed that the training has been nonpartisan. He's a Republican but said one of the best presentations was from an expert who leans Democratic, speaking on direct-mail strategies.
"It was a little scary," Paradies said. "They were very good at pillorying their opponents and making their own candidate look good."
If he runs, Paradies said, it will probably be for state office.
He spent a day following a Pinellas County commissioner and was startled by how the state's Sunshine Law limited commissioners from talking with one another outside an advertised meeting.
As to his plans, Paradies already is speaking like a politician: "I'm not ready to announce anything at this time, but certainly in my life plan, I wouldn't rule that out."
These are the Hillsborough County students in the Tampa Bay Public Leadership Institute: Cristina Abreu, Carter Andersen, Tony DeSisto, Ken Lark, Guido Maniscalco, Dan Molloy, David Singer, Scott Strepina, Ben Walker, Christopher Paradies, Brian Willis and Jason Wilson.
And these are the students from Pinellas County: Nick DiCeglie, Erin Kane, Tom Kennedy, Brian Melton, Alizza Punzalan, Tami Simms and Alan Suskey. From Pasco County are: Glenn Hanff and Kathryn Starkey. From Manatee County are: David Fernandez, Patricia Staebler and Leslie Wilson.
The question is: Will the Tampa Bay Public Leadership Institute's students look out for the broader community when they run for office or the narrow interests of business?
Mark Mills, an Orlando public-relations executive, helped organize similar political institutes in Jacksonville and Orlando and has turned his attention to the Bay area.
He solicited contributions from the likes of Publix Super Markets, Outback Steakhouse, Progress Energy, TECO Energy and Verizon to pick up the costs for students.
A selection committee chose the institute's first class members out of a pool of 48 applicants, Mills said. They started off with a two-day boot camp at Eckerd College in June, the "Future Leaders School," and are meeting regularly through May.
Mills insists that his group chooses applicants based on business savvy and leadership qualities, not political party. Still, he acknowledges that of the students, 14 identified themselves as Republicans, six said they were Democrats and the others didn't disclose a party.
Mills said the corporate sponsors hope to encourage skilled businesspeople and leaders to run for office, but they have no set agenda.
"Our particular niche is the premise that if you've dealt with balancing budgets, creating jobs, you're going to understand those issues once you get into office," said Mills, once a staffer for former U.S. Sen. Connie Mack, R-Fla.
A Tampa-based consumer activist was skeptical Tuesday.
"This is what the Occupy Tampa people are concerned about," said Bill Newton, executive director of the Florida Consumer Action Network. "They see our politics being taken over by corporations."
Among notable members of this year's class are David Singer, campaign manager for Moving Hillsborough Forward, the unsuccessful effort to pass a new transportation tax in Hillsborough County; Alan Suskey, a lobbyist and former staffer for U.S. Rep. Bill Young, R-Indian Shores; and several former candidates for city councils, county commissions and the Florida Legislature.
Mills wouldn't say how much each corporate sponsor gave. He estimated that each student's training is worth $2,100.
The Tampa Bay Public Leadership Institute is organized under a nonprofit called the Political Leadership Innovation Institute, based in Orlando.
The institute took in $49,000 in contributions last year, according to financial-disclosure forms filed with the Internal Revenue Service.
The institute hasn't yet filed a disclosure form for 2011, and Mills would not say how much it has taken in this year.
One student, Tampa intellectual-property lawyer Christopher Paradies, said he has been impressed that the training has been nonpartisan. He's a Republican but said one of the best presentations was from an expert who leans Democratic, speaking on direct-mail strategies.
"It was a little scary," Paradies said. "They were very good at pillorying their opponents and making their own candidate look good."
If he runs, Paradies said, it will probably be for state office.
He spent a day following a Pinellas County commissioner and was startled by how the state's Sunshine Law limited commissioners from talking with one another outside an advertised meeting.
As to his plans, Paradies already is speaking like a politician: "I'm not ready to announce anything at this time, but certainly in my life plan, I wouldn't rule that out."
These are the Hillsborough County students in the Tampa Bay Public Leadership Institute: Cristina Abreu, Carter Andersen, Tony DeSisto, Ken Lark, Guido Maniscalco, Dan Molloy, David Singer, Scott Strepina, Ben Walker, Christopher Paradies, Brian Willis and Jason Wilson.
And these are the students from Pinellas County: Nick DiCeglie, Erin Kane, Tom Kennedy, Brian Melton, Alizza Punzalan, Tami Simms and Alan Suskey. From Pasco County are: Glenn Hanff and Kathryn Starkey. From Manatee County are: David Fernandez, Patricia Staebler and Leslie Wilson.
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