Education Working to improve our schools The headlines are hard to miss. The Florida Department of Education recently released its annual evaluation of local schools. Some of those highlighted in the Tampa Bay Times ' "Failure Factories" series improved, while others unfortunately did not.At Duke Energy, we value and understand the importance of a good education. Educational excellence provides a foundation for every individual's quality of life and a region's economic vitality. As such, we feel we all must help our schools and our young people succeed. With nearly 4,000 Duke Energy employees throughout Florida, we work here, live here and send our own children to Florida schools. We are actively engaged in our community with a focus on helping to empower local students, which is the key to our future.We believe that by fostering a growing interest in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) for students, our communities will continue growing and producing skilled workers who bring new thinking and innovation to our lives. In Pinellas County, we have nearly 40,000 children in need who attend Title 1 elementary and middle schools who will participate in STEM after-school programs through a $252,000 Duke Energy grant awarded to the Pinellas County Education Foundation.In addition, our employees — your neighbors — dedicate their time and volunteer efforts in local schools to provide support. From mentoring and school supply drives to weekend meal support and our 20-year support of the Great American Teach In, our employees' commitment to children most in need is unwavering.We hope our philanthropic choices inspire other companies and individuals to focus on the educational needs surrounding us. It is our collective responsibility to take care of the needs of all children in our community.One student at a time, one neighborhood at a time, one school at a time, together we can transform lives and provide hope-filled futures for families and our community. Alex Glenn, state president, Duke Energy Florida, St. Petersburg Make school discipline policy fairer | Aug. 10, editorial Put cameras in classrooms It seems there's been endless anguish over why some students are unfairly disciplined in schools. Why not install surveillance cameras in classrooms, or in some of them? They're cheap and easy to use, and they tend to speak the truth. Or is that too simple? H.E. "Pat" Crow, M.D., Sun City Center Teen saves driver in pond | Aug. 9 Credit to himself, family I applaud the Tampa Bay Times for placing such a wonderful story on the front page. It says a lot about the character of our young people and what athletics teaches them.The hero in the water rescue of 71-year-old Daniel Vinovich was 17-year-old Jordan Litowchak, a senior outside linebacker at Palm Harbor University High School. He is certainly a credit to his generation, family and himself. I totally agree with his mother, Tina Horn, who stated after the rescue: "I've got a good kid." It seems that his family and coaches have done an outstanding job mentoring him to react in such an unselfish manner. Tom Feaster, Tampa Campaign 2016 Misreading amendment This week, Donald Trump said about Hillary Clinton, "By the way, and if she gets to pick her judges, nothing you can do, folks. Although the Second Amendment people, maybe there is, I don't know."Former GOP state Rep. Sharron Angle of Nevada said in 2010, "The nation is arming. What are they arming for if it isn't that they are so distrustful of their government? They're afraid they'll have to fight for their liberty in more Second Amendment kinds of ways."Dr. Ben Carson opined, "The Second Amendment was created so that the people could defend themselves against an overly aggressive government that wanted to exact tyranny in this country."The Bundy family pointed guns at federal agents and had snipers in position to take them down. The right-wing media applauded them for standing up to Big Government.I'm sorry, but the Second Amendment does not protect the right to rebellion or assassination. It protects the right to fight for the government. It doesn't mean there's a right to shoot government officials if opponents don't like them or their policies. James A. Devore, Lutz More 'trickle-down' Donald Trump claimed that his "new" economic policy will make Detroit a shining beacon of prosperity as it was in the 1950s and 1960s. Unfortunately, it seems his policy is simply a rehash of traditional and unsuccessful Republican "trickle-down" economics that have not worked for average people in the years since then.If he did some research, Trump would find out that the top marginal income tax rate on the very wealthy was close to 90 percent during Detroit's most prosperous period. The estate tax then was far more punishing to wealth than the one we have now that he wants to eliminate. Today, families don't even pay an estate tax until it totals $10 million or more.We already have a serious wealth divide in this country between the super-rich and most of the rest of us. Many economists argue this divide results at least partly from increasingly nonprogressive taxation.A generation or two with no estate tax and the wealth gap will become even more extreme. There is little evidence to support the belief that the heirs of huge fortunes will put them to good work.The folks who amass such huge estates have certainly used America's infrastructure. Why not earmark the estate tax for rebuilding it and in so doing create jobs for the living? Edward McCann, Madeira Beach