Vote November 8th, 2022
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Please consider re-electing Brent Earl for the Howell School Board.
I was elected as a write-in candidate in 2014 and re-elected in 2018. I have served 8 years with passion and dedication. I would like to serve another term as I continue to have the enthusiasm for making a positive difference in our school district. I feel I am a helpful influence in the decisions we make and I enjoy working with my fellow board members as we strive to make Howell a better place to raise our kids.
Over the past two school years it has been hard for everyone. None harder than for our teachers and students. They were resilient, however it was a constant rollercoaster ride for two straight years. As board members we tried our hardest to make the ride as safe and uneventful as we possibly could. Emotions were abundant, however we made decisions based on keeping kids safe and in school as we knew it was best for them. Superintendent MacGregor guided us over the past two years was the best we could have asked for. Howell was an example noticed by all districts in the State of Michigan. We lead when it was the hardest.
My sincere thank you to teachers and staff for enduring what I hope we will never have to witness again.
Here's to a bright future for Howell Public Schools. Go Highlanders!
I was elected as a write-in candidate in 2014 and re-elected in 2018. I have served 8 years with passion and dedication. I would like to serve another term as I continue to have the enthusiasm for making a positive difference in our school district. I feel I am a helpful influence in the decisions we make and I enjoy working with my fellow board members as we strive to make Howell a better place to raise our kids.
Over the past two school years it has been hard for everyone. None harder than for our teachers and students. They were resilient, however it was a constant rollercoaster ride for two straight years. As board members we tried our hardest to make the ride as safe and uneventful as we possibly could. Emotions were abundant, however we made decisions based on keeping kids safe and in school as we knew it was best for them. Superintendent MacGregor guided us over the past two years was the best we could have asked for. Howell was an example noticed by all districts in the State of Michigan. We lead when it was the hardest.
My sincere thank you to teachers and staff for enduring what I hope we will never have to witness again.
Here's to a bright future for Howell Public Schools. Go Highlanders!
Name: Brent Earl
Age: 55
Wife: Jen, Teacher, ELA sixth grade, Highlander Way Middle School
Children: Four- A Senior at Howell High School and 3 recent graduates from Howell High School '16, '18, & '20
High School: Howell Class of 1985
College: Hillsdale College ’89, BA in Business Administration
Employment: EverAg
Passions: Family, friends, any sport, and farming.
Residence: Earl Farm, Howell Township
Age: 55
Wife: Jen, Teacher, ELA sixth grade, Highlander Way Middle School
Children: Four- A Senior at Howell High School and 3 recent graduates from Howell High School '16, '18, & '20
High School: Howell Class of 1985
College: Hillsdale College ’89, BA in Business Administration
Employment: EverAg
Passions: Family, friends, any sport, and farming.
Residence: Earl Farm, Howell Township
Personal Awards
2022 Howell Rotary Paul Harris Fellow award recipient
2020 Howell Chamber of Commerce "Game Changer" award
2017 Cleary University, Bob Lyons Community Leadership award recipient
2013 Howell Citizen of the Year
2011 Daughters of the American Revolution Community Service Award
2007 Livingston County Citizen of the Year (Ann Arbor News)
2006 Big Brother of the year, Big Brother/Big Sisters
Community involvement
- Howell Rotary Club (2002-present)
- Howell School Board, Secretary (2015 & 2016), Vice President (2017-present), Howell Public School District (2015-Present)
- Earl Farm Foundation, Founder (2004-present) Contributor to: Fowlerville Family Impact Center, Torch 180, SonRise food Pantry, LACASA, Active Faith, Bountiful Harvest, The Connection Youth Services, Make-A-Wish Michigan, Gleaners Food Bank, and others.
- OLSHA (Oakland Livingston Human Services Agency) Board member & Vice Chairman (2017-Present)
- Chair, Walk for Warmth (2016-2022)
- Past President, Livingston Arts Council/Howell Opera House, board member (2001-2014)
- HubTV co-founder and Executive Producer (2006- 2011) Positive TV programming of Livingston County.
- Red Cross Board Member (2010)
- Big Brother- Big Brother/Big Sisters (2001-2007)
- Howell Township Planning Commission (2002-2005)
2022 Howell Rotary Paul Harris Fellow award recipient
2020 Howell Chamber of Commerce "Game Changer" award
2017 Cleary University, Bob Lyons Community Leadership award recipient
2013 Howell Citizen of the Year
2011 Daughters of the American Revolution Community Service Award
2007 Livingston County Citizen of the Year (Ann Arbor News)
2006 Big Brother of the year, Big Brother/Big Sisters
Community involvement
- Howell Rotary Club (2002-present)
- Howell School Board, Secretary (2015 & 2016), Vice President (2017-present), Howell Public School District (2015-Present)
- Earl Farm Foundation, Founder (2004-present) Contributor to: Fowlerville Family Impact Center, Torch 180, SonRise food Pantry, LACASA, Active Faith, Bountiful Harvest, The Connection Youth Services, Make-A-Wish Michigan, Gleaners Food Bank, and others.
- OLSHA (Oakland Livingston Human Services Agency) Board member & Vice Chairman (2017-Present)
- Chair, Walk for Warmth (2016-2022)
- Past President, Livingston Arts Council/Howell Opera House, board member (2001-2014)
- HubTV co-founder and Executive Producer (2006- 2011) Positive TV programming of Livingston County.
- Red Cross Board Member (2010)
- Big Brother- Big Brother/Big Sisters (2001-2007)
- Howell Township Planning Commission (2002-2005)
Recent Article
Down on the Earl Farm: Nourishing the Community, One Cow at a Time
Written by Doug Goodnough for the Hillsdale College Blog
Brent Earl, ’89, a former two-sport standout in Charger football and baseball and Delta Sigma Phi member, spent his childhood shearing sheep, cleaning horse stalls, and bailing hay on the farm that has been in his family since 1864. He had no intention of making farming his career after receiving his business administration degree from Hillsdale College.
“Gosh, no,” he said.
Earl currently works remotely as a full-time sales executive for dairy.com, a leading provider of technology and service platforms, from his home on Earl Farm in Howell, Michigan. In 2001, Brent and his wife, Jennifer, decided to move back to the farm to raise their family and embrace the farm experience. His remote work with dairy.com allows him to stay active both on the farm and in the community.
When the Earls moved back to the farm, they desired to enhance their farm experience. “We wanted to have some cows, so we bought a couple of them,” Brent said. They eventually added turkeys and chickens, and their “couple of cows” turned into a small herd. The Earls also desired to connect with the community, so they started hosting “porch lunches.”
Their spacious porch is complete with comfortable furniture and breezy ceiling fans. Almost every Friday during the summer months, people can register for a porch lunch on their website to come over for a free meal and conversation.
Usually the Earls limit the amount of lunch guests to six or fewer to allow for a more personalized environment. Besides sampling the menu that includes beef from the family farm and an impressive spread of garden-fresh fruit and vegetables, guests are treated to a time of engaging discussion.
Beyond the homestead’s sprawling front porch with panoramic views of the farm, Brent’s wife, Jennifer, an English teacher at the local middle school, learned that food insecurity was an issue in Livingston County. So the Earls decided to donate one cow per year to provide hamburger to local food pantries.
That’s when the Earl Farm Foundation happened. The Earls organized fundraisers that would raise money to purchase one-pound packages of hamburger for the pantries. “We’re almost up to 50 cows (donated) in the last five years,” said Brent.
Along with the foundation, the Earls started the “Neighbors Feeding Neighbors” campaign that allows people to assist their foundation on a monthly basis. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the foundation raised $38,000 and delivered 9,500 pounds of beef to local pantries. That increased in 2021, and it is on pace to eclipse that mark in 2022. In early August, the farm hosted an unusual and unique fundraising event—a vintage baseball game and ice cream social.
Transforming the homestead’s expansive front yard into a makeshift baseball field, the Earls recruited players for the home team, including fellow Chargers Brian Buckley, ’87, John Chapel, ’89, Jay Tobin, ’88, and Jon Palazzo, ’90. The event raised $21,000, with more than 200 people attending.
For more than 20 years, the Earls have embraced the farm experience with a passion to give back to their community. Their homestead has grown beyond expectations and has become a social gathering spot for family, friends, and the local community. But beyond their generosity, their family farm has been a classroom for their four children to learn the lessons of hard work, family, and being good stewards of the land. Brent and Jennifer recently became grandparents, and they hope that one of their four children will one day take over the Earl Farm, continuing a legacy of fostering generosity and camaraderie in their community.
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing.
Published in August 2022
Brent Earl, ’89, a former two-sport standout in Charger football and baseball and Delta Sigma Phi member, spent his childhood shearing sheep, cleaning horse stalls, and bailing hay on the farm that has been in his family since 1864. He had no intention of making farming his career after receiving his business administration degree from Hillsdale College.
“Gosh, no,” he said.
Earl currently works remotely as a full-time sales executive for dairy.com, a leading provider of technology and service platforms, from his home on Earl Farm in Howell, Michigan. In 2001, Brent and his wife, Jennifer, decided to move back to the farm to raise their family and embrace the farm experience. His remote work with dairy.com allows him to stay active both on the farm and in the community.
When the Earls moved back to the farm, they desired to enhance their farm experience. “We wanted to have some cows, so we bought a couple of them,” Brent said. They eventually added turkeys and chickens, and their “couple of cows” turned into a small herd. The Earls also desired to connect with the community, so they started hosting “porch lunches.”
Their spacious porch is complete with comfortable furniture and breezy ceiling fans. Almost every Friday during the summer months, people can register for a porch lunch on their website to come over for a free meal and conversation.
Usually the Earls limit the amount of lunch guests to six or fewer to allow for a more personalized environment. Besides sampling the menu that includes beef from the family farm and an impressive spread of garden-fresh fruit and vegetables, guests are treated to a time of engaging discussion.
Beyond the homestead’s sprawling front porch with panoramic views of the farm, Brent’s wife, Jennifer, an English teacher at the local middle school, learned that food insecurity was an issue in Livingston County. So the Earls decided to donate one cow per year to provide hamburger to local food pantries.
That’s when the Earl Farm Foundation happened. The Earls organized fundraisers that would raise money to purchase one-pound packages of hamburger for the pantries. “We’re almost up to 50 cows (donated) in the last five years,” said Brent.
Along with the foundation, the Earls started the “Neighbors Feeding Neighbors” campaign that allows people to assist their foundation on a monthly basis. In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the foundation raised $38,000 and delivered 9,500 pounds of beef to local pantries. That increased in 2021, and it is on pace to eclipse that mark in 2022. In early August, the farm hosted an unusual and unique fundraising event—a vintage baseball game and ice cream social.
Transforming the homestead’s expansive front yard into a makeshift baseball field, the Earls recruited players for the home team, including fellow Chargers Brian Buckley, ’87, John Chapel, ’89, Jay Tobin, ’88, and Jon Palazzo, ’90. The event raised $21,000, with more than 200 people attending.
For more than 20 years, the Earls have embraced the farm experience with a passion to give back to their community. Their homestead has grown beyond expectations and has become a social gathering spot for family, friends, and the local community. But beyond their generosity, their family farm has been a classroom for their four children to learn the lessons of hard work, family, and being good stewards of the land. Brent and Jennifer recently became grandparents, and they hope that one of their four children will one day take over the Earl Farm, continuing a legacy of fostering generosity and camaraderie in their community.
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing.
Published in August 2022
Howell Fight Song:
Howell High forever, we will always be.
Faithful and loyal, in our love for thee. RAH! RAH! RAH!
Hail, hail, the gangs all here, round our colors bold.
We'll stick together for our dear green and gold!
Howell High forever, we will always be.
Faithful and loyal, in our love for thee. RAH! RAH! RAH!
Hail, hail, the gangs all here, round our colors bold.
We'll stick together for our dear green and gold!