School Board Election and Operating Levy
On Tuesday, November 7th, 2017 the Grand Meadow School Board will be holding a Special Election.
There are two items on the ballot.
One: Fill a vacant school board seat
Two: Renewal of the existing Operating Levy
General Information:
The purpose of this e-mail is two-fold. 1. A reminder to get out and vote on November 7th. 2. Share some facts about what your financial support has provided the school district over the past number of years through the current Operating Levy.
Polling Place: All polling places have been combined into one polling place for this Special Election. The poll witl be in the lobby of the Legacy Gym at the school. Enter through the Legacy Gymnasium doors on the West side of the school - Door (W3).
Voting will take place from 7:00 AM until 8:00 PM.
Absentee Voting Applications: Applications are available at the school in the secondary office. Time is of essence if you wish to vote by absentee ballot, as the applications need to be filled out, the school needs to fax/e-mail the applications to the Courthouse in Austin and then the county will mail a ballot to the resident, which needs to get mailed back to the courthouse. OR, you can go to the courthouse in Austin, MN and get your absentee voting taken care of.
Background Information
School Board Election:
The School Board appointed Shavonn Eastlee to fill the open board seat when Scott Kerrins resigned earlier this year. There is one year left in the term at the end of the calendar year and board appointments are a way to temporarily fill an open seat until an election can take place. The new board member elected on November 7th will be in place for one year.
Operating Levy: (click here for overview)
The school district is asking the members of the community to renew the existing Operating Levy which is currently in place. The current Operating Levy is scheduled to expire after taxes are paid in 2018.
Through the support of the Grand Meadow School District residents, the school district receives $500,000 a year in addition to the state aid from the state of Minnesota from the current Operating Levy. One of the main reasons the school district has the Operating Levy in place is to help bridge the funding gap from the state and the annual cost of inflation. Inflation currently runs between 3% and 3.5% annually. The school district is requesting a renewal, not an increase with the Levy question.
Here are some examples of what the Operating Levy helps pay for:
* Small class sizes
* Paraprofessional support in the regular education and Special Education classrooms
*Activities and athletic opportunities for students
* Utilities
* School maintenance machinery i.e. mowers, floor cleaners/scrubbers
* Regular school maintenance i.e. dome ring painting, classroom and wall painting, supplies
* Salaries
* School vehicles; buses and vans. A new bus costs $90,000
* Supplies and curriculum
* Having two sections per grade level from Kindergarten through grade 12
* Laptops, I-Pads, technology upgrades, message centers
* State of the art security cameras
* Community Education opportunities
* Early Childhood and Pre-School programs
* Elective classes for middle school and high school students i.e Ag, Ag-Science, computer applications, Psychology, college level classes; Concurrent and PSEO
The items mentioned are a few examples of things which are offered to create quality learning opportunities, extra-curricular activities, and a safe, secure, and well maintained school for the students who attend Grand Meadow school.
Debt Services:
Lastly, the school board and administration is working hard on paying down district debt.
There are three main areas the district has debt: The Dome bonds, the new addition bonds (Legacy Gym and classrooms) and the Track Lease/levy.
The school board and administration is in the initial stages of creating a plan to set aside dollars each year in the annual budget to work towards paying off some of these debts earlier than what is on the debt service payment schedule. Also the district has a plan in place to address other large projects by setting aside dollars in the regular budget each year, for example getting the gravel parking lots paved.
The payment schedule?s are included in this correspondence so you have a transparent view of the district's yearly debt obligation and how the School board is working diligently to reduce interest payments by paying down debt sooner than later through careful budgeting processes, while still providing excellent educational opportunities for all students.
Also attached is a sample ballot for you to review prior to coming to the school and casting your vote on the 7th of November.
*Please take the time to get out and vote. Whether you are in favor of renewing the existing Operating Levy or not in favor of the renewal- exercise your right to vote- Don't assume it will pass or not pass, make your voice heard through your vote.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact one the school board members or Superintendent Besel and they can answer your questions.
School Board members are: Dan Geier, Shavonn Eastlee, Dan Arndorfer, Wanda Edge and Jon Oehlke
The school's phone number is 507.754.5318
