The Waunakee Rotary Club learned more about the Nov. 5 Waunakee Community School District referendum – one that includes funding for operations and employee compensation that has been funded by the previous referendum –- at the meeting Oct. 10. 

School district administrators broke down the question school district voters will see on the ballot: 

[Shall] The School Board of the Waunakee Community School District be authorized to exceed the revenue limit by $8.6 million for the 2025-2026 school year, and by an additional $500,000 (for a total of $9.1 million) for the 2026-2027 school year and thereafter, for recurring* purposes consisting of maintaining programs and services and for employee compensation; and by an additional $1.05 million for the 2025-2026 school year (for a combined total of $9.65 million), and by $2.1 million for the 2026-2027 school year (for a combined total of $11.2 million), for non-recurring** purposes consisting of employee compensation expenses.

Director of Operations Steve Summers provided some background information, noting that about a quarter of the state’s school districts have similar operational referendums on the ballot. They are common simply because the state funding formula is not based on the consumer price index, and the failure to keep up with inflation creates a funding gap. 

The state approved a 2.9% increase in funding to the Waunakee district, or $325 per pupil, but the CPI rose by 4.1%, Steve said. 

While Wisconsin was once 11% above the national average for school funding it is now 7% below the national average. 

Steve said people often ask how the Waunakee district’s spending compares to others. It is the 4th lowest spending district among those comparable, and is in the lower third for spending per student in Dane County. Waunakee’s school taxes are average for Dane County. 

The school board has a goal of keeping property taxes as consistent as possible from year to year, and the district has actually lowered its tax rate to do so. One home it has followed in Westbridge saw taxes rise by just $6 between 2017 and 2022. 

However, home additions or improvements can also affect home value and therefore the property tax. 

Director of Business Services Allie Dye described each part of the referendum question. Voters can not weigh in on each part individually. And, the funding would begin in the 2025-26 school year. 

The first initiative would be recurring, and would ask voters to approve an additional 8.1 million to replace the funds approved in the 2020 and 2020 non-recurring referendums. Those funds are used to maintain current programs and services.

The second part of the referendum is also recurring, and asks voters to approve $500,000 starting in the 2025-26 year, and then $1 million starting in the 2026-27 year. These funds would go toward increasing hourly employee compensation to put them on the same level as other Dane County schools.

The third part of the question is non-recurring. It asks voters to approve $105 million in 2025-26 and $2.1 million in 2026-27. These funds would increase compensation for other employees, making the wage competitive with other districts in Dane County. 

The total ask in the referendum is $9.65 million in the 2025-26 year and $11.2 million the following year. 

If the referendum is approved, a home valued at $500,000 would see taxes increase by $160 the first year, then an additional $155 the second year. 

If the referendum fails, homes with a value of $500,000 would see a tax decrease of $830.

Should the referendum fail, the district will need to reduce its expenditures by $8.1 million between the 2024-25 and 2025-26 year, or by 12%. In terms of staff, that equates to 79 full-time positions. However, Allie said the district has not created a list of specific cuts to be considered. 

In addition, staff compensation would remain below the average in Dane County and the district would likely see higher staff turnover. 

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Other News: 

-Rotarians are invited to watch Francisco Alvarez, the club’s exchange student from Argentina, play in the next home soccer game on Oct. 15. 

-Club President Phil Willems reported that Jeanette Jordee has resigned from the club and the board. Sara Whitley will take her place. 

-Linda Olson said the Croatian visitors have wrapped up their Friendship Exchange to this area. She thanked the Rotarians who hosted them and said they had a lot of fun. If you are interested in a Friendship Exchange, there are outbound exchanges to Turkey and Sweden. 

-Oct. 20 is Food for Kidz. 

-Oct. 19 at 9 a.m., trailers will be at the park to set up Rotary in Lights. Also, Oct. 19 is Halloween at the Farm and Rotarians are selling concessions

-Phil announced that Ross Mauer is the hero of the week for taking care of all of the cows at the World Dairy Expo. 

-Oct. 17 is the social event at Bishop’s Bay.

Guests: ???

Visiting Rotarians: None.

Birthdays: Oct. 21, Linda Olson.

Anniversaries: Oct. 19, David and Candace May; Oct. 22, Dean and Kathy Grosskopf.

Greeters: Oct. 17, Alex Welk and Tim Decorah; Oct. 24, Paul Carderella and Lori Derauf.

To sign up to greet or to find out if you are greeting, visit: 

https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054CAAAA2CA7F85-44320149-2023#/