LEVY: Questions that need answers

I'm having difficulty deciding how I will vote on the upcoming $26 million levy for the Coeur d'Alene School District. I support the best possible education for our children, 100 percent. But in tough economic times it's important to make sure we're as efficient and effective as possible with our taxes.

My first question is: How much are we spending per child, if you take the total school district budget and divide by the number of children enrolled? Superintendent Bauman has said we actually have a lower tax rate than many other districts in Idaho. But I want to know how we compare to what other districts pay per child. Can Ms. Bauman answer this?

My second question is, are we, including our children, getting good value for our money? I know we have dedicated, skilled teachers, but I keep hearing our kids will need college degrees to be successful in the new economy. However, I read in The Press just last week that kids coming out of our school district have a poor record of continuing to and finishing college. I also read that more than half of our high school graduates who attend North Idaho College need to take remedial English and Math. Even if our standardized test scores are good, if our children can't cut it at college, we've failed them.

I'd like our school district to answer these questions, so I can decide how to vote on the levy.

JACQUELINE MAYO

Coeur d'Alene