Coeur d'Alene School District trustees making final push ahead of levy vote
Zone 2 trustee Jimmy McAndrew and Coeur d'Alene School District superintendent Dr. Shon Hocker discuss the upcoming levy at Saturday's Fresh Air Forum.
HAILEY HILL/Press
COEUR d’ALENE — Coeur d’Alene School Board members are making the final push to encourage voters to approve a $25 million-per-year two-year supplemental levy that will be on the Nov. 5 ballot.
All five board members met with members of the community at Phippeny Park in Coeur d’Alene on Saturday. The board has hosted several Fresh Air Forums in the weeks leading up to Election Day.
If approved, the levy will replace the current $25 million levy that expires at the end of the 2024-25 school year. The levy rate for taxpayers is not expected to increase, according to Coeur d’Alene School District Superintendent Dr. Shon Hocker.
“We are fiscally minded in everything we do. We work to stretch the dollar,” Hocker said at Saturday’s forum.
Board members expressed concern that if the levy fails to pass, students will lose access to important programs.
“We have to have the levy pass to continue these wonderful programs for our students,” explained Zone 3 board member Heather Tenbrink.
According to Tenbrink, funding to programs such as KTEC, a technical education program, would have to be cut if the levy doesn’t pass. Elementary school art, music, and physical education programs would also likely be cut if the levy doesn’t pass.
Zone 5 board member Rebecca Smith said that the levy also allows the district to offer competitive pay to teachers.
“The replacement levy will allow us to continue to pay our staff and educators a wage that allows them to live in North Idaho,” Smith explained. “This levy is a way of affirming the community's commitment to our educators.”
“We’ve worked very hard to improve our student test scores and achievements,” said Zone 1 trustee Allie Anderton. “We want to keep that momentum going.”
CDASD board members plan to hold two more Fresh Air Forums before the Nov. 5 election.
Anderton and Zone 4 board member Lesli Bjerke will hold a forum at Dalton Gardens Park on Oct. 15, and Smith and Zone 2 board member Jimmy McAndrew will hold a forum at Person Field in Coeur d’Alene on Oct. 19.