Education
La Crosse Schools superintendent Engel on $54 million referendum passing
La Crosse School District superintendent, Dr. Aaron Engel, joins WIZM’s La Crosse Talk with Ken Cooper the morning after the $53.5 million referendum passed in the fall election. Voters in the district were in favor of the elementary school plan with 60.9% of the 34,240 votes cast.
La Crosse Talk airs weekdays at 6-9 a.m. Listen on the WIZM app, online here, or on 92.3 FM / 1410 AM / 106.7 FM (north of Onalaska). Find all the podcasts here or subscribe to La Crosse Talk PM wherever you get your podcasts.
The plan:
— $53.5 million referendum question on November ballot for new schools / 8 classrooms, new gym at State Road Elementary
— Build a new elementary school at the Hogan Administrative site, while tearing down that building.
— Consolidate Emerson and Spence into new elementary at the Hogan site.
— Close Hintgen and consolidate those students to State Road.
walden
November 8, 2024 at 2:13 pm
Taxpayers didn’t ask enough questions. Parents don’t make enough demands.
Why has the district lost 300+ students to Onalaska and other districts in the last 5 years through open enrollment? Annual cost $3 million+ annually in lost revenue and driving the need to close La Crosse school buildings.
Similarly, why have another 150 students opted to leave for private schools?
Why is District academic performance in the lowest quartile among Wisconsin districts?
Since Engel arrived, student enrollment has declined double-digits while District employment has gone unchanged. 2017 total staff 1,008; 2024 total staff 1,005. Closing Lincoln Middle was justified by reducing staff (cost reduction) by 21 positions; it didn’t happen.
Taxpayers, through federal, state and local funding have now agreed to provide the District over $150 million in additional one-off funding in the last 3 years. That’s in addition to the normal tax levy and state provided funding. The clueless school board is perfectly happy spending taxpayer money without accountability or performance.
Taxpayers and parents should rightfully be plenty angry.
Kevin
November 18, 2024 at 6:34 am
Nailed it!