Letters to the editor, Oct. 28, 2009
Vote yes to support students, school
I will vote yes in the Nov. 3 referendum to add classrooms to Spring Hill School. I will vote on behalf of students who live in old motel rooms and count on their free and reduced school lunches. I will vote on behalf of growing numbers of special needs students from all income levels. I will vote on behalf of teachers who have a chance to make a difference for their students in small classes being funded by SAGE.
I will vote to support the school board, which hopes to take advantage of the debt retirement schedule in order to retain the considerable state funding coming from SAGE without raising the mill rate.
I’m selfishly voting to support the level of education needed for today’s 4-year-olds to be able to support me in my old age. When I graduated from Dells High School in 1966, my classmates who had dropped out of school could still find good jobs. Times have changed, and our school district needs the tools to educate all of its students.
In order to do this, no one should lose a home because of high property taxes. Chuck Volkey’s suggestion that “the law be changed to get an extra quarter for our schools” hits on a key point. We must keep the pressure on our state legislators to find a better way to finance education.
In the meantime, we need to find the best way to educate our children with the resources at hand. I believe that a yes vote will help.
Debbie Kinder, Wisconsin Dells
Passing referendum now is important
Nov. 3 is a very important election day for our school district. There is a referendum on the ballot regarding an addition for Spring Hill Elementary.
In order for the district to retain its SAGE program, which allows us to have maximum class sizes of 15 in grades K to 3rd, we need additional classrooms. This year SAGE also provided the district with $559,623 in additional funds. The amount is dependent on the poverty rate in the district.
With more classrooms, the district would also save $42,000 a year by not having to rent space at St. Cecilia’s. The district would save an additional $344,981 in interest by using Qualified School Construction Bonds. This is the last year these bonds will be available.
Kraemer Brothers has agreed to charge the district zero for project coordination and oversight, about a $60,000 savings. These savings are all savings for the taxpayer.
It’s important that we pass this referendum now. Yes, there are other needs in the district. However by moving forward with this referendum, we will be taking steps to provide the space we need for our children. And, we will be saving money by doing so. With the passing of this referendum, there will be no increase in property taxes linked to this project.
Please support what our children need on Nov. 3.
Teresa D. Regel, Lake Delton
Better society starts with good education
Education is important for children and to our society as a whole. As a parent you want your child to receive a quality education that will help them succeed in the future.
I truly believe that a better society starts with education. Wisconsin already has a great education system in place, and it would be a shame to see it deteriorate. At the same time we are faced with an economic recession that we cannot ignore. We don’t know how long it is going to last, and I doubt we have seen the worst of it yet. If the funds are not available for building a new school or expanding the existing school it would be financially irresponsible to do so.
I also feel that sending 4-year-old children to school is just too young and should be up to the parents. I am a mother of a 3-year-old, the concepts that they learn in kindergarten my daughter has already learned at her day care. It would be very inconvenient for me to have to rearrange my work and school schedule for her to attend a class for such a short period of time. I think this program should be optional and that regular kindergarten should start at 5.
We need to start looking for solutions to the problems of overcrowding and how best to deal with the issue before it becomes a problem. As far as having two teachers in a classroom I feel that is a bad idea. I grew up in a large city where we had such classes. And they were not beneficial. Teachers tend to have different teaching styles, which can make it difficult on the children if the teachers do not work well together. If you’re going to have 30 students with two teachers why not just divide the class? The people with the best knowledge on this subject are the teachers at the school, for they are the ones who are dealing with the issues.
Ann Paden, Wisconsin Dells
Pass referendum or spend more later
After seeing a few letters describing why we should turn down the school referendum for Spring Hill, I have to speak up. When the previous writers describe their reasons, they describe frivolous details to make their points, but it really comes down to money. No one wants to take money from their pocket and give it to the government. It is easy to take the position to fight against any request for money.
We agree that education is important to our youth and our future.
This referendum should be approved for many reasons, but let us look at money. My kids are grown, so my views are not self-centered. If this referendum passes, Spring Hill will have eight more classrooms, which is needed for the large numbers of kids in kindergarten through third grade. Our young kids get better educations if their class sizes are smaller. We are talking about adding $10 for every $100,000 of assessed value. That is not much money to request.
If this referendum fails, we will lose SAGE funding, which is about $560,000 per year. That money goes back to the government, and we will probably never see it again. That means we will have to cut some positions.
We will also lose the opportunity to get the ARRA (stimulus) funding which allows this loan to be interest free. Later this funding will not be around and the same addition will cost much more. We have a window here, and if we pass it up, we will only end up paying more later.
Pass this now. We will lose much more in the long run if we vote no.
Dr. David L. Clemens, Dells Dental, Lake Delton
Thanks to vehicle check volunteers
TRIAD is a cooperative effort between senior citizens, police departments and sheriff’s departments in the community to work together to reduce victimization of senior citizens. A huge “thank you” to the senior citizens that attended our car clinic ‑ without you the Sauk County TRIAD Program would not be as successful as it is.
I would like to thank Alex Raedel from Hovland’s for volunteering his service and expertise in checking vehicles to make sure they were properly prepared for winter driving. This service included the checking of fluids, hoses, belts, lights and other equipment on their vehicles.
The winners for the drawings were:
Barbara Stevens, First Alert Smoke & Fire Detector; Rosalyn Jensen, Energizer Crank AM/FM Radio; Wesley Beatty, Johnson/Johnson First Aid Kit; Judy Hintze, Wet/Dry Ultra Vac; Marlis McLean, Touch’n’Lite.
We look forward every year to teaming up with the various sponsors in Sauk County to provide this service free of charge for our wonderful senior citizens of Sauk County.
Deputy Michelle Backeberg, Sauk County TRIAD Coordinator
Uncle Sam is a lousy manager
The current boondoggle relevant to the supply of the H1N1 vaccine is beyond belief.
Just image if the Obama takeover plan is successful.
Try and name one thing that the federal government either runs or manages that runs properly. Try and think of one without waste and massive mismanagement. You can ponder this thought all day, because there isn’t one. Uncle Sam is a lousy manager.
Private enterprise has proven much better. Leave it alone.
Dick Napier, Baraboo