Make Change At Whitko
October 31, 2018 at 4:28 p.m.
By -
Whitko Community School Corporation is currently the highest taxed school district in the area! How can we change that? Vote Annette Arnold and Bill Patrick for Whitko School Board!!
We must retain and grow enrollment before spending on more building projects. In the past 10 years Whitko has spent $47 million on building projects while enrollment steadily dropped and we lost 544 students.
“Build it and they will come” has not worked. There is no data that supports another huge building project at this time. Some candidates say that if we build a high school building at the Whitko Middle School location they hope we will gain new students whose parents travel on U.S. 30.
The WMS building has been there for years and consistently lost students at that location. Hope is not a strategy. We need data-driven decisions, not more of the same. Somehow a building consolidation has morphed into a huge building project we can’t afford!
If we do not build at the middle school location and let the bonds drop off, everyone’s taxes will be cut in half. This information is from the Umbaugh debt services report that was presented to the public. Unfortunately Whitko is in debt and the state is taking notice at a time when school consolidations are no longer a choice, but a reality.
Annette Arnold and Bill Patrick are the only candidates for Whitko School Board who have said they will not move the Jr.-Sr. High School to the Larwill location. Until our loss of enrollment issues changes and we have better financial income, we already have everything we need at the current Whitko Jr.-Sr. High School location. This is not about one town versus the other, it’s about financial stability and a sustainable, viable long-term plan.
We can’t continue to cut teachers to balance the Whitko budget. Arnold and Patrick are for retention and growing enrollment. Data has not been gathered to determine why students are leaving, and in order to fix the problem, that needs to start happening. In fact, most families who have left say administration has not even asked them why they left or asked them to come back. We can keep students by offering them expanded curriculum choices. Retaining our students and teachers is a top priority.
Arnold and Patrick are for fair taxes, financial responsibility and long-range planning. They are for transparency and communicating with the public about why decisions are made and how decisions will help Whitko thrive. All voters in the Whitko School district can make a difference for Whitko by voting for Annette Arnold and Bill Patrick on November 6th. Get out and vote!
Respectfully signed,
Concerned Whitko Taxpayer
Cory Schipper
Whitko Community School Corporation is currently the highest taxed school district in the area! How can we change that? Vote Annette Arnold and Bill Patrick for Whitko School Board!!
We must retain and grow enrollment before spending on more building projects. In the past 10 years Whitko has spent $47 million on building projects while enrollment steadily dropped and we lost 544 students.
“Build it and they will come” has not worked. There is no data that supports another huge building project at this time. Some candidates say that if we build a high school building at the Whitko Middle School location they hope we will gain new students whose parents travel on U.S. 30.
The WMS building has been there for years and consistently lost students at that location. Hope is not a strategy. We need data-driven decisions, not more of the same. Somehow a building consolidation has morphed into a huge building project we can’t afford!
If we do not build at the middle school location and let the bonds drop off, everyone’s taxes will be cut in half. This information is from the Umbaugh debt services report that was presented to the public. Unfortunately Whitko is in debt and the state is taking notice at a time when school consolidations are no longer a choice, but a reality.
Annette Arnold and Bill Patrick are the only candidates for Whitko School Board who have said they will not move the Jr.-Sr. High School to the Larwill location. Until our loss of enrollment issues changes and we have better financial income, we already have everything we need at the current Whitko Jr.-Sr. High School location. This is not about one town versus the other, it’s about financial stability and a sustainable, viable long-term plan.
We can’t continue to cut teachers to balance the Whitko budget. Arnold and Patrick are for retention and growing enrollment. Data has not been gathered to determine why students are leaving, and in order to fix the problem, that needs to start happening. In fact, most families who have left say administration has not even asked them why they left or asked them to come back. We can keep students by offering them expanded curriculum choices. Retaining our students and teachers is a top priority.
Arnold and Patrick are for fair taxes, financial responsibility and long-range planning. They are for transparency and communicating with the public about why decisions are made and how decisions will help Whitko thrive. All voters in the Whitko School district can make a difference for Whitko by voting for Annette Arnold and Bill Patrick on November 6th. Get out and vote!
Respectfully signed,
Concerned Whitko Taxpayer
Cory Schipper
Have a news tip? Email [email protected] or Call/Text 360-922-3092