The Greeley-Evans School District 6 Board of Education voted Monday night to send voters a 10-year renewal of the factory-levy override tax this fall to raise funds for the district’s personnel and program operations needs. I got approval to continue.
The vote was 5 to 2 in favor of sending the MLO renewal to voters, and the Board vote was held after 9:30 p.m. from the start of the 6:00 p.m. Another 3 and a half hours later it was done. .
By decision of the Board, MLO questions will be sent to district voters in November. School district voters initially approved his MLO in 2017 with a vote of 59.18% in favor and 40.81% against. About 22,000 district residents (21,936) voted on the issue.
If the MLO renewal is passed, the extension will run until 2033, with some paybacks in 2034 according to the language of the ballot.
The board had to decide whether to present the update to voters at its Monday meeting to meet Weld County and state election deadlines later this month.
“It’s easy to lose track of where we were,” said director Kyle Bentley in his pre-voting comments. “The Greeley Area Chamber of Commerce talked about exponential growth. Speaking of which, I think it’s going to affect the lives of the children and no one wants to back down. There’s a lot of work to do, but it’s a great start to keep it going.”
Bentley, along with Natalie Mash, Board Chairman Michael Matthews, Board Vice-Chairman Terry Pappas and Pepper Muller, supported sending MLO questions to voters.
Board members Taylor Sullivan and Rob Norwood opposed sending the renewal to voters.
“I think we need to focus on providing a rigorous education for all students, rather than throwing money at the system,” Sullivan said in his pre-vote remarks. “I don’t think he’s against the MLO, but now he’s against the MLO. My voters are struggling with money right now.”
In his brief remarks before the vote, Norwood explained that his downvote was based on two reasons. I didn’t know. The economy was another reason he said he could not support adding the MLO update question to the ballot.
Norwood, who joined the board in November 2021 alongside Bentley and Sullivan, said after the meeting that he supported the board’s decision to add the MLO question to the vote.
“I’m not going to campaign against it,” he said.
Superintendent Deirdre Pilch, in her remarks before the vote, urged the Board to proceed with the 10-year renewal. Pilch said the MLO is supported by district administrations and leaders.
The school district spent a significant amount of time presenting information in favor of the MLO at Monday night’s meeting. That is, we explained how the funds were and were spent, and how those dollars benefited the school district.
“The last item is something we’ve been working on all night,” Matthews said before voting.
Several of these district leaders, Chief Financial Officer Megan Sponsler, and Deputy Superintendents Kent Henson and Stacey Dutteri, addressed the Board several times during the conference at presentations related to the MLO.
In April, sponsors said the MLO update was “critical” and “foundational” to future district operations.
Henson and Greeley Mayor and District Safety and Security Officer John Gates provided an update on safety and security measures. Safety and security upgrades were a big part of his MLO in 2017 and the bond bill approved by voters two years later, leading to the construction and renovation of schools.
These items will be reflected in the district plan when the MLO is updated. There are ongoing costs related to safety and security upgrades from 2017, such as building access controls such as locks, hardware and badges, using campus monitors, and security cameras.
Security cameras are currently installed in 14 buildings, and tenders are currently underway for cameras in nine other buildings, with the tender process for cameras in the other four buildings expected to begin this fall.
Datteri, Vice Superintendent for Elementary and K-8 Leadership and Academic Performance, discussed ongoing costs associated with supporting academic and vocational programs under the MLO.
These include after-school and summer programs, advanced manufacturing pathways at Greeley Central High School, student recovery programs, and concurrent enrollment at Ames Community College.
Early in the meeting, Datteri also participated in a school presentation with Early College Academy Principal Kim Silva. Early College Academy students are enrolled in Ames Community College courses free of charge through the school district. Most ECA students graduate with an Ames associate’s degree and a high school diploma.
The school district’s portion of student tuition and fees was funded by the MLO for a total of $550,100 for the 2021-22 school year.
This story will be updated.
.
