The Lena Public School District will be asking voters for approval when they go to the polls in April to continue to provide funding beyond state-mandated limits for operational expenses.
The district is asking for $6 million for the next five years, with $1 million going toward the 2026-27 budget and increasing $100,000 each year until it gets to $1.4 million for the 2030-31 budget. According to Superintendent Ben Pytleski, the amounts would stabilize the district finances even as fixed costs continue to increase in all sectors as future state funding and enrollment numbers are expected to fluctuate.
The operational referendum is a continuation of the one approved by voters in 2021, when the district asked for $4.25 million. However, the district underlevied for the last three years and only used $3.17 million, according to Pytleski, turning to its fund balance to help cover the rest of Lena’s budget needs.
“We did this as a show of good faith to our community and to use our strong fund balance to offset our budget expenses,” he said. “We will continue to use this strategy if and when it is appropriate for our district.”
The underlevying might not be possible in the near term. Pytleski noted that Lena has spent over $200,000 this year for roof replacement and is expected to spend another $350,000 before it is completed. The new roof is expected to protect the school buildings “for generations,” he said.
Besides the roof replacement, there is a need to remodel restrooms at the elementary and middle schools, upgrade heating and cooling units and increase storage areas. Pytleski said money from the referendum would also upgrade school safety measures and technology in the school.
There is no threat of the Lena schools closing if the referendum fails compared to the Gillett School District, which is also seeking an operational referendum in April. The Wisconsin Legislature has introduced bills encouraging the consolidation of school districts, but Lena has no plans to merge with nearby school systems.
“There is no intent to ever close the doors of the Lena Public School District,” Pytleski said. “The board and administration are committed to providing students a high-quality education. Budget reductions would undoubtedly impact our greatest educational resource, our great staff and programs. We are very proud of the fact that, for a small school, we have so many things to offer our students and families. We want nothing more than for this to continue.”
However, failure of the referendum would require the district to cut $1 million from the 2026-27 budget, which means reduced staff and programming options. Pytleski said Lena is already planning to cut four positions this year due to staff members retiring, but without voter approval, the district would look at more cuts in staffing, which would increase classroom sizes.
The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction has cut Lena’s state aid by $200,000 this year due to declining enrollment. Lena had a student count of 404 five years ago, but the latest figure is at 375.
According to Pytleski, Lena is seeing more students coming in through the open enrollment program than going out, which helps a little when addressing state funding. Last year, 83 students open-enrolled into the district, while 47 within the district went to other schools, compared with this year’s count of 87 students coming in, about 20% of the total enrollment, and 43 going out.
What is really hurting Lena schools are the significant increases in high-cost special education. Pytleski said there are currently 91 students who are on individual education plans; there’s also costs in occupational therapy, physical therapy, hearing impairment and one-on-one services, he said.
The current tax rate for Lena is $6 per $1,000 of equalized valuation, which means the owner of a $200,000 piece of property is paying $1,200 for school taxes. Passing the referendum would see the tax rate go up to $7.20 next year, according to Pytleski.
“A failed referendum would drop our mill rate down to unsustainable levels for a small school district with low property values,” he said. “We would drop near or even below $4, and deep cuts upwards of $1 million in year one would have to be made to our staffing and programming.”
The tax rate would still be lower than those of the past, as the average from 2016 through 2021 was $10.97.
“While we are very proud of these historically low mill rates, paying off our debt, and being able to under-levy, we also know that it is not sustainable for our long-term financial needs,” Pytleski said. “Mill rates in the low $7 range is still historically low — fifth lowest ever — for our school district.”
Pytleski has been visiting municipalities in the district to discuss with them in further detail and plans to hold two more meetings in March at the school.
“The district has been very respectful and responsible with our past referendum dollars, and we will continue to put ourselves in a sound financial position for the future while also keeping our educational and extracurricular programs strong and available to all of our students,” Pytleski said.
lpulaski@newmedia-wi.com
Lena Elementary School students win prizes for the book bag drawing put on by the school’s parent-teacher organization. About 400 students in the school district will be impacted by the passage or failure of a $6 million referendum in April. (Contributed)
Four-year-old kindergarten students at Lena Elementary School work on their music sounds in class. (Contributed)
