Lake Holcombe School Board; More comes in per student, but aid continues downward

To make sure kids are safe and cannot wander off during recess, the Lake Holcombe School playground area is now fenced off, all around the woods. The fence was designed so no trees were removed, and so that youth could still slide down the hill in winter and play ball. Photo by Ginna Young

By Ginna Young

With the recent legislation that was passed, the Lake Holcombe School District will see their low revenue ceiling limit go from $10,460 to $11,000, as reported on at a regular board meeting July 17.

“So, we’ll raise about $540 more per student, in year one ($150,000),” said district administrator Kurt Lindau.

After that, Lake Holcombe will receive only $325, per student, but the district should see some additional money in high-cost transportation aid.

“There was a lot of pressure from the Association for Equity and Funding, and some others, to get that low revenue adjustment done,” said Lindau.

However, the measures did do away with the high poverty aid program.

“They did raise the special ed reimbursement rate, but not by very much,” said Lindau.

The Department of Public Instruction (DPI) also released their preliminary General Aid estimate of $91,637 for Lake Holcombe, down about $16,000 again from last year.

“When General Aid is less, the local tax levy generally covers the loss,” said Lindau.

It’s a concerning trend, but the silver lining is that the district is “property rich,” meaning the drop in aid does not affect the mill rate.

Overall, with the audit in full swing for the district, Lindau says the finances look good from last year.

“We think we’ll finish the 2022-23 fiscal year in good shape – should be able to put some money into Fund 46 for future maintenance projects,” he said.

Lindau also reported that they finally received a second insurance quote.

“It’s $30,000 more than we’re currently paying,” said Lindau.

In the business portion of the meeting, members approved the eSucceed consortium agreement for a virtual schooling option. Lake Holcombe has been part of eSucceed since its inception, which is hosted by Gilman, and made up of other area school districts.

“It’s dwindled some,” said Lindau. The eSucceed option was great during the COVID-19 pandemic, so students could remain part of their district, even if their parents didn’t want to send their children in-person. The consortium is still an option for virtual programming, where kids can participate in extra-curricular activities.

“Keep that money fairly local,” said Lindau. Members also approved the hire of band instructor/activities band director Lauren Ische; paraprofessionals Deidra Wichtendahl, Jami Dernovsek and Paige Flater; head football coach John Stender; assistant football coach Grier Belter; assistant boys basketball coach Allison Golat-Hattamer; and co-middle school boys basketball coach Jenna Anderson.

The district is also planning for a “welcome back to school” public open house Wednesday, Aug. 30 – complete with food and a dunk tank.

“Dunk your favorite administrator,” said Lindau.