RSSStraight A's -- all Yakima Valley levy measures passing
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YAKIMA, Wash. -- Despite the belt-tightening times, it's a resounding yes.
Maintenance and operations levies at 12 school districts throughout Yakima County are passing -- most of them by more than 60 percent, according to preliminary vote totals released Tuesday night. So are levies at another nine school districts in neighboring counties.
In all, each of the 23 local proposals are passing.
"I'm very excited for all of us, all the school districts. We're all in the same boat with needing this funding. It's just very much a relief," said Chris Scacco, assistant superintendent of the Selah School District, as she was leaving the Yakima County Courthouse on Tuesday night. "I'm pleased that the result is positive for all of us."
In most cases, the proposed rates represent slight increases.
And it's a tough time to be asking voters for more money.
With the state facing a $2.6 billion budget shortfall, tax hikes -- as well as cuts to education funding -- are on the table during the current legislative session. At the same time, M&O levies are expiring in many counties across the Yakima Valley.
M&O levies help school districts bridge the gap between the monies they receive from the state and the actual cost of operating schools. They fund everything from teachers' salaries and textbooks to technology and transportation.
And they need a simple majority to pass.
In the Mt. Adams School District, preliminary results show voters approving their levy by 76 percent, the largest margin among the Yakima Valley districts. The Wahluke and Kittitas school districts were both passing at about 55 percent, representing the lowest margin of victory. Wahluke draws it voting support from Grant County, but draws some students from Yakima County as well.
"I'm extremely gratified that we have a vote of confidence in what we are doing at the Mt. Adams School District," said Superintendent Rick Foss. "People voted for it even in these most trying economic times. Having people step up and say let's move it forward is absolutely gratifying."
With the tough economy and state budget woes, school districts statewide are facing cuts -- even with the passing levies.
Levies in Selah and West Valley come with some of the largest price tags. The Selah School District, for example, is asking voters for $15 million over three years.
"Normally, I'd be pretty darn confident because we have had so many years of support from the community," Scacco said. "But in light of the current economy, you just can't take anything for granted."
She admitted she was feeling a bit anxious throughout the day Tuesday. That feeling went away when she saw the preliminary results showing the Selah levy passing with 65.8 percent voter approval.
"It really shows the community overall understands the importance of M&O levies and that they do help fill the gap from what the state doesn't fund for us. We're not sufficiently funded," she said, adding that state budget cuts could diminish up to 7 percent of the district's budget during this Legislative session. "We're facing what could be some very darn deep cuts from the state."
In addition to its M&O levy, the Naches Valley School District is asking voters to approve a technology and capital projects levy. Both are passing.
"I'm grinning from ear to ear," superintendent Duane Lyons said while driving home from the courthouse late Tuesday. "It's great to have the kind of support this community gives us, gives to the children."
The sentiment was similar in West Valley, where levy committee chairman Dale Carpenter and superintendent Peter Ansingh were celebrating at Carpenter's home.
"I'm in euphoria right now," Carpenter said. "We basically told people, 'You made an investment. We're asking you to continue that.' It was a really simple message, and it was one from the heart."
Ansingh thanked voters for their support: "They understand the state does not fully fund our needs. They continue to allow us to offer the quality programs that we do. They understand these are difficult economic times, and districts are facing reductions from the state. This will help soften that."
In Grandview, superintendent Kevin Chase said he was pleased, but not surprised, voters supported his district's four-year proposal. He said he could sense the support in the days leading up to the election.
Grandview was one of four districts locally seeking a four-year levy.
"It was not just the normal pro-education crowd, but I saw it from all corners," he said.
Levy supporter Brad Smith said Grandview area residents know that levy money helps pay for activities like music and sports, which help engage kids in their communities.
"We think we have a gang problem now, imagine what it would be like without those extracurricular activities," he said.
In Prosser, a group of about 20 levy supporters cheered in the basement of First Presbyterian Church with the news the district's two-year levy is overwhelmingly passing.
In fact, it's passing with the highest percentage superintendent Ray Tolcacher can remember in his 18 years in Prosser. The last time the district cracked 70 percent was in the mid-1990s when the economy was stronger.
"We know how tough this is for a lot of the voters," said Tolcacher, who returned Tuesday from Olympia after testifying to lawmakers about the importance of levy equalization money.
"We still don't know about equalization," he said.
With levy proposals, additional funding is at stake. School districts throughout Yakima County rely on levy equalization funds, given by the state if voters approve levies.
That funding is intended to provide equity between property-rich and land-poor school districts. Property-rich districts are able to run levies at lower tax rates yet rake in more money than land-poor districts.
Of the 295 school districts in the state, 220 -- including all 15 in Yakima County -- depend on levy equalization funds. In light of the state budget crunch, school administrators statewide are watching to see if the Legislature will continue to fund levy equalization.
Meantime, the Rev. Paul Fredericks, an organizer with a levy support committee in Prosser, said the tough economic times and uncertainty of state funding may have made people even more supportive than usual:
"I think people dug down and said, 'Well it's up to us.'"
* Reporters Ross Courtney and Phil Ferolito contributed to this story.
No surprizes here. To many people are employ'd by the local school districts. They all show'd up to vote yes for more money for the children of course. Its all about the children. They all made major sacrifices for America when they voted.
Report ViolationEducation is one of those things that has to be maintained, and the system is already failing in so many ways. Like with many other things there are no quick fixes, but this is a postivie in my book.
Report ViolationAnd apparently I need to go back to school and learn how to spell positive...either that or have some more coffee.
Report Violationwhat a great waste ALL public schools should be Very Strict Military schools THey might learn self disiplin self respect.
Report ViolationI would much prefer an attempted hold up in downtown Wapato where these parasites would at least pay the price for this shakedown.
Someday all these positions will be privatized in a constitutional future where shakedowns and thefts are not tolerated. When that glorious time comes, they can pretend to educate (like they are doing now) and we can (finally) pretend to pay them.
Donate your homes to the tribe and receive a 100 year lease back. No more shakedowns and the property goes off the tax roles forever. It's only justice.
It is not the schools job to teach discipline and self respect, that is a the parent's job. Although I think they could bring the hack back and put a bit more control back in the teacher's hands.
Report ViolationVoters, I mean people in education and family member and friends voted to give more money to schools and themselves. The private sector doesn't have the voting block or the public money to compete.
Report ViolationValleyboy: Major sacrifices? There is nothing more important than an education, and this "It is all about the children" comment is insane. You sound like a child!
Roast: Maybe you should have gone to school. You and Valleyboy may have learned to spell properly.
How much time do you spend with your kids each night going over their homework? How many times have you contacted your child's teachers? Funny that the parents never come into play when talking about education, even though they play a major role.
Great Valleyboy, we should create more private schools!!!
Maybe we can have the "Orchard" school. This is a school where 5% of the kids learn to exploit poor and foreign born people into working for less than minimum wage. Then they can practice buying golf courses, jets, season tickets to any sport, and how to remodel mansions on Scenic Drive.
While the other 95% get to learn how to work all season long only to go back to their foreign home or live in Yakima ghettos.
Sound like a great school? I know that you have “little use for Mexicans” (your quote) but this way they all can be educated in your style!
Novemberhotel
read the quote " The people who want to help the people in haiti have little use for mexicans.(other people Image Building) Not me. I agree with you about education is the most important thing for a child. Give the money to the classroom. The system is failing. The money is not going to the classrooms. We love children, Academics are the number one priority. You have heard it before. Adults in public education are not being held accountable.
How difficult is it for someone to lose their job in public education ? Near Impossible, Exactly. Its not even debatable.
Spelling, Blah, Blah..BFD
"They all made major sacrifices for America when they voted."
Why? We need education. I think for this discussion, people need to understand the difference between a “Bond” and a “Levy”.
Bonds are MASSIVE amounts of money that go through the bureaucracy of the district. They then decide what new schools or new building they believe should be built. You will notice that rich school districts like West Valley for instance pass bonds more frequently than those in the Yakima School District. So West Valley has had their schools rebuilt or replaced twice while Ike and Davis look the same as they did in the 50’s.
Levies are large amounts of money that go DIRECTLY to the schools. They are used for maintenance and general operation (power, internet, ect) and are a MUST if you want your school to actually run, which is why I do not understand your comment.
It would be like if these rich farmers (you know the ones with jets, golf courses, summer homes in Hawaii, private school educations and Olympic size swimming pools) no longer had the money for irrigation. The fruit would die on the vine. That is what happens to education when you don’t fund it.
How the money is used in Public Education is very non- transparent. People like Novemberhotel want you to believe them. They will not show you.
Maybe when technology improves school districts will be able to inform the public better. We don't have the technology now. And we can't send home with the students the vouchers spreadsheets the local school board approve.
Maybe then you will know how much money is being spent on out-of-state travel. Administrations, Attorney's, Lawsuits, Sports, Academics, Etc.
CO-OP's, You Co, We operate. We want the community involved. We love Children, We could be making double the money in the private sector. Its all So funny.
If you have Public Schools( Administrator,School Boards) defending and covering up coaches who prey on young girls you can only imagine what else public schools cover up. And Money is a big one.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/news/local/coaches/news/dayone.html
Trust US with your Children & Money
Over the past decade, 159 coaches in Washington have been fired or reprimanded for sexual misconduct ranging from harassment to rape. Nearly all were male coaches victimizing girls. At least 98 of these coaches continued to coach or teach.
• The number of offending coaches is much greater. When faced with complaints against coaches, school officials often failed to investigate them and sometimes ignored a law requiring them to report suspected abuse to police. Many times, they disregarded a state law requiring them to report misconduct to the state education office.
• Even after getting caught, many men were allowed to continue coaching because school administrators promised to keep their disciplinary records secret if the coaches simply left. Some districts paid tens of thousands of dollars to get coaches to leave. Other districts hired coaches they knew had records of sexual misconduct.
• When the state gets involved, its investigations can be as flawed as local districts’. On average, the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) took two years to investigate a case and sometimes didn’t conduct a single interview with a victim, coach or school official. Often, the state simply dropped investigations, leaving accused coaches with clean records and valid teaching certificates.
First, if you want to talk about preying on children, you just have to go to your local Catholic Church. They can show you how to do that and how to take your money. They will even instruct you on how to cover it up!
“We love Children, We could be making double the money in the private sector.” That is your problem. You think education should be for profit. I think it should be to educate our kids.
Maybe we could create the “Nike School of Athletics” or the “Geiko School of insurance” or the “Halliburton School of Oil” or the "Blackwater School of Death" or the “Teabagger School of imbeciles”. All can be funded by business so we can have little robots graduate.
BTW, I still think you should open the “Orchard” Co-op school I mentioned before. That way you can keep the great economic tradition of Yakima going!
Here are some School District budget facts in case you needed them…
http://www.yakimaschools.org/Departments/10/Budget_FAQs.pdf
Sorry I forgot to add a quote...
In a statement, read out by Archbishop Silvano Maria Tomasi in September 2009, the Holy See stated "We know now that in the last 50 years somewhere between 1.5% and 5% of the Catholic clergy has been involved in sexual abuse cases," adding that this figure was comparable with that of other groups and denominations.
I do NOT think ANY teacher should keep their job if they have committed ANY kind of abuse. Yes the unions are too strong, but to go to the extreme and say that people who voted for levies were just "Education" people and that they "made major sacrifices for America when they voted." is a crock of ______!
The "blackwater school of death." This has a nice ring to it. Actually Blackwater hires male U.S. veterans with combat experience and a desire to protect visiting American citizens in war zones. No unions, no quotas, no affirmative action, no excuses only results. And what are the results? Every member of congress is protected by Blackwater when visiting war zones.
On another note, I can't imagine anyone with even a small amount of self respect wanting to work in education. If it is impossible to fail as a teacher then it certainly is impossible to succeed. As usual, government is the employer of last resort for the unmotivated, uninspired and those pathetic individuals determined to steal from their neighbors money they could NEVER earn in the private sector. Good luck with that. I believe that any parent who is not homeschooling their children now should consider it.
Xe(formally Blackwater) has so much blood on their hands that they had to change their name. You want to talk about stealing from your neighbor?
"The controversial security firm formerly known as Blackwater is under investigation by the US Justice Department to determine if it bribed Iraqi government officials after the fatal shooting of 17 civilians in Baghdad in 2007.
The inquiry is the latest fallout from the deadly shooting spree by Blackwater guards in Baghdad’s Nisour Square in September 2007, which stoked outrage and bitter resentment against the US.
The Justice Department’s Fraud Section is investigating if officials at Blackwater, now known as Xe Services, paid secret bribe of about $1 million to Iraqi government officials to persuade them to allow the company to keep operating in the country after the shootings, according to The New York Times.
Blackwater retained its State Department and CIA contracts in Iraq for 18 months after the shootings, but eventually lost them in May 2009. US prosecutors also charged five of the guards with manslaughter and accepted a guilty plea from a sixth. The company still operates in Afghanistan..."
"As usual, government is the employer of last resort for the unmotivated, uninspired and those pathetic individuals determined to steal from their neighbors money they could NEVER earn in the private sector."
Nice way to talk about our military!
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