ECASD discuss action plan, talking points for referendum

EAU CLAIRE — Preparation and planning are on the Eau Claire Area School District’s mind as the November election for their referendum approaches.

The school board first voted on a timeline for their operational referendum in December 2023, deciding on a Nov. 5 election date which aligns with a general election. The board then decided on an amount in early June, setting their non-recurring operational referendum at $18 million per year for four years.

At their Monday meeting, board members entered a work session to discuss what talking points they would be using as they advocate and look to pass their referendum in the fall. They were joined by Denise Gaumer Hutchison from the Wisconsin Public Education Network to offer advice on what direction and actions they should take.

“Capital referendums are tangible: people see things, they see buildings, they see playgrounds, they see sports fields,” said Hutchison. “Operating referendums are sometimes more challenging from that perspective, that they can’t see money going away or coming in and we’re not talking about small dollars — we’re talking about a lot of money. We have to figure out how we can convey that message in a way that they can hear, and a way that they can respond by voting ‘yes.’”

While board President Tim Nordin said that a primary community they should be talking to are ECASD parents and families, Hutchison pointed out that two other groups to consider was the business community, realtors, consistent voters, the senior citizen communities and many others.

“You are going to want to look at every single one of those groups and figure out who in those groups you are going to want to talk to, so that you can identify people that are invested,” said Hutchison.

When discussing how they should convey the significance of a message, Hutchison said they should address what some of the impacts are, with Nordin saying the students deserve the schools that they have.

Additionally, she said to address and answer what some of the problems are that call for an operational referendum. Nordin said it comes from chronic underfunding on a state level for many years since funding levels were set in the 90s, with board vice president Lori Bica adding that ECASD is one of the lowest spending districts in the state.

“For me, that messaging actually matters for people who actually have a vested interest, but there is a group that actually struggles on a daily and weekly basis,” said board member Marquell Johnson. “I think we have to have a couple of tiered messages, because what we’re talking about now is more political than actually the lived, impactful piece of it.”

But in identifying how they should speak to those groups as they advocate for a referendum, Nordin asked what Johnson would say.

“These are the individuals who will actually tell you unbelievable stories 30 and 40 years of yesteryear and how things were. And all I tell them is, ‘Don’t you think the current kids deserve to be able to sit around at some point, not here in Eau Claire or maybe, and be able to tell a similar story about the experiences they had in the district,’” said Johnson, noting that there is still more to that question though

As the meeting wrapped up, the board left with some ideas as to their action plans for going out into the community and advocating for their referendum. This includes three community presentations, which the district said the locations and dates will be decided upon ahead of the election.