LPOSD talks levy options

SANDPOINT — In anticipation of the coming fiscal year, Lake Pend Oreille School District officials are planning for an upcoming supplemental levy campaign.

At their regular meeting last week, school board members established the planning schedule for a levy that will maintain educational services over two fiscal years.

During the next two months, department heads will evaluate their financial needs and make presentations for the board to consider.

“The only thing we’ve done on this so far is establish a timeline of events for the rest of the year,” Superintendent Shawn Woodward said. “We decided to get a little bit of a head start on this.”

According to Woodward, the meetings will give the board a sense of the financial situation on a department by department basis. School heads, athletic programs and facility maintenance will all be considered in turn before the board settles on the final levy request they’ll present to voters next year. All meetings will begin at the standard time of 6 p.m.

The first meeting occurs on Sept. 25 at Southside Elementary. This planning session will cover a general overview of the district’s financial situation, providing a foundation for the more specific overviews in subsequent meetings.

On Oct. 9, the more detailed work begins at Kootenai Elementary. Department directors for facilities, athletic programs and extracurricular activities will give a presentation of the financial needs for their respective responsibilities. These discussions will continue on Oct. 23 as the technology director provides an overview of his department. Finally, LPOSD principals will address their schools’ needs at the district’s central office on Nov. 5.

After consolidating all the presented information, board members will take time to evaluate financial proposals. A Nov. 13 meeting at Lake Pend Oreille High School will lay the groundwork for a final decision.

“At this point, everything will be summarized, and we’ll have a discussion about how much is appropriate for the taxpayers to pay,” Woodward said.

With the groundwork in place, the school board will make a final decision on the supplemental levy during a Nov. 27 meeting at Kootenai Elementary. Woodward is confident that the school staff and trustees will arrive at a fair proposal for everyone involved.

“The financial state (of the district) is excellent, I believe,” he said. “The board members have been very good stewards of the district’s money.”