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The fighting over the supplemental levy caused me to do my own research. Read the LPOSD proposal and started attending meetings. Very disturbing watching teachers accuse community members of not caring about children and the board’s disrespectful tone towards audience participants. For specific questions, I made an appointment with Superintendent Shawn Woodward.

Why isn’t the athletic department a line item in the budget? Per Woodward, it has been in the past. If a department of this size is important, shouldn’t this be a line item in the budget? If these programs are100 percent dependent on the levy, where’s the money allocated by the state for general use items like this?

Why allocate such a huge cost to snow clean up when it could be outsourced to private businesses? Maintenance of the equipment and time spent could be averted.

Why are student interns being paid? An internship should be voluntary. They gain a wealth of knowledge in lieu of money.

Why cost the county $75,000 for a special election if there will be a finished budget and another levy on the May ballet, assuming this one doesn’t pass? Most teachers are paid through the end of the year. Woodward said that some teachers are still going to be let go and there is no guarantee that Clark Fork will remain open, depending on enrollment.

Without any solid budget in mind, why would anyone vote ‘yes’ on the levy? It’s disturbing that asking these questions automatically has members of the community as “anti-child.”

MONIQUE HUTCHINGS

Sagle