A thank you from the Salida School Board

Salida R-32-J School Board and Salida Education Association are grateful to the community for passing ballot issue 3A – a mill levy override that will increase salaries by 15% for all staff and address some one time educational and facility needs.

We extend a special thank you to the campaign committee for their amazing efforts in promoting the issues that face our schools. As many community members have said, “You could not have done a better job.”

Although as a community we did not pass all four of our ballot issues we see success in the awareness that was created and an increased understanding of the issues our district faces and the opportunities we are missing.

Education is becoming a higher priority in this community and we will continue working with the community to discuss solutions and future proposals. It has been a worthwhile endeavor.

Our needs do not go away. We believe the ballot issues addressed the needs and concerns of the district as well as the educational tools, including 21st Century skills, which the community outlined as basic education.

The Salida School Board will discuss next steps, including the possibility of ballot issues for November 2009, at our next meeting on December 9 at 6:00 p.m. at the Central Administration Office. We will continue to provide the best opportunities for our students with the funding we have. We are realistic that we cannot continue to provide the same level of service in all areas and will carefully consider our plans for 2009-2010 budget cuts. The ultimate objective is providing a quality education for our students.