Dear Editor,
Data is crucial when making financial decisions. If the Dodgeville School District (DSD) received back only 700 referendum surveys, with hopes of receiving another 200, that’s still a small sampling considering there’s about 3,569 households in the DSD. The company School Perceptions used by the DSD did not send this survey to all registered voters so how can a school board make a decision to advance a 3rd? referendum from such a small sampling? And how much did the district pay this company, with funds they can ill afford to spend, for this small survey? The District is already in debt over $3,000,000 plus. Any referendum money is a temporary band aid if they continue to outspend the annual revenues they receive from federal, state and local monies. Hopefully you all have been following the Dodgeville Chronicle articles and editorials, including the # of staff, coaches, etc being hired. It’s noteworthy the DSD employs fewer teachers than the state and national average, but employs almost as many ‘other’ staff (incl administrative staff) that do not have a direct impact on student learning nor the classroom. Does the administration and school board comprehend basic finance 101? Wake up voters!
Nancy Mueller Dodgeville, WI