District deemed ‘racially isolated,’ plans levy meetings

A special election regarding the renewal and increase of the Cloquet School District’s referendum is coming up Nov. 8 at the Cloquet Armory.

In preparation of the election, the board is planning to hold informational meetings open to anyone wishing to learn more about the upcoming referendum. While times and places have not yet been determined, Superintendent Ken Scarbrough has expressed he is willing to meet with any group in the community looking for more information.

“You need an informed public to vote,” Scarbrough said in Monday night’s regular school board meeting. “The purpose of the meetings will be to inform the public of the issues pertaining to the referendum. Our goal is to make sure people understand, before they go to the polls, the reasons the district is asking for a referendum and what the referendum will cost them.”

Any questions people may have regarding the referendum, school finance or programming will also be discussed at these meetings.

To further reach out to the public, the district will send a required notice to all people who own property in the Cloquet School District. They are working on creating an informational brochure to be delivered to the public, and are also working with local cable channel CAT 7. Areas of the district’s website will also be devoted to informing the public about the referendum.

All qualified voters are asked to come to the special election Nov. 8, and an absentee voting process will be available for those who are unable to vote at the Armory on Election Day.

The referendum ballot will consist of two questions:

Question 1

“The Board of Independent School District No. 94, Cloquet, has proposed to renew its expiring referendum revenue authorization of $97.61 per pupil, which is set to expire in 2011. The proposed referendum revenue authorization would be applicable for ten (10) years unless otherwise revoked or reduced as provided by law. Shall the increase in revenue proposed by the Board of Independent School District No. 94 be approved?”

Voting “Yes” on this question would be voting to extend an existing property tax referendum that is scheduled to expire.

Question 2

“The Board of Independent School District No. 94, Cloquet, has proposed to increase its referendum revenue authorization by an additional $275 per pupil. The proposed referendum revenue authorization would be applicable for ten years unless otherwise revoked or reduced as provided by law. Shall the increase in revenue proposed by the Board of Independent School District No. 94 be approved?”

Voting “Yes” on this question would be voting for a property tax increase.

The special election will be held between the hours of 7 a.m. and 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 8, at the Cloquet National Guard Armory.

There is good news for the Cloquet School District as it saw an increase in enrollment from last year.

“Student enrollment drives education funding,” Scarbrough said. “To not be declining in student enrollment softens the sting of the lack of state funding and the impact of a 40 percent withholding of state aid during the current school year.”

The district also saw an increase in open enrollment, with more students coming into the district than leaving. Open enrollment allows students from other school districts to attend Cloquet schools. If a district loses more students than it gains through open enrollment, it can cause some financially difficulty, Scarbrough explained. Thankfully this is not the case.

“The fact that we gain over 75 more students than we lose means we gain over $400,000 in state revenue,” Scarbrough said. The district then provides the extra students with all of their services such as activities, nursing services, food service, etc. “We are proud that so many families choose to send their children to our schools,” Scarbrough said.

In other board discussion, the Cloquet School District has recently been classified as “racially isolated,” meaning they have 20 percent more students of color than surrounding districts.

“Being identified as a racially-isolated school district will provide us the opportunity to tap into a funding source to allow us to develop a collaborative with surrounding districts that will focus on creating a culturally aware and more integrated environment that will also provide academic help to close any achievement gap that may exist,” Scarbrough said.

The Cloquet School District will work with the Esko, Proctor, Carlton and Cromwell/Wright school districts to develop an inter-district committee to achieve the above goals.

More information on the Cloquet School District referendum will continue to come to the public through meetings, notices and literature. The next board meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 26, at Garfield School.

Tags: news, updates, cloquet, education