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This is my tenth year as superintendent of Monona Grove schools, and while things change pretty regularly in education--and certainly more rapidly since COVID--one thing has remained a constant in the thirty-six years I've been in this field: positive relationships are the key to success. Relationships formed in our classrooms and schools are powerful tools to strengthen our community as a whole. Our staff work intentionally and faithfully to build relationships with the students in front of them, and it makes all the difference.
Research has long shown that positive student-teacher relationships promote student achievement, reduce chronic absenteeism, strengthen social skills, and improve goal-making. More recent research has shown that these positive relationships also lead to better teaching and can reduce the number of teachers who leave the profession.
One way for our teachers and support staff to cultivate positive relationships with students is to know them: to know their interests, their background, their strengths, their personalities. This type of understanding shows care and provides stability and safety for students, allowing them to explore more deeply and take chances in their learning. Monona Grove's class size and caseloads allow for this kind of insight into student's lives in truly meaningful ways. On the other side of that coin, increased class sizes and fewer structures of support (or fewer support staff) leads to staff feeling overwhelmed, increases burnout, and could result in our highly qualified staff either leaving our district or leaving the profession altogether.
We as a community have a strong history of valuing and prioritizing our schools, teachers, and learning environments like class size. The budget deficit we are facing is not insignificant, and the consequence of waiting or failure to pass an operating referendum will require immediate action. Based on current budget projections, a reduction of $6 million will be required for the 2023-24 school year. With 70 percent of our budget going toward staffing costs, it is all but certain that our teachers and staff, and by extensions students and families, would be affected by these cuts.
By contrast, if the referendum passes, we will preserve and maintain what we have today. Teachers and staff levels will stay where they are now, class sizes will remain the same, student support services will remain the same as they are today (these are programs and services offered by our school counselors, school social workers and school psychologists, nurses and health assistants, among many others that address the academic, behavioral, social, and emotional needs of all students to maximize student achievement). We will be in a better position to retain our highly qualified staff with a more competitive wage. Maintaining what we have today means allowing our staff to be flexible, creative, and collaborative in meeting the needs of every student in our community.
I live in this school district, and have grandchildren who attend school here. I am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished together as a staff and community and I know our best days are still ahead of us. We are grateful for your continued support and ask that you make an informed decision when considering your vote.
Visit mononagrove.org/district/referendum to learn more and please make a plan to vote by April 4.
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