Lakeland principal announces retirement and urges voters to back supplemental levy; college and career advisor urges protection of dedicated state funding

At the start of the public‑comment portion of the Lakeland School District board meeting, a longtime principal announced her intent to retire and urged the board and community to support a supplemental building levy in May.

Schneck, who said she has been an Idaho public school teacher since 1988 and has served seven years as principal of John Brown Elementary, told the board she is retiring at the end of the school year. She said she was “incredibly grateful and proud to have served the Lakeland School District community” and warned that the district risks losing programs if a supplemental building levy fails in May. Schneck pressed trustees to “vigorously advocate for our community’s children” and to “trust our educators.”

Later in public comment, Carrie Coquette identified herself as the college and career advisor at Lake Lynn High School and urged trustees to honor the intent of state funding that the legislature designated for college and career advising. Coquette said the district received $130,748 last year and $120,720 this year for college and career advising and cited state guidance indicating those funds were intended to expand dedicated advising positions, not supplant counseling services.

Coquette referenced state guidance and a governor’s budget recommendation that emphasized dedicated college and career advising. She told the board that counselors and college/career advisors have distinct roles and urged trustees to ensure the district uses the state dollars to maintain dedicated personnel rather than absorbing the money into the general fund.

Why this matters

Schneck framed her remarks as a plea to preserve programs that current students and families rely on; her retirement also signals upcoming leadership turnover at John Brown Elementary. Coquette’s remarks highlight a practical budget question for the board: whether state‑designated dollars for college and career advising are being used for dedicated positions or placed into the district general fund and reallocated.

Board response and next steps

Trustees and district staff discussed Coquette’s points later in the agenda, and the CFO was asked to clarify how the state allocation is coded in district accounting. Superintendent Arnold indicated trustees would receive a formal clarification from the CFO about how the college and career advising allocation has been budgeted and whether the district treats it as a restricted line item or as general‑fund discretionary revenue.