Cuba City teacher urges voters to approve school funding referendum, warns programs could be cut

Holly Johns, an early childhood teacher at the Cuba City School District, urged community members to vote in favor of the district’s upcoming referendum, saying recent enrollment gains have helped the district but rising operational costs threaten key programs if the measure fails.

"Our dedication to providing a high quality education has helped drive that," Johns said, describing the district as a destination for families and crediting those programs for steady enrollment growth. She said open enrollment has been an important revenue source that has partly steadied district finances.

Johns cited specific revenue figures to illustrate the point, saying the district lost more than $35,000 in 2017–18, then brought in over $200,000 in 2018–19 and more than $394,000 in the current school year. "That's been a real benefit to our schools," she said, while cautioning that those gains have not fully kept pace with rising operational costs.

She warned that without passage of the referendum, "budget cuts could impact the very programs that attract families to our schools, potentially reversing the progress we’ve made." Johns also described how the district manages open enrollment—monitoring available space and closing enrollment for certain services when necessary—to limit costs for local taxpayers.

Johns closed by encouraging residents to learn more on the district website and to vote on April 1. "A strong school district benefits everyone in the community," she said.

The transcript records this single public-comment presentation in support of the referendum; it does not record a formal board vote or other actions during this exchange.