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Candidates clash over opt-outs, literacy and vouchers at Sioux Falls School District forum
Summary
At a League of Women Voters forum, six candidates for Sioux Falls School District 49-5 debated budget opt-outs, literacy strategies and vouchers; incumbents defended district pilots and outreach while challengers pressed for fiscal restraint and alternative reading approaches.
At a League of Women Voters forum hosted at the Sioux Falls School District Instructional Planning Center, six candidates for the Sioux Falls School District 49-5 school board contrasted sharply on budget levies and how to raise student reading levels.
Incumbents Gail Swenson and Dawn Marie Johnson defended the district’s approach to literacy and its budget process, pointing to pilot reading programs and public hearings before any property-tax opt outs. "We have a UFLI reading program that we piloted that's doing really well in our elementaries," Swenson said, citing higher proficiency in pilot schools. Johnson…
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