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MCPS trustee Jenny Walsh details levies, a $10–15M facilities gap and plans to prioritize programs and teacher housing
Summary
Jenny Walsh, a Missoula County Public Schools trustee, told the Missoula Dem Show the district used passed levies to fund programs and wage increases, outlined a WGM Group study of 14 properties that found an estimated $10–15 million maintenance shortfall over 10 years, and said the board expects a vote on the facility plan within a month.
Jenny Walsh, a trustee on the Missoula County Public Schools board, told the inaugural Missoula Dem Show that recent local levies are intended to close gaps between the state‑guaranteed portion of school funding and what the district needs to provide electives, career programs and competitive wages.
"A levy is just a layer of taxation that is locally controlled," Walsh explained, adding that the state guarantees roughly 80% of a district's basic budget and local levies help reach a 100% funding cap that supports AP classes, trade programs and partnerships with local employers.
Walsh said levy revenue will be used in part to raise wages for teachers and classified staff and noted the Stars Act provided two years of legislatively funded raises. "Those raises have been helpful, but inflation has outpaced those raises and we are still behind," she said.
The trustee described a facility planning process led by WGM Group that reviewed 14 district properties. Architects and valuers identified buildings that are unsafe or costly to maintain; Walsh estimated the district faces roughly a $10,000,000 to $15,000,000 maintenance shortfall over the next 10 years if unused buildings are not addressed.
"Some buildings we're gonna sit on, like Jefferson. It's in really good shape," Walsh said, while other properties lack boilers and are not safe to reuse. She said the district is considering options that include targeted sales with RFP stipulations, establishing an endowment from proceeds, and partnering with land trusts or organizations such as Homeward to pursue affordable housing prioritized for teachers.
Walsh emphasized that capital projects differ from levies: bonds (which require voter approval) fund construction, while levies fund ongoing programming and wages. She pointed to Helena's recent $365,000,000 bond as an example of a large capital vote and said community decisions shape how local assets are stewarded.
On federal funding, Walsh said the U.S. Department of Education briefly withheld Title funding (about 10% of MCPS budgets, and a higher share for some rural districts) before a lawsuit restored the funds. She also described new fingerprinting requirements for volunteers as an unfunded mandate she estimated costs the district about $30,000 per month and urged lawmakers to stop imposing un‑funded rules.
Walsh closed by urging community involvement through volunteering (reading programs, chaperones, crossing guards) and said the board expects to vote either to approve or disapprove the WGM Group plan within the next month; any changes to properties would include further public comment and a subsequent vote.
The interview provided local voters and residents with practical explanations of levies, the tradeoffs between selling properties and preserving community assets, and concrete ways to support schools.
