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Board discusses community outreach, polling and timeline for potential operational referendum
Summary
Following June discussions, the Kenosha School District board and administrators outlined a community engagement plan — pilot "KUSD Conversations," civic and business roundtables and a superintendent student voice council — and recommended a community poll by September to inform decisions about an April 6, 2027 operational referendum target date.
Board members and district administrators on July 16 discussed a multi-part plan to engage staff, families, students and community leaders ahead of any decision on an operational referendum.
Administrators said the district will pilot a "KUSD Conversations" listening session next week to work out logistics before broader rollout; civic and business leader roundtables are scheduled to begin in early August. The district also plans a superintendent student voice council during the school year to gather student feedback on topics such as the new cell-phone policy.
Administrators recommended running a community poll by September to gather quantitative data that would help shape any potential referendum ask and said strategic planning should run in parallel so the board can identify priorities and be transparent about proposed uses for additional funds. Board members urged town halls, transparent reporting of issues identified by the public, and making space for people to express concerns so that the district can recruit focus-group participants from those constituencies.
Bob Amphiline (S11), introduced in the meeting as the district’s new chief of schools, described strategic planning approaches used in other systems and recommended holding the planning and engagement work in tandem so the district can present a consistent set of priorities going into a referendum decision.
What happens next: Administrators said they will pilot engagement sessions, convene roundtables in August, assemble student voice participants during the school year and pursue a community poll by September to inform any April 2027 referendum timeline.
