Green Bay Voters Approve Big Referendum
Spurred on by the need to improve all its high schools, voters in Green
Bay approved the third largest school referendum in state history Tuesday
(February 15, 2000) by an overwhelming margin of 14,899 to 4,081.
The $55.8 million package will primarily fund major renovations at Green
Bay East, West and Southwest High Schools. In 1996, voters approved a
$26 million referendum to renovate Preble High School.
 Helen Schaal |
Green Bay Education Association President Helen Schaal said the Great
Schools project played a role in helping to generate support for the referendum.
Using the Great Schools model, framework and resources, the GBEA combined
forces with the school district to launch a campaign called “The
Future Starts Here.” Its main goal is to have the GBEA and the district
work together to promote public education in Green Bay.
Once the GBEA's Representative Assembly unanimously voted to support
the referendum, the GBEA mailed to all the parents of Green Bay students
a newsletter indicating the need for the referendum and the union's support
of it. GBEA’s Political Action Committee also ran a series of radio
ads in conjunction with the Vote Yes Committee promoting the referendum.
“We are very fortunate in Green Bay to have a community that values
public education and recognizes the great job our educators are doing
with kids!” Schaal said. “If you visit Preble High School and
see the pride in the students, staff and administration smiles are contagious.
Now with this vote of confidence from the community we can move ahead
with projects planned for the other high schools.
"It's great to live and work in Green Bay where the community believes
the Future Starts Here with our Great Schools!”
Retired Madison teacher Bill Keys, a former president of Madison Teachers
Inc., was a winner in Tuesday's primary election for a seat on the Madison
school board. Keys will face parent activist Debby Anderson Meyer in the
April 4 election for Seat 1 on the board. In the primary, Keys captured
44% of the vote and Anderson Meyer got 29%.
Posted February 16, 2000