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By Eileen Persike, editor
RHINELANDER – Early estimates show the School District of Rhinelander receiving a slightly larger share of state general school aids for the 2024-25 school year. However, the Department of Public Instruction is warning districts to expect “greater than usual volatility” this year, due to the Milwaukee Public Schools’ delay in reporting financial data to the state.
“I suspect we will end up with the maximum decrease of 15% once the final numbers are computed in October,” SDR Superintendent Eric Burke said. “The northern districts typically do not receive a lot of state equalization aid because of our property values.”
DPI calculates general school aids using a formula that uses district property values, enrollment and spending by the district. A 15% decrease in state aid would amount to just over $1.1 million for SDR.
General state aid does not fund the district’s operations, but rather, drives the mill rate, Burke noted.
“Of course, we would like more aid and less burden on our taxpayers.”
Rhinelander received just over $7.7 million in state aid for 2023-24. The preliminary numbers released last week indicate a 4.39% increase, or about $339,000 more than the last school year. Early estimates for Milwaukee show MPS losing 12.75%, or about $81 million in state aid.
Statewide, estimated general school aids for 2024-25 total $5.58 billion, representing an increase of 4.2% from 2023-24.
“Payments to districts will increase an estimated $234.3 million because of an increase of $224.9 million per the state budget as passed by the Wisconsin State Legislature, and the decrease in the required Milwaukee Public Schools funding for the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program due to statutory changes,” the DPI stated in a news release. But Burke said much of that increase may go to Milwaukee.
“MPS passed a very large referendum to exceed the revenue limit and they are heavily state aided,” Burke said. “I have seen estimates that say every other district will receive a 3% decrease in order to fund MPS’s share. We are still limited to a maximum decrease of 15%.”
Final budget approval will take place at the annual meeting in October. Meetings take place at the Superior Diesel Advanced Learning Center at Rhinelander High School.
SDR receives tech ed grant
Rhinelander is one of 17 school districts in the state awarded a technical education equipment grant from the state of Wisconsin and Department of Workforce Development.
Rhinelander received over $46,000 through the DWD Fast Forward Grant. The grant will help support the districts project to upgrade facilities and equipment for the technical education classrooms at the high school and middle school.
Dr. Lee Swank provided a donation that made the matching grant possible. In April SDR voters approved a $26 million referendum to update the district’s tech ed facilities.
“Advanced manufacturing is an important part of our economy in Wisconsin, and ensuring our kids have access to high-demand, high-skill job training opportunities is critical if we want to prepare our future workforce for the 21st Century,” said Gov. Tony Evers. “By investing in technical education in school districts across the state, we are connecting the dots and expanding career opportunities for thousands of students while positioning our manufacturers for success.”
The current round of Wisconsin Fast Forward grants from DWD totals $408,123 for school districts across the state to train students for career paths involving robotics, welding, plasma cutting, 3D printing, drones, and more. These grants reimburse school districts for the costs of purchasing and installing technical education equipment used for vocational training and technical education in advanced manufacturing fields.
The SDR project design is expected to be completed in early November, construction to being in April 2025, with completion in summer 2026.
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