KAUKAUNA, Wis. — It’s a record-setting year for school referendums in Wisconsin in 2024.
According to the Wisconsin Policy Forum, school districts around the state approved $4.4 billion in new funding for projects and operations.
Voters in Kaukauna approved $198 million in November.
River View Middle School is one of several schools in Kaukauna School District that’s expecting to see major improvements thanks to that referendum passing.
Traffic is just one reason why River View Middle School will be replaced with a larger middle school. This school was built in 1923 and has outgrown its space.
Luke Cromell is the principal and said the school’s landlocked layout makes dropping off and picking up students, or commuting through this area during school hours, a nightmare.
“You’re going to get held up in traffic, and that just varies by time of day and depending on weather and things like that, but you could easily get backed up 15-20 minutes,” Cromell said.
A big chunk of referendum money — $169 million — will go toward building the new middle school.
Funds will also be used to expand access to 4k and 5k programs, renovate Park Community Charter School and enhance safety and security at all district schools, including River View.
Another problem that will be addressed is the location of the school’s front office. It’s currently not located on an exterior wall, and visitors are checked in at a secondary office.
Cromell said these are big problems that will be solved by this referendum.
“The ideal circumstance, from a safety standpoint, is to make sure that all visitors enter through one door, and typically, would want them to report into the main office before having access to other areas of the building,” Cromell said.
The Kaukauna School District has seven schools and 4,000 students.
Superintendent Mike Slowinski said these funds will set the district up for success for the next 50 to 75 years.
“The impact of this referendum goes across every classroom, creating flexible learning spaces so our teachers can set up learning activities that promote collaboration, hands-on, project-based learning, and moving us away from those traditional lecture-based, test preparation-type instruction,” said Slowinski.
Despite outdated learning spaces, the Kaukauna School District was graded as “Exceeding Expectations” by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.
Cromell said he hopes this referendum will help the district continue its forward progress.
“We’re really excited about the opportunities that some new, 21st century learning spaces can provide,” Cromell said.
The new middle school is expected to be completed in 2028.
Other referendum projects are already underway in the Kaukauna Area School District.