In Area 2, incumbent and board president, Sheryl Kirkeby, was re-elected. Kirkeby received 821 votes, or nearly 57 percent. Curt Pochardt received 349 votes, 24 percent. Adam Sanders, despite withdrawing from the campaign, got 274 votes, or nearly 19 percent.

June 4 — A computer glitch during the vote count led to inaccurate reporting of the vote totals on Tuesday night.  The revised count did not change the outcome of the election.  The new totals, however, reflect a much lower turnout than initially reported:

Area 1

• Suzan Nolan – 595   (50.3%)
• Heather Gosch – 399   (33.8%)
• Arnie Laubach – 104   (8.8%)
• Candice Estes – 84   (7.1%)

Area 2

• Sheryl Kirkeby – 297   (57.6%)
• Curt Pochardt – 123   (23.8%)
• Adam Sanders – 96   (18.6%)

Nolan will be seated and Kirkeby will begin a new three-year term when the Board holds its annual meeting in July. In the meantime, Arnie Laubach will continue to represent Area 1 on the Board through the rest of June.

Over the last month, a number of issues have clearly risen to the top of voters’ minds as they head to the polls:

• Central High School renovation – architects, engineers and cost estimators are currently working on detailed drawings and budgets for the proposed renovation of Central. Last summer, the project was estimated to cost $25 million, but when the cost estimates are presented later this month, some people are saying the total price tag will be closer to $40 million. The $15 million difference is roughly equal to the price tag for the new General Beadle Elementary, and some members of the Board are concerned that the wish list for the project has grown beyond what is needed.
• Facilities Master Planning – the renovation of Central High School is part of a 10-year master plan for facilities prepared for the Board last year by consultants. The plan calls for the closure of several schools (Horace Mann, Dakota, Canyon Lake, Wilson), the renovation of others (South Middle School), and changes in school attendance boundaries. All of these moves are designed to improve the learning environment for students and lower operating costs for the District. But they are likely to spark controversy and call for strong leadership on the part of the Board.
• Third High School – The consultant’s report suggested that within ten years Rapid City will need a third high school. They recommended that the District start with a smaller facility that could be expanded as demand grows. One option under consideration is the construction of a Technical High School next to Western Dakota Tech. Board members will have to evaluate this option in light of the District’s capital budget and with some eye to the continuing legislative battle over the future governance of the Technical Institutes.
• Student Achievement – The District has not met the state’s standards for student achievement in reading and math for the last several years. If No Child Left Behind test scores do not improve and the law itself stays on the books, the State and the District will be forced to take dramatic steps to fix the situation.
• Budget Cuts – For the last two years the Board has cut staff to deal with an ongoing structural deficit. The cutting is likely to continue next year given current economic conditions and the condition of the state budget. Board members will have to decide whether to keep cutting existing programs or eliminate services altogether.
• Opt Out – As an alternative to continued cuts, the Board could choose to “opt out” of the property tax cap. Previous discussions of the opt out option have been in the range of $50 a year per $100,000 of a homeowner’s assessed value. If the Board chooses to opt out, it can either impose the opt out on taxpayers or put the issue on the ballot for voters to decide.
• Indian Education – As Indian students account for an increasing percentage of all students in Rapid City and as test scores show the gap between Indian and non-Indian student achievement holding steady or widening in reading and math, this issue will continue to be a priority for the Board.
• Compulsory Attendance until 18 — This fall a new law takes effect compelling students to attend high school until graduation or age 18. The new law is likely to add several hundred students to Rapid City’s already crowded high schools. The Board will have to approve programs designed to meet the educational needs of these students.
• Superintendent — After ten years at the helm of the Rapid City Area Schools, Dr. Peter Wharton has indicated that he will be retiring soon. In all likelihood, Board members elected tomorrow will be faced with the challenge of recruiting and hiring a new superintendent sometime in the next three years. At that time, the Board will have to decide how it wants to involve the community and staff in the process and agree on what it’s looking for in a new leader.
• Technology — In 2005 the District chose to replace nearly all of its school computers. Expected to last five years, these machines will be approaching the end of their useful life next year and it will be time for the District to make an equally significant capital investment in new technology.

To read where the candidates stand on some of these issues, check out the profiles submitted by some of the candidates under the “Election” heading to the right. (Note: candidates Heather Gosch, Arnie Laubach and Doug Kinniburgh did not respond to invitations to submit profiles.) The Rapid City Journal also featured Q&As with the candidates in the paper last week. The candidates also offered opinions at the DIA forum last week.

Questions for School Board Candidates

DIA School Board Forum

South Middle School

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

6:45 – 9:15 p.m.

1. What is your plan to improve communication between the School Board, school administrators, RCEA, teachers and the public?
2. Average teacher salaries in South Dakota rank either 50^th or 51^st, depending on which statistics you consult.  If elected, what would you do to make Rapid City a top choice for new teachers?
3. If the funding crisis in the Rapid City schools continues, how would you make cuts in programs and personnel?  Would you support an opt-out of current property tax limits?  Why or why not?
4. How would you increase public participation in planning the changes being considered by the school district?  These include possible new construction, remodeling some schools, closing others and changing attendance boundaries. 
5. What questions would you ask administrators to determine whether our schools are culturally sensitive?  How can we close the gaps between cultures and develop clear understanding and cooperation among all cultural and racial groups in our schools?  How can we minimize the incidence of hate crimes? 
6. When funding is cut, frequently the first programs to go are art and music.  Last year, in fact, private contributions saved the music program.  How can the school district avoid cuts in art and music in the future? 
7. Now that students, by law, must stay in school until the age of 18, what programs, if any, do you think will be necessary to engage those students who no longer want to be in school?  How will the district pay for these programs? 
8. What are your views on school-provided early childhood education?  If you think they belong in the schools, how should those programs be funded? 
9. How can Rapid City schools develop curriculum that is more life-relevant?  Should the public be engaged in curriculum development?  If yes, how?  If no, why not? 
10. What are your views on an age-appropriate, comprehensive program of sex education in the Rapid City schools? 
11. Do you favor the institution of “magnet” or “charter” schools in Rapid City?  If so, why?  If not, why not? 
12. Some school districts in the state have disciplined disproportionate numbers of minority students, who then ultimately end up in the criminal justice system.  How can Rapid City schools avoid this “school to prison pipeline?”

For more information about the candidates, click on their names in the sidebar on the right.

Voters in Area 1, which includes the southern part of Robbinsdale and the area beyond the hospital, will have four candidates to choose from, including Candice Estes, Heather Gosch, incumbent Arnold Laubauch and Suzan Nolan. For this part of town, this will be the first contested election in nine years.

Unfortunately, voters in Area 7, which includes Rapid Valley and other areas beyond the city limits to the south and east, will once again be denied the opportunity to vote in a school board election. No candidate filed to run against incumbent Doug Kinniburgh. He will, therefore, be automatically re-seated on the board in July.  If he serves his entire three-year term, voters in this area will have gone 12 years without the opportunity to vote in a school board election.

Kinniburgh puts a lot of time and thought into his service as a school board member. With his engineering background and work experience with the South Dakota Department of Transportation, he brings a special expertise in construction projects and facilities. But his constituents need to have the opportunity to hear him articulate his ideas. Hopefully, he’ll be included in any candidate forums.

All of the candidates offer voters interesting backgrounds and perspective. In Area 1, Candice Estes has been a long-time advocate for racial justice and Native American children. Heather Gosch is a CPA and married to District 32 State House Representative Brian Gosch. Arnie Laubauch, an attorney with the Public Defender’s Office, has served on the school board for nearly five years. Suzan Nolan, a retired counselor from the Rapid City Area Schools, has an intimate knowledge of the school system.

In Area 2, Curt Pochardt has worked for several years as a substitute teacher and has spent time in virtually every school in the district. Adam Sanders is also running. Sheryl Kirkeby has served on the board for nearly seven years.

With seven candidates actively campaigning, there should at least be some opportunity for the public to talk about the District’s future. We will all stay tuned.