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Wausau School District board meeting, Sep 28, 2026

1 h 18 min · 1 public speaker

Reading and test scores ▶ 29:46

This board doesn’t post agenda times. Click a board member to jump to where they first speak; we list only members whose voice our check named. Video length 1 h 18 min.

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What happened

What happened at this meeting

Wausau annual meeting adopts $26,702,987 general fund levy for 2026⁠-⁠2027 22:19

  • The Wausau School District held its annual meeting and budget hearing, where an assistant superintendent presented the proposed 2026⁠-⁠2027 budget, including an estimated tax levy of $45,848,693 and a projected mill rate drop from $6.58 to $6.54. 0:00
  • The annual meeting adopted a general fund levy of $26,702,987, a community service fund levy of $1,092,000 and a debt service levy of $18,053,707 for the 2026⁠-⁠2027 school fiscal year. 22:19
  • At the special meeting, the board approved a resolution to start school prior to September 1st for the 2027⁠-⁠2028 school year. 27:13
  • Members voted to recommend to the full board the approval of the 2027⁠-⁠2028 school calendar as presented, and the motion carried. 52:31
Item by item (14)
  1. Opening and early start public hearing 0:00
    • The annual school district meeting and budget hearings were called to order at 5 PM on September 28th, 2026. 0:00
    • A district staff member said the public hearing on starting school before September 1st for 2027⁠-⁠2028 was a requirement to receive a school start date exemption waiver. 0:00
    • No one signed up to speak at the hearing. 1:30
    • A motion to close nominations for chairperson carried, and the presiding speaker said they would serve as chairperson. 2:18
  2. State of the district report 2:18
    • The superintendent said the district has presented a balanced budget for the past 2 years, but the budget does not take into account the large amount of deferred maintenance in its buildings. 4:52
    • The superintendent said the district has been unveiling a strategic plan based on 4 pillars: students, staff, community and operations. 5:16
  3. Treasurer and post-employment benefits reports 7:02
    • Sarah Brock reported an ending cash balance and investments of $33,875,137.33 as of June 30th, 2026, for the general checking account. 7:23
    • Sarah Brock reported a cash balance of $5,208,253.39 in the OPEB trust account and total claim disbursements of $2,625,751.20 for the fiscal year. 9:09
  4. Proposed 2026-2027 budget hearing 10:32
    • The assistant superintendent of operations said the estimated 2026⁠-⁠27 revenue limit per student is $13,229, with $9,657 from the state and $3,572 levied to the community. 10:47
    • The assistant superintendent said the projected Fund 10 budget is $118,307,108 and the proposed 2026⁠-⁠2027 tax levy is estimated at $45,848,693. 10:47
    • The assistant superintendent said the mill rate is projected to go from $6.58 to $6.54, with finalized numbers expected at the end of October. 10:47
  5. Tax levies for district funds 22:19
    • The motion set a levy of $26,702,987 for the general fund and $1,092,000 for the community service fund for the 2026⁠-⁠2027 school fiscal year. 22:19
    • A second motion set a levy of $18,053,707 for the debt service funds. 22:59
    • Both levy motions carried. 22:59
  6. School lunches and board member compensation 23:25
    • The chair said the school lunch program is self-funded through ticket sales and federal and state subsidies and is accounted for in Fund 50. 23:25
    • A motion set school board annual salaries at $3,400 for the 2026⁠-⁠2027 school fiscal year. 24:30
    • The motions on school lunches, board member travel expenses and board salaries carried. 23:54
  7. Property authority and next annual meeting 25:01
    • A motion granted the Board of Education authority through the next annual meeting to lease suitable buildings and land for school sites. 25:01
    • Another motion granted authority to convey small parcels or easements to governmental authorities or public utilities where the consideration does not exceed $20,000. 25:36
    • A motion authorized the Board of Education to set the date and time of the 2027 annual meeting. 26:34
    • A motion granting the Board of Education authority through the time of the next annual meeting to lease suitable buildings and/or land for school sites carried. 25:01
  8. Early start resolution and consent agenda 27:13
    • The special meeting was called to order at 5:27 to consider the resolution to start school before September 1st for the 2027⁠-⁠2028 school year. 27:13
    • The consent agenda included appointments, staff changes, resignations, leaves of absence and retirements. 28:04
    • The early start resolution and the consent agenda were approved, and the special meeting adjourned. 28:04
  9. Committee meeting opening and minutes 28:43
    • The Committee of the Whole meeting was called to order at 5:29 with a motion to approve the minutes of August 24, 2026. 28:43
    • The motion to approve the minutes carried. 29:14
  10. High school excellence presentation 29:14
    • The Wausau East principal said 406 students, about 48%, were involved in 2 or more activities in the spring. 29:34
    • The principal said the IB program started at Wausau East in 1978 and that 57% of eligible juniors and seniors took an IB class last year. 34:09
    • Students described their experiences in the IB program. 35:30
  11. Public comment 44:18
    • A speaker at public comment described summer activities, including meeting one-on-one with new district hires and offering a financial planning meeting for staff. 45:25
  12. Audit of the bills 47:18
    • The chair sought a motion to approve the audit of the bills as presented. 47:18
    • The motion carried. ~47:35
  13. Proposed 2027-2028 school calendar 47:35
    • A staff member said an earlier start would allow a longer summer for construction work on the Riverview roof during the summer of 2028. 47:54
    • A staff member said the draft calendar has a first day of August 24th, 173 instructional days and 189 teacher contract days. 49:33
    • Asked whether the early start could become permanent, a staff member said DPI allows the exemption only for a limited list of reasons. 50:42
    • The motion to recommend the 2027⁠-⁠2028 calendar to the full board carried. 52:31
  14. Seal of Biliteracy policy update 53:04
    • A staff member said the district is seeking to add the Wisconsin Seal of Biliteracy to Policy 2370 as a formal educational opportunity. 53:26
    • A district French teacher said 15 students passed the Seal of Biliteracy last year in a soft rollout. 54:17
    • A speaker asked the district to consider adding Hmong language classes. 1:10:32
    • The motion to recommend the Policy 2370 changes to the full board carried, and the meeting adjourned. 1:17:14

Written by software from the meeting's transcript and checked sentence by sentence against it.

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Video: posted by the district as “Wausau School Board Meeting of the Whole Meeting - 9/28/26”