The Monroe County Community School Corporation is asking county residents to increase their tax rate on assessed property value by 8.5 cents.
The increase would largely go to expanding the district’s early childhood education program.
Superintendent Jeff Hauswald said the district decided it needed the initiative, after legislators didn’t allocate money to expand early learning programs statewide in the last legislative session.
He added with the referendum, the district would provide a free year of early childhood education to families with four-year-olds at the 200 percent poverty level or below.
Families at the 200 percent poverty level of below with a three-year-old would get two years of early childhood education costs covered.
For families at the 300 percent level, 75 percent of costs would be covered.
Hauswald said 1,200 children in the county meet those thresholds and are not enrolled in early childhood education.
Read more: MCCSC wants new referendum to expand early childhood education
“One of the leading indicators of whether or not a student will be ready to learn at a reading level in the third grade and graduate on time, and so many other things, is the ability for a student to be ready to learn when they enter kindergarten,” Hauswald said.
He said the best way to set students up for success is early education and Indiana is one of seven states that doesn’t universally fund pre-k education.
“Families are looking to come to our community, they care about quality of life," he said. They also care about the availability of early childhood education.”
The district’s current referendum rate is 18.5 cents per $100 of assessed property value. For the coming year, it lowered the debt levy by 4.5 cents. So, the rate for the upcoming year would be 18 cents if the referendum passes in November.
The referendum’s increase would cost $50 per year on a $250,000 home.
The funds would also go to funding out of pocket student testing fees and school supplies.
Hauswald said the decision is based of studies that show more favorable long-term educational outcomes for students who had access to early education.
Correction: "Referenda" was replaced with "referendum."
