District 308 Referendum Projected To Fail

OSWEGO, IL — Voters in Community Unit School District 308 headed to the polls Tuesday to vote on a property tax hike aimed at avoiding deeper cuts, including cutting elective classes and sports programs. With all precincts reporting for both Will and Kendall counties, the increase appears to have failed by a slim margin — just 326 votes.

The increase would have amounted to 30 cents per $100 of equalized assessed valuation, or an increase of about $220 per year for the average Kendall County homeowner.

The final vote tally for both counties:

• Yes 4,085
• No 4,411

On Monday, Superintendent John Sparlin said if the referendum failed, residents would see the following impact:

• Increase Full-Day Kindergarten Registration from $300 per year to $550 per year.
• Assistant Principals assume additional Special Education Responsibility reducing the current Special Education Coordinator Model.
• Eliminate non-grant funded Teachers on Special Assignment positions.
• Early release of all Teacher Assistants on School Improvement and Parent-Teacher Conference Days.
• Reduce the number of 12- month employee work days by two, for employees in the OESPA.
• Reduce the high school athletic budgets by 10% (non-stipend related).
• Shift all junior high sports from athletic based programs to intramurals.

“Additional cuts will continue each year in order to eliminate the deficit and build healthy reserves,” Sparlin said.

School board election

Here are the projected results for the Community Unit School District 308 school board race (projected winners bold).

• Incumbent Lauri Doyle - 4,270
• Lauri Phillips - 3,863
• Ruth Kroner - 3,958
• Wayne E. Harshbarger II - 3,103
• Alison Swanson - 4,078