Yelm Community Schools is seeking volunteers for what it calls a strategic planning committee as it prepares for another run at passing the educational programs and operations levy.
But the district is leaning toward holding off on a spring or summer ballot measure and running the levy election in November. No final vote has been taken by the board on the date of the election, but Superintendent Chris Woods expressed Thursday, Feb. 27, that the district wants to take a different approach when it comes to the levy election.
Woods said he is finalizing the strategic planning committee application, which can be filled out by community members, families and students, and hopes to make selections once the district returns from spring break. Meetings would begin in April and occur biweekly.
“That will give us approximately four weeks to collect applications and then, as a board, you guys can select the committee for our strategic planning process. In April, we would get started on those committee meetings,” Woods said during the district’s Thursday board meeting. “This is really an opportunity for us to think differently about what we do, why we do it and how we do it. This is an opportunity for us to strategically plan how we’re going to move forward.”
Woods said that if and when levy funds do return in Yelm, the committee would create priorities for how those dollars would be spent.
After the meeting, Woods said he believes any future ballot measures would be run in Thurston County after Pierce County handled election operations for the Feb. 11 special election.
“Number one, it gives us some time to really take a look at why people voted no. We learned some things last year, but we learned even more with this election,” Woods said of potentially delaying another election until November. “It’s also an opportunity for us to really invest in strategic planning and bring community members in and listen to people’s voices some more and invite them into the strategic planning process. I think the only way that we can continue to get better is to work together.”
Once the school board reviews the final draft of the strategic planning committee application, it will be pushed out through the district’s communications.
