Gary Larsen – Letter to Editor

I, Gary Larsen, am a candidate for the Peshtigo School district Board of Education. For nearly twenty years I have given my time and dedication to the betterment of the Peshtigo School district as a board member. Prior to joining the board, I was involved in a facilities improvement committee. In this expansion we worked with the construction company and created six additional classrooms, doubling the initial plans.

While on the school board I have developed relationships with numerous construction companies that specialize in school developments through conventions that I take my own time to attend. With my construction background these vendors appreciate my ability to understand their language. I can assure the community that the Peshtigo School District will receive the most efficient and beneficial efforts from our construction vendor. With the current referendum our loan was locked in days before a rate hike, this saved $3 million on the interest cost on the current referendum.

If we do not move forward with this referendum, Peshtigo School District will be viewed by lenders as a ad investment. Peshtigo School District will drop in credit rating. This situation mirrors a bank lending to someone with a 500 credit score that previously held an 800 credit score. We will no longer have access to the 800 credit interest rates, but the 500. This will make any future improvement for Peshtigo a very difficult task.
We as a board have the financial interest of the taxpayers in our greatest interest. I moved to Peshtigo in the 1990s so my kids could attend Peshtigo. I understood then what still holds true. The property value in Peshtigo is the highest in the area almost entirely due to the school system. With a failing infrastructure to our school, this will not be the case much longer. Students and teachers do not want to be in a building with nearly zero climate control and little access to natural light. We will lost our best teachers and students, meaning the housing value will follow them to our  neighboring communities. In the last five years neighboring schools have passed referendums, their schools are improved and up to date.

The school board is much more than this referendum. Members are asked to represent our community every day. We deal with the difficult parts of a school that go unseen. Contract negotiations with our educators, expulsions and suspensions, and interviews for positions that must be filled with the proper professionals to keep our reputation as a premier school district. I believe our current board has done a tremendous job acting in the best interest of our community and students.

I take great pride in the product that comes out of the school doors, the students that graduate from Peshtigo make an impact on the world every day. Our school improvement is decades overdue; the future of the Peshtigo community depends on necessary upgrades to our High School.

Thank you for your support.
Gary Larsen

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