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School districts learn lesson from low voter turnout for USD 259 bond issue

School districts learn lesson from low voter turnout for USD 259 bond issue

Yahoo27-02-2025

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — There are several school districts with bond votes coming up in the next few months. Many are looking at how they can increase voter participation.
Given the low voter turnout in USD 259's bond election, districts are working to raise awareness for their projects.
On April 8, Haysville USD 261 voters will decide on a nearly $80 million bond.
KSN spoke with a parent on the Haysville school bond committee about how they're working to raise awareness about the upcoming vote. He says that between now and election day, they're stressing that this bond is focused on infrastructure improvements that will ensure that students, teachers, and employees have a clean and healthy environment.
New results in for Wichita school bond vote
'We have a bunch of meetings where anybody can come to every week to coordinate to kind of strategize how we can get the message out for people. Also, we're very active on Facebook and with the community itself,' said Eli Rueda, a member of the school bond committee for USD 261.
He added, 'We also held a couple of tours around the schools themselves.'
Rueda also said he hopes that the smaller, tight-knit community will come out in greater levels to vote.
KSN also heard back from the Goddard School District, USD 265. The district will have a kick-off informational meeting for the public on March 31, and we will learn more about their efforts then. The vote for USD 265 is on May 13.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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