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Merrill Area Public Schools prepare to try again on referendum

WAOW Television

Between April and August, the Merrill Area Public Schools (MAPS) had to make budget cuts after a referendum failed.

Administrators at the school district said dealing with a limited budget has made them have to cut programs, change curriculums and more.

"There are some bigger class sizes (and) there are some courses we can't run," MAPS Superintendent of Schools Shannon Murray said.

In April, the school board tried to continue a 2018 referendum. The referendum would provide the district with 2.5 million dollars over the next four years. It failed, earning just 43 percent of the vote, according to WXPR.

But administrators say the need and the reason for the referendum never left.

On Monday, the Finance and Human Resources committee met and discussed re-proposing the referendum in November. The new proposal would be the same referendum that failed in April, but they are going at it with a new game plan.

Murray said one of the main reasons community members voted down the referendum was a lack of communication. They are working to fix that and get together with community members to explain why they need the funds.

"The constituents in Merrill (will) see a lot of me this fall," Murray said. 'We are gonna get out there and get our message out there."

The proposed referendum will still need to be approved by the school board at next week's meeting.

If approved, the referendum will be on the ballot in November.

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