LANGFORD AREA APPEALS TO PUBLIC FOR OPT-OUT

    Last Thursday, the Langford Area School District continued their campaign to inform voters about its proposed $575,000 opt-out for seven years. The issue will be decided in a March 25 election. To engage the community, the district is hosting four public meetings, the first of which was held last week in Eden to share key details and answer questions.
    Langford Area Superintendent Shad Storley led the meeting, presenting a PowerPoint overview of the opt-out proposal and its impact on the district. He emphasized that while the district has long upheld high educational standards and responsible financial management, increasing costs, insufficient state funding, and mandated salary requirements have put significant strain on the General Fund.
    A brochure distributed at the meeting reinforced this message, stating: “To ensure we can continue providing a safe, supportive, and enriching environment for our students, we are proposing an opt-out measure to secure the financial stability of our district and guarantee a strong future for Langford Area.”
    Storley explained that the opt-out is necessary to maintain consistent funding for quality education. He noted that current state funding does not fully cover the district’s operational costs, making it increasingly difficult to meet financial demands. Rising expenses, including mandated salary and benefit increases, along with higher costs for utilities, transportation, and technology, have reached an unsustainable level. Without additional support, the district risks being unable to sustain its current level of educational services. The proposed opt-out would help bridge this financial gap, ensuring that Langford Area School District can continue providing the high-quality education that students and families expect.
    Since 2013, the state has allowed schools to transfer funds from Capital Outlay, a method now used by more than 80 districts to support their General Fund. Storley said that last fiscal year, the school transferred $300,000 out of the Capital Outlay fund to cover the deficit but this is not a sustainable solution for long into the future. 
    The superintendent outlined the steps the district has already taken to manage rising costs. These measures included eliminating several positions, such as a computer tech position, a teaching and paraprofessional position at the colony school, and absorbing a middle school science teacher and food service role into existing staff. The district also combined the principal and special education director positions for a year, saving over $216,000. However, Storley stressed that these cuts are merely a Band-Aid on a bullet wound and do not provide a long-term solution.
    Langford Area is far from alone in facing these financial challenges. According to school board member Brandon Alberts, 70 of the state’s 148 school districts currently operate under an opt-out. He pointed out that the Sioux Falls School District has implemented eight opt-outs.
    Storley was candid about the urgency of the local opt-out, warning, “If we don’t get some help, there will come a time when we make cuts, and then in a few years, there might be hard talks about how long we can stay open.”
    If approved, the opt-out would generate $575,000 per year for seven years, impacting property owners within the Langford Area School District. The provided brochure detailed the annual tax impact per $100,000 of property valuation:
    -Agricultural land – $77.04
    - Owner-occupied property – $172.41
    - Other properties – $356.80
    Storley expressed optimism about the relief the opt-out could provide. “If we pass this, we are in great shape for several years,” he said, though he noted that the district would still need to supplement the budget with Capital Outlay transfers. In the early years of the opt-out, when those transfers are lower, the district hopes to address some projects including some building updates that are mandatory. 
    Although attendance at the Eden meeting was small, those present asked thoughtful questions and voiced concerns. Several attendees expressed frustration that while the state continues to impose new mandates on schools, it fails to provide the necessary funding to meet those requirements.
    Alberts echoed this concern, stating, “Eighty-one percent of schools in South Dakota have to supplement their general funds. I think that proves the public education funding formula does not work.”
    Toward the end of the meeting, Storley illustrated the district’s challenges with a striking example—Langford’s 1957 basketball schedule. Of the nine schools the Lions played that year, eight have since closed. Only Groton remains open, and notably, they too recently passed an opt-out.
    “We are really trying,” Storley emphasized. “But there are only so many cuts we can make while still providing a quality education.”
    Storley and other school officials encouraged the public to attend one of the three remaining informational meetings and welcomed opportunities to speak to local groups and organizations about the opt-out.
    Future meetings are planned at the Claremont Community Church Thursday (Feb. 6), Ponts in Pierpont on Feb. 11, Langford in the main gym on Feb. 20. All meetings will take place at 6 p.m.