Volunteers for Issaquah Schools (VIS) Liaison

As school districts cannot campaign to pass school bonds and levies, Volunteers for Issaquah Schools (a 501(c)4 organization) was formed to run a citizens’ campaign to pass our school bonds and levies.   The campaign is led by a steering committee made up of School District unions, PTAs and any other Issaquah School District community groups that would like to be a part of the committee. The Steering committee runs the campaign and…… Develops messaging Gives presentations Develops newsletter articles Sends mailings Raises funds Registers people to vote Provides buttons/magnets Provides anything a typical “campaign committee” provides 2012 Bond The School District has proposed a bond which will go before the voters on April 17, 2012. For details about the bond, visit the Issaquah School District website. Among other things, this bond will rebuild our oldest schools. After more than five decades, Clark Elementary, Issaquah Middle, and Sunny Hills Elementary are at the end of their life spans. Long-term financial forecasts favor rebuilding now—in a period of historic low construction costs—rather than making ongoing major repairs in the years ahead. Additionally, new buildings tend to run about 30% more efficiently, saving utility dollars for classroom operations. Issaquah High PTSA voted to endorse the bond proposal at our January 13 meeting. Come to the March PTSA meeting to volunteer to get involved with the campaign. Passing the Issaquah School District Bond What Does It Take? December 2011 Here are some more important numbers: About 40%—given the history of elections in the Issaquah School District, this is the percent of registered voters that are likely to vote in this special election on April 17, 2012.  Broken down, that number includes only 5,374 parents. 60%+1—the percentage of YES votes needed to pass this bond.  Per state law, this is a supermajority. About 13,434—the actual number of YES votes needed to actually pass the bond, based on past voter turnout.  This is out of a total of 55,000 registered voters. About $100,000—how much it costs the school district to run an issue on the ballot. The school district must pay King County for this special election, and if the bond does not pass on April 17, 2012 the ISD must spend another $100,000 to have the issue put on another ballot. These dollars come from the same fund that supports classroom operations.  How can you ensure that this bond passes? Endorse the bond. Donate money to the campaign. Sign up to help with the campaign when asked. Talk to your friends and neighbors about the benefits of passing the bond, and make sure they are all registered to vote. For more information about the bond package, go to the district website. To register to vote in King County, visit the county's online Voter Registration webpage. For information about VIS (Volunteers for Issaquah Schools – the campaign committee), to donate to the campaign, and to volunteer to help go to: www.visvote.org. For more information, visit the Volunteers for Issaquah Schools website or contact PTSA Volunteers for Issaquah Schools (VIS) Liaison: Betsy Cohen.

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