HELENA — Voters in Helena rejected two school technology levies Tuesday night and sent two incumbents and a new trustee to the board.
New trustee Jenny Murnane Butcher was elected to the Helena school board along with incumbents Kay Satre and current board chair Siobahn Hathhorn.
Tuesday's election saw Helena voters pass the elementary general fund levy, which will support general operations in the elementary district.
This levy will offset the $2 million deficit in the district's elementary general fund by over 290 thousand dollars.
In a statement on Tuesday night, Superintendent Rex Weltz said cuts will still be necessary for the 2025-26 school year.
The district has been looking at making cuts, including possibly closing Hawthorne Elementary.
Trustee-elect Jenny Murnane Butcher says she understands the challenges faced by voters who have seen their property tax burden increase significantly, and the district.
"As far as the information presented to me at this point, it seems that Hawthorne is going to have to close so that we don't have to make major cuts to other programs across the district," Butcher says. "If we don't close Hawthorne, we might be looking at bringing everything to accreditation standards, which is just the bare minimum."
The district is expected to vote on whether to close Hawthorne at its June meeting.
