Mayville School District Faces $315K Budget Gap

Posted Wednesday, October 15, 2025 1:20 pm

Understanding Mayville’s 2025–26 School Budget

The Mayville School District is projecting a $315,000 deficit for the 2025–26 school year, despite careful reductions and cost-saving measures. The district’s General Fund, used for staffing, classroom needs, and student services, is expected to bring in $14.97 million (an increase of $287,664.20 over the prior year) in revenue against $15.29 million in expenses (an increase of $7,656.18 over the prior year), reflecting careful management of costs while reallocating resources to areas of greatest need. To avoid cutting student programs, the district plans to use part of its fund balance, which will drop from $2.17 million to $1.96 million. For the first time in many years, short-term borrowing may also be needed to manage cash flow.

State Funding Falling Behind With Increase in Student Need

Wisconsin now ranks 26th in the nation for school funding, about 10% below the national average, after once ranking well above it. Rising costs in special education, vouchers, and open enrollment are straining local budgets. Meanwhile, 42% of Mayville students qualify for free or reduced lunch, an increase over the past two years, showing growing financial need among families.

District Has ‘Flushed the System’ for Savings

Administrators stressed that they have “flushed the system and combed over the budget looking for savings,” reducing technology purchases and tightening building budgets. Still, essential services, like a new school psychologist and maintaining smaller elementary class sizes, remain priorities.

The proposed 2025–26 budget outlines how the district plans to maintain student programs while managing rising costs. The plan includes shifting some instructional staff from the high school to the elementary level to better support younger grades and adding a school psychologist to address student support needs. It also continues funding for necessary building maintenance. The budget accounts for increased expenses in special education and payments tied to open enrollment and private school vouchers.

To balance the budget, the district will rely on an expected increase in state aid to help offset a reduction in local property tax revenue. Because expenses are still higher than income, the district will use a portion of its fund balance to cover the shortfall in the General Fund. Board members emphasized that this use of savings is planned and intended to protect programs and services for students.

Town Hall Listening Sessions Proposed

To better inform the public, the board is considering Town Hall listening sessions to explain how state funding impacts local schools and to answer community questions. The goal is to build understanding before difficult financial decisions are made.

By Kari Karnitz
Journalist

The Mayville Board of Education held its regular meeting on Monday, Oct. 6, during National School Board Week. Superintendent Dr. Scott Sabol opened the meeting by thanking board members for their service and commitment to the community.

The meeting started off with student and staff presentations. Mayville High School student Owen Bronecki shared recent activities from the FFA. On Saturday, September 27, 12 members traveled to the World Dairy Expo in Madison to lead cattle before judging, a longstanding Mayville tradition. On Tuesday, September 30, 73 FFA members attended the Expo alongside students from across the country and the world.

Elementary Theater Club Proposal:

MES Reading Specialist, Rochelle Meylink, introduced a new Elementary Theater Club for 2nd–6th graders. The club would begin after Christmas and include music and a play written by Meylink to keep costs low. The pilot program would accept up to 25 students, meet after school, and is seeking board consideration for help with costume and prop funding, with Meylink offering to pay some costs herself.

High School Fishing Team Proposal:

Tech Ed teacher Jesse Wasmund, along with students including Owen Steger and Collen Ehlers, proposed creating a High School Fishing Team. The team would begin with ice fishing and compete in the Wisconsin Interscholastic Fishing Association (WIFA) against other Wisconsin schools. With 30 students already interested, they requested $2,000 for advisor and assistant costs. They noted there are 150 teams statewide, and WIFA offers scholarships for seniors. Early approval would allow them to apply for grants.

Girls Hockey Co-op Renewal:
Athletic Director Scott Hilber requested approval for Mayville to continue its girls’ hockey co-op with Beaver Dam for the 2026–27 and 2027–28 seasons. Mayville currently has a few participants, with practices held in Beaver Dam.

Principal Reports:

MES Principal Becky Lebouton celebrated the success of the Color Run, which raised over $10,000 for elementary programming.

Jr./Sr. High Principal Mike Blaha reviewed Homecoming Week and shared that free flu shots will be offered on October 15 for ages 3-18. Students scoring 28 or higher on the Pre-ACT have been invited to take the PSAT on October 28.

Superintendent’s Report:

Wisconsin’s school funding rankings were discussed:

Wisconsin now ranks 26th nationally, about 10% below the national average.
Twenty years ago, the state ranked 11th, 11% above the national average.
42% of Mayville students are now enrolled in Free and Reduced Lunch, increasing from 40% last year and 38% the year before.
No new state funding has been added to public schools, while funding for open enrollment and voucher programs continues to increase.

See sidebar for highlights of the proposed 2025-26 school budget.

Board Matters:

During the meeting, the Board approved the following items:

Approval of an updated co-curricular advisor compensation model.

Approval of the 2025-26 co-curricular advisor contracts.
Approval of a 2026-27 and 2027-28 girls’ hockey co-op agreement.
Approval of an updated 2025-26 district calendar.
Approval of the 2025-26 preliminary district budget.

Upcoming Meetings:

The next Regular Mayville School Board meeting is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 20, at 6 p.m. Upcoming meetings will be the Budget Hearing, Annual Meeting and Special Board meeting, scheduled for Monday, Oct. 27, at 6 p.m. The public is encouraged to attend.