Warren health levy passes, career center fails

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By Denise Callahan, Staff Writer Updated 6:40 AM Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Voters favored the proposed Warren County Health Department tax levy, but turned down a request Tuesday, Nov. 3 by the county’s career center.

The health department’s 0.5-mill tax levy request was approved 56 to 44 percent by voters, but the Warren County Career Center’s 1-mill permanent improvement levy went down 35 to 65 percent, according to unofficial results from the board of elections.

The health district’s 10-year tax levy expires this year and Warren County Auditor Nick Nelson estimated the owner of a $100,000 home will pay about $15.50 on their tax bill. That same home owner now pays about $9 annually.

Health Commissioner Duane Stansbury said he was worried the economy might doom the levy, which would have been disastrous since state funding is down and expenses are rising.

“I believe we are good stewards of the county’s money and we try to provide services that the county needs,” he said. “The only concern I had was we are in tough economic times. For the people to continue support us, I feel relieved and grateful, knowing many people are struggling.”

The career center asked voters to pass a 1-mill, 10-year levy for construction, ongoing maintenance of the 33-year old building and equipment. Superintendent Maggie Hess said, with the loss, “at this point additional improvements aren’t in the budget.”

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I agree with Mendy & Mel. My child goes there now. She has a math teacher that can't even speak clear English. She is an excellent math student, but struggles in this class, because she can't understand the teacher due to the very thick accent. We have contacted the school several times to get the schedule changed and they won't even work with us. The teacher is extremely nice and friendly, but as for being able to effectively teach, there is too large a communication gap.

American Made
1:10 PM, 11/4/2009

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I am really disappointed in hearing the comments from Mendy and Mel. My husband and I attended the career center in the '80s and feel we got the best education and training possible. Our daughter also attended the career center in 2004-05. We knew the career center had changed alot, but this is really sad to hear. This should be a wake up call for them to get back to basics. We had one guidance counselor and he seemed to remember every student by name. Very, very sad!

Career Center Graduate
12:38 PM, 11/4/2009

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My son started at the career center as a junior and will graduate from your fire program in 2010. He talks highly of his academic teachers and your fire instuctor. My son decided to attend the career center because; he wanted something from high school that "he" would actually use in the real world. The career center is a great option for students looking for something that you can not find at a traditional high school. We both gave our vote and will continue to do so.

Ann

Ann
10:53 AM, 11/4/2009

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I agree with Mendy, I as a parent looked into the career center three years ago for our child, I was shocked that after meeting with this the guidance department on on a friday and discussing our childs FUTURE, when monday came around she was unable to even recollect the meeting,our name, my daughters name, and what carrer path she was choosing. This was a 1.5 hr meeting, one on one! Very dissappointing. It's not just a job its OUR FUTURE !! I made it clear that this was unacceptable!

mel
10:09 AM, 11/4/2009

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I would have voted for the levy but having a son who just graduated there in 2009 I was less than impressed with the school and some of its teachers. If you want to be supported by the voters and citizens you must show your enthusiasm for teaching and the students NO MATTER THE ATTITUDE OF THE STUDENTS! My son received much better support from his home school than at the career center. Your IEP teachers leave much to be desired. Please do better in the future, our kids are depending on you.

Mendy
8:14 AM, 11/4/2009

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