By Robert Williams

Editor

The school board of Independent School District No. 23 in Frazee proposed to increase its general education revenue by $993.83 per pupil in a proposed referendum applicable for 10 years beginning with taxes payable in 2027. 

Despite assurances from the district and social media campaigns to convince voters this referendum would not raise taxes, a mandatory fiscal impact statement on each ballot noting yes voters are selecting a property tax increase may have been enough to sway voters.

The referendum failed by 1,842 no votes (54.21 percent) to 1,556 yes (45.79 percent).

In August, the school board passed a resolution to increase the General Education Revenue of the school district by putting an operating referendum on the ballot. Legislative changes have allowed season rec monies to be returned to districts, but to get that money districts must have an existing operating referendum.

This is another way to increase funding without increasing taxes, but it is a little trickier.

There are three ways schools get revenue: Basic State Formula or Compensatory Aid; Local Operating Revenue (LOR), or an Operating Referendum (OR).

Compensatory Aid is based on a formula and a dollar amount. Each child is valued with a set dollar amount. Last year, the LOR was $724 per pupil. That is broken down into three different categories where the district gets half of the $724 for kindergarten students, the full amount for grades 1-6 and 1.2 times the amount for grades 7-12 ($868.80).

The adjustment by age of student is basically an assumption of higher costs to teach older students, more supplies, etc.

One way in which the district loses some of this funding is the PSEO program where students can get a post-secondary education while in high school. 

Enrollment is a big factor for funding. The LOR funds of $868.80 are not provided to the district for each student that participates in PSEO as they are not full-time students. The PSEO program is popular in Frazee and supported by the school board and district despite taking away some funding.

A typical referendum is collected from the tax base without contributions from “seasonal rec” residents. Seasonal rec refers to seasonal recreational residential property—commonly known as cabins or second homes. Rural and cabin-heavy school districts use this classification to manage local tax burdens through state funding programs. Their contribution goes to the state, not the school district.

Due to changes in legislation last spring, season rec money from the Minnesota Permanent School Fund still goes to the state but it will now be returned to the district as state aid if the district has an operating referendum.

Superintendent Terry Karger reiterated that a referendum is mandatory to get the seasonal rec money as state aid at the August board meeting.

“If you’re a school district and you already had an operating referendum you’re doing jumping jacks; that’s a good deal,” said Karger. “You just got state aid and you didn’t have to do anything. Unfortunately, that’s not us because we don’t have an operating referendum.”

Frazee voters decided to keep it that way on Tuesday. 

The last time the Frazee-Vergas School District held an operating referendum was 2012, when voters approved a $700-per-pupil operating levy to replace an expiring $1,000-per-pupil levy. Prior to that, an operating levy increase was voted on and passed in November 2007.

Amendment passes

Funding will increase for all public school districts in Minnesota after the constitutional amendment to provide more dollars for K-12 public schools passed overwhelmingly with over two-million votes and a 75 percent approval rate from voters.

The amendment asked voters whether the Minnesota Constitution should be amended to increase the funding going to all school districts from the permanent school fund. 

The fund was set up in 1858 by the federal government gifting the new state of Minnesota land to fund education. The fund relies on timber and mining lease revenue from trust land.

The increase will be from roughly 2.5 percent to 4.5 percent without increasing taxes to equate to an extra $33 per student for schools, effective July 1, 2027.

School board

Current school board Chairman Nathan Matejka was the top vote-getter in the race of five candidates for four school board seats. Matejka earned 2,060 votes (22.72 percent) in a close race with runner-up Becca Gray with 75 less votes (1,985, 21.89 percent).

Matejka, Class of 1992, is completing his eighth year on the school board in 2026. He was the former Fire Chief and has been a member for the past 23 years. He was also a founding member of Frazee Amvets. 

Gray, a 2014 alum, has deep roots in Frazee, as both her parents and grandparents also are alumni. Gray earned a bachelor’s degree in education with a concentration in business and taught at the high school level. She also coached dance with Ta Fett for five years and was a substitute in the district, and other schools in the area.

She is currently a 12-year member and full-time employee of the Air National Guard in Fargo while pursuing her Master of Business Administration (MBA) with a concentration in accounting.

“I have four kids in the district; I just want to make sure they have the same, great education experience I did,” she said during October’s Candidate Forum.

The race of three for the final two seats came down to a difference of less than 100 votes between the trio. 

Stephen John Ulschmid earned 1,761 votes (19.42 percent) and Kayla Bellefeuille Simon got the final open seat with 1,636 votes (18.04 percent) leaving former school counselor Fett out of the mix with 1,567 votes (17.28 percent).

Ulschmid elected not to participate in October’s Forum, yet still garnered nearly 20 percent of the vote finishing ahead of the two remaining candidates. He is a 1981 alum and was a teacher and counselor in Frazee for 31 years until 2025. 

Bellefeuille-Simon, a 2001 graduate, holds a bachelors and masters degree in social work and also has four children currently enrolled in the district.

Fett congratulated the competition Wednesday morning on Facebook stating, “While I’m sad I won’t have the opportunity to serve, I know the district is in good hands.”

Referendum vote

NO 1,842 54.21 percent – YES 1,556 45.79 percent

School board votes

Nathan Matejka 2,060 22.72 percent

Becca Gray 1,985 21.89 percent

Stephen John Ulschmid 1,761 19.42 percent

Kayla Bellefeuille Simon 1,636 18.04 percent

Theresa (Ta) Fett 1,567 17.28 percent

WRITE-IN 59 0.65 percent