Schools

School District Wants Community Input Through Online Survey

Following the Westlake voters failure to approve  a levy sought by the Westlake School District, Superintendent of Schools Dr. Dan Keenan said the district will move forward with several surveys, beginning with an online survey.

On May 28, the district posted an online survey comprised of 21 questions. In addition to asking about basics such as age, gender and how long a person has lived in Westlake, the survey asks why some people voted for, and some against, the levy. It also asks question based on residents' knowledge of state funding cuts, teachers’ contracts and the recent decision to cut another $1 million from the school budget.

“This survey is completely the result of the failed levy,” Keenan said. “We want to seek input about the recent levy failure. It will give a better idea of what people are thinking and what information they have and don’t have.”

Keenan said the district will seek input in three phases.

The first is the online survey, which will run for approximately one month. Information gathered from the online survey will be used to format a telephone survey that will be statistically significant, Keenan said. That survey will be conducted by a third-party administrator, be completely anonymous and will seek to include frequent voters.
 A third prong will involve interviews of community leaders, including elected officials and heads of community organizations. Those interviews will also be handled by a third-party group.

“We want to hear about the school’s role in the community and the perception of how the school is operated as a pillar of our community,” Keenan said. The results of the three phases will be used to consider any future levy."

One levy funding the district is now at the end of its cycle and will need to be replaced or renewed. 

"We’d like to consider putting something on in November,” Keenan said. “We’ve ruled out (an August levy).”

Keenan said he and the board wanted to “hear reasons clearly before moving forward.” “We want to know, why did it fail? What were the reasons out there,” he said. “I want to listen to the answers. I want genuine input.” 

Access the survey: http://research.zarca.com/k/SsUPVXsQVXsPsPsP.


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