Voters in more than 30 Minnesota school districts will decide this fall whether to give schools more money and, in many cases, the ask from districts is a “tech levy” — more taxpayer dollars to fund technology upgrades for teaching and security measures.

“The state does not provide a dedicated funding stream, really, for technology,” said Scott Croonquist, the executive director of the Association of Metropolitan School Districts. “Technology is ubiquitous for schools, and it has become even more important since the pandemic.”

Half of the metro area school districts with referendums this fall — including Minneapolis, Robbinsdale, Shakopee and Burnsville-Eagan-Savage — are seeking renewed or increased funding for technology. Brooklyn Center and Rockford schools are going for 10-year tech levies for the first time.

Others, including Rochester, Farmington, Fridley and Prior-Lake-Savage, have more general operating referendums on the ballot, meant to help cover costs of ongoing, day-to-day expenses.

“The operating referendums in the past were meant to help fill in some gaps and do some extra things,” said Gary Lee, deputy executive director of the Minnesota School Boards Association. “Right now, the operating referendums are being used just to stay flush, just to balance the budget.”

The DFL-controlled Legislature approved a sweeping education bill in 2023 that gave schools more than $2 billion for new spending, but much of it was earmarked for specific programs, including free school meals. Decreasing enrollment, inflation and the recent sunsetting of pandemic relief funds mean that many cash-strapped districts are now facing cuts.

Tech levies can also provide relief for a district’s general fund that may have been used to cover technology costs. The cost to taxpayers depends on the district and home value.

In Minneapolis, voters will decide on a $20 million-a-year levy increase for technology in Minneapolis Public Schools — a move the district says would free up spending on general operations and minimize cuts to other programs and services. The ballot measure would allow the district to replace an $18 million a year capital project levy with a new $38 million a year levy to run for a decade, beginning in 2025. If approved, taxes on a $350,000 house would rise by $8 a month or $96 a year.

Other anecdotes about the era include dismantled wagons, a carriage appearing on the roof of a school and a “cow pie” left on the porch of a Champlin banker who had a certain specialty for foreclosing properties.

The cow invasion of 1919 sent community members scrambling for solutions. A civic leader named George Green is credited with the idea of throwing a celebration to distract troublemakers.

By that time, according to Morton, only a couple other communities in the U.S. had done something similar – Newark, N.J., in 1907 and Fort Worth, Texas, in 1916 among them. But it was far from a common practice.

Anoka went big for its first celebration – a parade, a bonfire, contests and then candy handed out afterward. The Anoka County Union described it as a “very novel party” with “nowhere near the usual amount of Hallowe’en depredations.”

“The city was resplendent in myriad lights, store windows were beautifully decorated and the merchants vied with another in putting on contests of various kinds,” the newspaper reported.

Although some pranks and vandalism continued after 1920, Anoka’s Halloween party quickly grew and overshadowed the occasional mishap.

What are the top issues facing the school district? Improving student and staff safety while reducing classroom disruptions. The needed renovations at Apollo High School, including bringing career and technical spaces up to industry standards, improving science labs, installing a permanent safe and secure entrance, and adding a state-mandated storm shelter. We also need to do a better job of sharing the district’s countless success stories. The internet and social media have made it too easy for anonymous degradation from people with no investment in, or knowledge of, our school community. The work we do is critical to the future socioeconomic and employment needs of this community, and we need to find a better and louder way to communicate our incredible story.

What are your plans to address those issues? Create a focus group to look into stronger policies for safety and classroom disruptions. Ask the community to support a bond referendum to upgrade Apollo. And better share our story: Our district is home to an extraordinary group of experienced educators and unmatched programming. We offer exceptional talent development at the elementary level and the area’s largest selection of Advanced Placement courses. We integrate with four local colleges, provide three unique immersion programs and offer extensive career and technical education supported by local employers. As a regional center, we also provide phenomenal support to students with diverse needs, including a high number of special education students and English learners. Additionally, we face high levels of poverty, homelessness and student turnover, which often mask the incredible achievements we deliver.

City of residence: St. Cloud

Educational background: Bachelor’s degree in biotechnology; master’s degrees in plant breeding and genetics, and in interdisciplinary teacher preparation and leadership

Occupation: Associate professor of education at College of St. Benedict and St. John’s University