The La Crosse School Board held three regular meetings and one workshop in October. The October 6 meeting included a report on the district’s June-August summer food service program, a virtual walk-through of the new elementary school to be constructed on the Hogan site, and a report that district enrollment on September 19, 2025 was in line with projections: 5,564 students, down 149 from 2024-25.

At the October 20 meeting, the Executive Director of Business Services presented the 2025-26 budget and the Supervisor of Buildings and Grounds gave a Referendum update with general time lines for demolition and bids, noting that groundbreaking at State Road has begun, the Hogan demolition is out for bid, the new school construction goes out for bid on Nov. 4 with bids coming in on December 9, and the groundbreaking for the new building will be during the first week in January.

In their Oct 27 meeting, the Board approved the 2025-26 budget with an average 5.82% increase in property valuations across the 9 municipalities that support the district. The mill rate for 2026 will be $7.61.

Finally, during a workshop on Standards-Based Grading, a panel of three district employees provided background on SB instruction and grading, including the history of the trend nationally and in the La Crosse district, from elementary through high school. Every Board member contributed during the discussion that followed, with 8 out of 9 Board members and the two student representatives in attendance expressing support for a Standards-Based approach. Speakers acknowledged that there were challenges with the roll-out but reiterated that strategies have been implemented to address problems and continue improving.

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