Mt. Pleasant Community School District asking voters to extend VPPEL Levy

MT. PLEASANT - The Mt. Pleasant Community School District's Voted Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (VPPEL) will be on the ballot on Nov. 5. The vote will ask voters to approve an extension of the tax bond for another 10 years. According to a statement from the school district, the VPPEL 'generates approximately $810,000 per year in funding” and 'does not exceed $1.34 per $1,000 of assessed property valuation.”

Mt. Pleasant Community School District Superintendent John Henriksen, notes that the extension does not change taxes for property owners. The levy rate will remain the same. Furthermore, Henriksen wanted to assure voters that the district is a 'really good steward” of the funding that it receives. VPPEL funds have been used to bring technology to classrooms and provide one to one student devices such as laptops and tablets, as well as security systems to buildings to help keep students safe and projection systems for elementary classrooms.

Henricksen further added that in particular, the one to one student devices allow the district to 'improve educational opportunities for students … and gives every student the same opportunity, no matter their socio-economic status, to do school.”

Henriksen explained the school district is committed to providing access to cutting edge technology to students with the goals of improving students' communication skills through tech as well as to help prepare students for life after high school and postsecondary.

Currently, the school district's tax levy rate is in the $12 per thousand range, which is lower than the state average of $14.52, as calculated by the Iowa Association of School Boards. If the VPPEL does not pass, the district will have to use revenue from their sales tax fund to be able to provide technological updates and put other projects such as parking lot updates and other building construction on hold.

'It's an extension, so it's not a new tax asking, it's an existing tax. And as a property owner myself, I want to know that the entities in charge of tax dollars are spending them responsibly and I feel the district has done a good job of making sure of that,” Henriksen added.