Kenosha Unified School District Board of Education Packet Summary — 2026-08-19
Meeting: Special School Board Meeting - Aug 19 2026
Scheduled time: 5:30 PM
Location: John J. Hosmanek Educational Support Center — Board Room
Key Items on the Agenda
The special meeting agenda centers on potential board action related to a referendum poll/survey and staffing audit, consideration of strategic-planning services, and a School Board workshop. The agenda also includes an opportunity for public views and comments before the board-action item.
Referendum Poll / Survey
The administration is exploring a potential referendum and sought services to assess community perspectives, priorities, and support. The packet compares referendum polling options from Hanover and Morris Leatherman Company.
- Morris Leatherman Company: Referendum poll for $26,000
- Hanover: Referendum poll for $25,000
- Administrative recommendation: Engage Morris Leatherman Company for referendum polling/surveying services for $26,000.
The proposed timeline identifies possible launch of a community referendum poll on September 28, 2026, running for two weeks. The board is tentatively scheduled to review poll results at its October 27, 2026 regular meeting.
Staffing Audit
Community members and Board of Education members have requested an audit of district staffing to identify potential efficiencies as the district faces ongoing financial challenges that the packet attributes to inadequate state funding. The contemplated audit would provide an objective, third-party review of staffing levels and organizational structure.
The packet compares several options:
- ERS: Staffing audit for $10,000
- Hanover: Staffing audit for $17,500–$24,500, depending on scope
- EAB: Staffing-related services are available through a three-year membership rather than a listed individual service price.
- Administrative recommendation: Engage ERS for staffing audit services for $10,000.
Strategic Planning
The administration is also exploring outside assistance to develop a long-term strategic plan establishing district priorities and helping align resources with decision-making.
The packet identifies several potential providers and pricing structures:
- ERS: Strategic planning for $32,000
- Hanover: Strategic planning for $15,000–$24,500, depending on scope
- EAB: Strategic-planning services through a three-year membership costing $59,150 in Year 1, $67,650 in Year 2, and $71,000 in Year 3
- Hanover membership option: $60,000 per year for three years
Unlike the referendum polling and staffing audit items, the packet does not recommend a strategic-planning vendor for action at this special meeting. Administration states that a recommendation is expected to be presented at the September 22, 2026 regular school board meeting for discussion and possible action.
Proposed Timeline and Potential Referendum Path
The packet provides a high-level sequence for the district's strategic-planning and potential referendum work. Several steps are explicitly conditional and do not mean the district has decided to pursue a referendum.
- August 13, 2026: Community Conversation pilot session, with additional sessions being scheduled.
- August 19: Special Board Meeting for discussion of referendum polling, strategic-planning and staffing-audit vendors, with possible action on poll and audit vendors.
- September 22: Board discussion and possible action on a strategic-planning vendor.
- September/October: Possible referendum poll, tentatively beginning September 28 and running for two weeks.
- October 27: Proposed board review of community referendum poll results.
- December 8: If the board wants to pursue a referendum, the timeline calls for board action to engage Quarles to draft ballot language.
- January 26, 2027: If a referendum proceeds, the packet says the board must approve ballot language no later than this meeting.
- April 6, 2027: Election Day identified in the proposed timeline.
School Board Workshop
The agenda also includes a School Board workshop led by Cheryl Stinski, Wisconsin Association of School Boards (WASB) consultant. The scheduled workshop topics are:
- Board norms
- Board/administration levels of engagement
- Board member job description
The packet does not describe proposed formal action on these workshop topics.
What to Watch at the Meeting
A central decision point is whether the board will accept administration's recommendations to spend a combined $36,000 on two outside services: $26,000 for Morris Leatherman Company's referendum polling/surveying work and $10,000 for an ERS staffing audit.
Strategic planning remains on a separate track. The board is scheduled to discuss the available services, but administration has not yet selected a recommended strategic-planning provider and expects to return with that recommendation on September 22.
The potential referendum itself is also not presented in the packet as a decision already made. The August 19 agenda focuses on obtaining information and services that could inform later decisions, with subsequent referendum-related steps dependent on whether the board ultimately chooses to proceed.
This packet summary is based on publicly available meeting materials from the Kenosha Unified School District Board of Education.
Civic Translator summarized publicly available meeting materials.
