Dear Barr-Reeve Community Schools Community Members:

As one of the lowest funded school districts per pupil in the state, we face many challenges due to increasing federal and state mandates. The funding from the State and Federal Level just has not been sufficient enough to enable BRCS to continue to meet its mission without the help of a local tax referendum. With the current referendum, we have striven and have been successful in meeting our commitments to the community--offering competitive, Nationally and State Awarded educational opportunities for students as cost-effectively as possible, protecting class sizes and property values.

One tremendous blessing is that there are many more children attending our schools now than ever before. Over the last several years, Barr-Reeve Community Schools has closely monitored enrollment growth and its impact on facilities and student programs. BRCS has made decisions and effectively planned to meet the challenges of being a growing rural school district.

A few factual items we would like to share as we ask our community to vote on this question again in 2020:

-BRCS 2020 tax rate is .89 cents for every $100 of assessed value (down .03 cents from last year)

-All of the recent construction costs are now locked in and part of that new rate and are paid out of our Debt Service Fund.

-Those debt payments paid out of the BRCS Debt Service Fund have no impact on the referendum fund and the programs/expenditures that are taken care of and paid for out of that fund.

-Our recent student growth and student transfers have enabled us to rely less on the referendum fund that we currently have in place and has enabled us to lessen the burden on local taxpayers and keep their tax rates lower.

-The 2020 referendum question and fund will replace our expiring one and now ask for .10 cents less than last time (2013). (dropping the maximum levy from .35 cents to .25 cents)

-BRCS will only levy what they need each year through the budget process and this years levy for the Referendum Fund was .16 cents.

This web-page is intended to provide residents of the school community (Barr and Reeve Townships) with information you need about our referendum and the process we will be utilizing this Spring as we lead up to the June 2, 2020 election. Please use this web-page as a resource, and if you have any questions, please contact me at tmadison@barr.k12.in.us or via phone at (812) 486-3220. I would be happy to set up a meeting with any groups or individuals who may have questions regarding the corporation and the referendum vote this June.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

Dr. Travis G. Madison Superintendent Barr-Reeve Community Schools