How We Got Here

Future Needs Advisory Committee
The Future Needs Advisory Committee was created in 2019 and included parents, students, community members, school staff, and administrators. All meetings were open for the public to attend and observe. 

In the spring of 2020, the District’s Leadership Team and Board of Education followed up on the work of the Future Needs Advisory Committee by further planning for a potential referendum. However, when the pandemic struck in March of 2020, the Board and Leadership Team put all plans for a potential referendum on hold.

At the Board of Education meeting on November 22, 2021 board members supported the timeline for planning to resume for a potential referendum in November of 2022.  


Focus Group Meetings

Meetings were held in December 2021 through January 2022 to gather input from staff, parents, and community members on a potential referendum. All meetings were open for the public to attend and observe. 

Outcome of Focus Groups
The input gathered during these five meetings was overwhelmingly positive in support of the district going to referendum to fund:

  • facility improvements in all schools
  • construction of a new elementary school in the fast growing northeast portion of our distinct
  • moving 6th grade students from the elementary school level to the middle school level
  • adding staffing to allow for the reduction of class sizes from an average of 25 to an average of 20 in grades Kindergarten through second
  • consolidating and/or moving schools to improve the quality of education for students and to function more efficiently 
Find agendas, presentations, and minutes from all meetings below:

Community Survey

In early April 2022, all 44,000 households in the Appleton Area School District were mailed a survey and an online version was emailed to AASD families and staff from School Perceptions, an independent educational research firm. 

The purpose of the survey was to gather feedback from the community on the following eight questions:
  1. Would you support a capital referendum to build a new elementary school as described in this survey?
  2. Would you support a capital referendum to update the elementary schools as described in this survey?
  3. Would you support a capital referendum to update the middle school as described in this survey?
  4. Would you support a capital referendum to update the high schools as described in this survey?
  5. Would you support an operational referendum to expand STEM instruction?
  6. Would you support an operational referendum to provide smaller class sizes at the kindergarten through the 2nd  grade level? 
  7. Would you support an operational referendum to operate new spaces and/or buildings?
  8. Would you support both capital and operational referendum questions to fund the recommended plan as described in this survey?
Appleton School District Community Survey Report - Spring 2022

Summer 2022

At the August 8, 2022 Board meeting, resolutions were passed to include two referendum questions on the November 8th election ballot.

Fall 2022 Referendum Timeline

  • March 7: Board of Education approved community survey
  • Early April: Survey was emailed to AASD staff and families, and mailed to residents
  • April 25: Survey deadline – School Perceptions created reports
  • May/early June: Survey results were presented to the Board of Education
  • June/July: Core team finalized referendum questions
  • August 8: Board of Education approved resolution
  • September/October: Core team communicates referendum questions to community
  • November 8: Referendum will be voted on by the community