12/17/2024
For as long as I can remember, I have been a steadfast supporter of public education. I believe schools are the beating heart of a community—a place where every child, no matter their background, has the same opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed. I have fought for public funding, celebrated teachers, and defended districts when times were tough.
But last night, my heart broke.
The Tomah School Board voted 5-2 to spend $2 million on land, ignoring the crumbling schools, struggling kids, and real crises facing us today. This vote isn’t just a mistake—it’s a betrayal of everything public education is supposed to stand for.
Our Most Vulnerable Kids Are Learning in Hallways
We talk about equity, about leaving no child behind, but where is that equity when Title I students—our most vulnerable learners—are forced to learn in hallways?
• Hallways are loud.
• Hallways are undignified.
• Hallways are not classrooms.
These are kids who already face barriers. They need quiet, structure, and support. Instead, they’re treated as an afterthought. How can we say we care about social justice or equal opportunity when we let kids sit on folding chairs next to hats, coats, and mittens?
Meanwhile, administrators sit in offices at the District Office. Why aren’t they stepping up to share space? Adults can handle distractions—children cannot. If kids are asked to learn in hallways, leadership should work there too.
Deferred Repairs: A Ticking Time Bomb
Our schools are crumbling around us. Roofs leak, HVAC systems fail, and classrooms deteriorate. Instead of addressing these urgent safety issues, the district kicks repairs down the road, year after year, hoping taxpayers will feel forced to bail them out with a referendum.
And make no mistake: the district needs a referendum in April 2025 or the elections in 2026 to fix its deficits and keep programs afloat. Their entire strategy appears to depend on creating a crisis so dire that we have no choice but to pay up.
Misplaced Priorities—Where Is the Leadership?
Let’s be clear: this district had $2 million to spend. That money could have:
• Given kids real classrooms instead of hallways.
• Fixed leaking roofs and broken systems.
• Funded programs that support kids who are falling through the cracks.
Instead, they spent it on “empty” land.
Land doesn’t keep a child warm in the winter.
Land doesn’t fix the leaks dripping onto a teacher’s desk.
Land doesn’t give a struggling child a quiet place to learn.
Tomah Is Failing Its Mission
I have always believed that public education is our great equalizer—the one place where a child’s zip code or income doesn’t define their future. But when leadership makes decisions like this, they are abandoning that mission.
What message are we sending to families in poverty? To families of color? To every teacher fighting to do more with less?
• That our kids don’t matter?
• That their learning conditions are “good enough”?
This isn’t how a school district lifts up all students. This isn’t leadership.
Mauston Should Be Our Warning
We don’t need to look far for a cautionary tale. Mauston, WI, ignored its problems until it was too late. Poor financial decisions, deferred repairs, and misplaced priorities sent their district into financial ruin. Programs were cut. Staff were let go. Students paid the price. They are now talking dissolution.
Tomah is on the same path, and unless we demand better, our kids will suffer the same fate.
Enough Is Enough
This isn’t about budgets or buildings—it’s about values. Public schools are supposed to be a place where we care for every child. Where we fight for equity, opportunity, and safety.
But until there is an overhaul of leadership—from administrators to the Board of Education—I can’t support another referendum. Not because I don’t believe in public education, but because I do.
A Call to Action
To teachers: You are heroes, but you deserve better.
To parents & caretakers: Your children deserve classrooms—not hallways.
To taxpayers: Demand accountability before leadership asks for more of your money.
To leadership: It’s time to stop saving for dreams and start fixing today’s problems.
$2 million could have lifted up every child in our schools. Instead, it was wasted.
I still believe in public education. I still believe in equity and opportunity for all kids. But until this district remembers its mission, I cannot trust this leadership to put students first.
Our kids deserve better. Our teachers deserve better. Tomah deserves better. Enough is enough.
-Heidi Hammes
