CANYON COUNTY, Idaho — Middleton voters will decide on a school levy Tuesday that would fund $2.47 million per year for two years to support teacher salaries and enhanced safety measures, including adding two more School Resource Officers to district schools.
Nearly half of the levy funding would directly support staff salaries, including school resource officers who provide law enforcement capabilities on campus.
"We don't want to lose a school resource officer. We need them simply because of the law enforcement capabilities they have within that school," said Scott Brock, who runs Applied Concepts Security and Investigations.
The district currently has two School Resource Officers and additional armed security at elementary schools. If the levy passes, the district would add two armed security officers to Middleton Middle and High School.
"We do this because our heart is involved in it. We care about these kids. Each and every one of my men are willing to give their life for any children or any staff in this school, and I think losing that would be a detriment to the community," Brock said.
WATCH TO SEE: WHY DISTRICT LEADERS SAY THIS LEVY IS CRITICAL
Middleton Schools Superintendent Marc Gee said the levy aims to ensure not only student safety but also supports classroom staffing, manageable class sizes, and funding for essential programs and extracurricular activities.
Without the levy, the district would face significant staffing cuts.
"What would happen is we would hire seven less teachers next year," Gee said.
"It would have a tremendous negative effect on our district just because we have to now put those students in other places, and that adds to the cost, that adds to the stress that our teachers have, that adds to the attention that individual students are going to get," Gee said.
If passed, the levy would cost homeowners about $58 per $100,000 of assessed home value.
Brock, whose children no longer attend district schools, said he still supports the measure for community safety.
"I do not have children in this school district anymore. They're all grown, but it's still my community and I like it here. So in order to do that, I want to keep them safe. I think the best way to do this is to put us on campus," Brock said.
Early voting is open through Friday, with polls open on election day from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
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