Colby Public Schools Superintendent Katina Brenn on the Recent School Board Election

This past Friday, we got a chance to talk to Colby Public Schools superintendent Katina Brenn regarding the school board election in town.

We first discussed the importance of school board elections in smaller towns like Colby. "We run a little bit differently than larger districts or larger towns and people don't understand that," Brenn said. "So having a strong board, people who can communicate, who can advocate for us and make decisions at the vision level or policy level, it's crucial for a town like ours."

One of the main takeaways was the amount of money that's poured into budgets for staff members at schools and school district, as Brenn estimated that 80-85% of the school district's budget is spent on staff members. "We get what what we're given so those kind of budgets and formulas are very important," Brenn said.

She then lauded the town of Colby's ability to get out and vote: "That was wonderful, the fact that a community our size is that involved," Brenn said. "A lot of times a school board and election is not something that brings everybody out but it is essential to us."

Another big deal in this school board election was that there was a primary a few months ago, necessary to whittle things down for the November election. "I'd look at it as a positive thing that we had that many people," Brenn said. "I think we're doing great things."