I’m a taxpayer and registered voter in the Elizabeth C-1 School District. My daughter is enrolled in the district, and I regularly volunteer at her school. I’ve seen firsthand what the district’s teaching staff can do with limited classroom resources — they truly work miracles.

Annual funding per student in the Elizabeth C-1 School District is $6,732. This is $1,207 less than the Colorado average and ranks 167th out of 176 public school districts statewide. Because of limited funding our teachers are paid substantially less than their peers in neighboring districts.

The net result is we’ve been losing 30-40 teachers each of the past several years to districts that pay better.

The Elizabeth C-1 School District ranks as a “high performing” district under Colorado school accountability guidelines. However, we cannot expect to maintain high academic standards if we are unable to attract and retain the best possible teachers for our children.

Proposition 3A is a proposed mill levy override that will generate approximately $1.2 million in additional annual revenues for the Elizabeth C-1 School District. The vast majority of these funds — 86 — will be dedicated to teacher and support staff compensation.

The remaining 14 percent will be used for curriculum enhancements and technology improvements. The cost to homeowners in the district will be $4.67 per month for every $100K in actual property value. For the average $340K home in the community, this equates to about $200 per year.

I believe we owe this investment to our children and our community, and I encourage all concerned voters to support Proposition 3A.

Gene Rittenhouse

Elizabeth