Superintendent Zach Pethan
After three tries and years’ worth of work, the Sheboygan Falls School District has finally passed its referendum.
This process began back in 2024, when the School Board looked to pass a near $100 million referendum in November followed by another failed shot at passing a less significant $70 million referendum in spring of 2025.
Superintendent Zach Pethan spoke to SeehaferNews.com to share what his initial thought was when he found out it had passed last week.
“Where my mind went right away is that all of these kids are going to benefit from this investment by the community,” he explained. “I also thought about all the people that went into it. You know, all of our district office staff, our administrators, our teachers.”
He also explained how he and his colleagues had to reassess after not one but two failed attempts to get a referendum passed.
“After the first two didn’t pass, I think our school board really needed to look at what are the absolute essentials of the needs that we have in the school district. How do we expand, but also not just Band-Aid, the issues that we have,” he told SeehaferNews.com.
Superintendent Pethan then laid out just one of the many ways the district was able to take that idea from a concept to a reality at the high school.
Superintendent Pethan noted, “For example, instead of adding on a brand new space for our CTE area at the high school, you know, what does that look like to make sure that we can renovate from within, saving some money, but also achieving our goals at the same time.”
To close, Pethan thanked those who live within the district, including those who voted no on the referendum, noting how humbling this experience has been.
“It’s definitely not something that I take lightly,” Pethan said with gratitude. “I’m honestly humbled and honored and take this with a lot of pride. I take this as a huge responsibility. I want to make an impact on this district, and I think this is a great opportunity. So, I would just say thank you. Even the people that voted no, it’s on us to prove that this was a wise investment and make you proud of the school district.”
While the most challenging part of the process was getting the referendum passed, Pethan also noted that the hard work has really just begun to make widespread and needed updates at the elementary, middle, and high schools in Sheboygan Falls.
As of now, work is expected to begin next spring or summer.
