While Albert Lea Area Schools’ levy went up, taxes for residential homeowners are still expected to drop as the district’s total tax capacity — the amount that property is valued at within the district’s boundaries — has increased.

The total levy will increase by $328,800 to hit over $8.9 million said Jennifer Walsh, executive director of finance and operations for Albert Lea Area Schools to the school board Monday. However, she estimated property taxes for those with a $100,000 home would go down by $4 a year.

Walsh said the tax base is increasing through growth and/or properties selling at a higher rate than previously valued.

Revenue pulled into the general fund will increase by $234,724, factoring in a change in which local optional revenue, through which all districts can levy up to $724 per pupil after a $300 board-approved levy was lumped under the local optional title, was moved into the general fund; additions or subtractions by the state to square the district up on its estimates from the previous year’s budget compared to the actual costs; and increases in other revenue areas outlined by the state.

The debt services portion of the levy increased by $104,170, and the Community Education budget saw a slight increase of just under $1,700. The OPEB debt services portion of the levy, based on payments for the principal and interest of the bond, decreased by $11,772, according to Walsh.

The proposed 2019 levy, which will be paid by taxpayers in 2020, was approved unanimously at the maximum amount allowed by the state. The final levy will come to the board in December.

But while taxes are expected to go down, Halverson Elementary School Principal Tonya Franks said something else is on the rise: academic accountability test scores.

Overall science proficiency for fifth grade students — the only grade reported in Minnesota Department of Education data — increased dramatically from 2018 to 2019, with 60.3% of Halverson Elementary School students deemed proficient. This is a 42.1% jump from 2018, when just 18.2% of students were deemed proficient in science. Halverson bested both the state average (54.9% proficient) and the district average (54.1%) in science.

Overall math proficiency for third through fifth grade students also increased from 2018 by almost 10% to 46.5% of students, numbers from the Minnesota Department of Education show. That percentage is still 9% lower than the state’s 55.5% average, but beats the district’s overall 45% average. The percent of third to fifth grade students proficient in reading also jumped up 6.3% to 40.9%.

“You and your staff have done a fantastic job,” school board chairman Ken Petersen said to Franks Monday. “That was great improvement.”

English language learners also showed more progress toward their targets on average than the state and the district averages, according to data provided under MDE’s North Star reporting system. English learners at Halverson, on average, made it 68.3% of the way to their targets. However, last year’s learners averaged 77.5% of the way to their targets at Halverson.

Franks said she is excited about the overall progress the students made.

“We’re pleased with the steps we’re making and I’m very proud of the staff for digging in and working on the right work,” she said.

But Sibley Elementary School Principal Diane Schultz’s data showed “room to grow” for her students.

The percent of third through fifth grade students deemed proficient in math dropped 3% to 56.7% from 2018, MDE data shows, and dropped 6% in reading to 50% of students deemed proficient. The percent of fifth grade students proficient at science dropped to 49.3%, down from 54.1%

Scores for fifth graders specifically took a hit this year, Schultz said. In fifth grade, 59.7% of students showed medium to high growth in reading in 2019, an almost 10% drop from the previous year.

Schultz said the school is continuing work with phonics instruction, has set aside 60 minutes of WIN — what I need — reading time for kindergarten, first and second graders and 35 minutes for third, fourth and fifth graders to help with skills mastery and monitoring progress data more frequently to adjust instruction more quickly. Schultz will also meet with teacher teams once a week, she said.

“The needs of our students at Sibley have changed,” she said.

In other action:

• The school board approved a resolution comprising the second part of an application to the Minnesota State High School League that could help reduce activity fees for students.

• Aaron Farris, a student at Albert Lea High School, was sworn in as the student school board member.

• “Music superstars” from around the community were recognized for their work supporting music in the schools and community. The district was recognized as one of 2019’s Best Communities for Music Education by the National Association of Music Merchants.

• Superintendent Mike Funk said the fieldhouse at Hammer Complex should be done late fall or early winter, as work is picking up again after construction focused on preparing the stadium and press box for fall games. Practice fields should be ready next summer, he said. The day care facility at Brookside Education Center has taken longer than expected, he said, and will take four more weeks for construction to finish, Funk said. Permitting will take another four weeks after that, he said.