March, 19, 2026
By ANASTASIA PENCHI
DE SOTO, Wis. — The De Soto Area School District wants more time before it acts on a recommendation to move its elementary students to the De Soto Middle & High School campus.
In February, the 33-member Community Stakeholder Committee, which was comprised of two people from every municipality in the district, recommended the district close its elementary schools in Stoddard and Retreat and relocate those students to De Soto.
The committee was formed last May after voters rejected an operational referendum in Spring 2025 – the third to fail in two years. The district also faces declining enrollment and aging facilities; and has had three superintendents in three years, in addition to school board turnover.
The committee recommended a “phased implementation plan and clear guardrails to protect community identity and educational quality,” but no timeline to accomplish it.
School Board President Holly Nickelatti asked board members how they felt about the recommendation and asked if they were ready to take the “next steps” during the board’s regular March meeting.
Board members discussed the challenge of pursing construction of a new elementary campus in De Soto with a building referendum, while also acknowledging the district needs to ask voters for an operational referendum before that.
“People go straight to the money,” said board member Marc Stevermer.
Board members said the two issues are now “lumped into one,” and said the district needs to make it’s best case for how this offers better education while also keeping taxes low. Board members said residents are starting to ask for a timeline.
“If it’s broken or near broken we have to fix it,” said board member Jeanna Larson.
Nickelatti said the next steps include deciding if the district should pursue the committee’s recommendation as is or if it needs “tweaks,” getting answers to unanswered questions, creating a design plan and putting numbers on paper.
The board ultimately directed its Building, Grounds & Transportation Committee to help develop a timeline based on the future maintenance needs at the two elementary schools; and it’s Finance, Personnel and Negotiations Committee to work on financial planning.
“We are far from being able to put anything out,” Nickelatti added.
Anastasia Penchi is veteran writer who spent 13 years as a newspaper journalist and now works as a freelance writer. You may have seen her work in Coulee Region Women’s magazine, the Great Rivers Road blog and Explore La Crosse. Her passions are helping people in poverty and trying to save traditional journalism. She resides in Genoa and is a board member with Couleecap Inc. She can be reached at callmeloislane@hotmail.com.
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