April 28, 2026
By ANASTASIA PENCHI
DE SOTO, Wis. – The De Soto School Board held its re-organizational meeting April 27, and will continue its focus on the future needs of the district.
All three board members with expired terms were re-elected April 7: Holly Nickelatti from the town of Freeman; Nicole Johnson from the town of Wheatland and Teresa Christianson from the town of Genoa. All three ran unopposed.
All four school board officers were also re-elected unanimously during the meeting: Nickelatti as president; Sue Fladhammer as vice president; Christianson as clerk; and Marc Stevermer as treasurer.
Interim Superintendent Craig Gerlach said consistency in the district’s leadership is especially important right now as the school board considers an operational referendum. It’s three previous referendums failed.
The district faces declining enrollment and aging facilities; and has had three superintendents in three years, in addition to previous school board turnover.
And in February, the district’s 33-member Community Stakeholder Committee recommended closing its elementary schools in Stoddard and Retreat and relocating those students to De Soto. No action has been taken on the recommendation.
“We’re just at a point in time where consistency matters,” Gerlach said. “That’s a good thing.”
The board set up a two-hour workshop on May 11 to discuss the committee’s recommendation and develop a plan forward. Nickelatti asked the board to wait on making committee assignments until that time.
“There’s a lot of different ways we can shape an operational referendum,” Nickelatti said. The school board will continue to meet at 7 p.m. on the third Monday of the month in the De Soto School library (exceptions were made for April and October).
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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