Chinook school election sees three candidates, mill levies

Three candidates are running for two seats on the Chinook school board in the Tuesday, May 2, election.

The top three vote-getters in the election will be on the board.

Newcomer Justin Simenson is looking to unseat one of two long-time incumbents Pauly Miller and Scott Gunderson.

Pauly Miller

After 18 years on the Chinook board, Miller hopes voters elect her to a seventh term.

Miller, who has been board chair for the last four years, said she is running again because she enjoys working with the school district.

“I just like to do my part to ensure our kids get a good education,” she said.

Miller said the board is preparing the district’s budget as the district faces declining enrollment and a reduced tax base.

A graduate of Chinook High School, Miller is married to Blaine County Justice of the Peace Perry Miller with whom she has eight grown children She has lived in North Dakota, Glendive and Havre.

For 20 years, Miller owned and operated Bear Paw Title Insurance Company. In January she sold the company, which is now Treasure State Insurance. She also owns and operates Montana Escrow.

Scott Gunderson

Gunderson is vying for a sixth term on the Chinook school board.

Gunderson, who was first elected to the board in 2001, said he wants to ensure the children and the district’s schools have a bright future.

“The biggest issue is the budget we are going through right now,” Gunderson said.

Such issues as negotiations about teacher contracts and other items will hinge on whether voters opt to continue two mill levies and how much funding the district will get from the state, he said.

North-central Montana has not always been home to Gunderson. He was raised in Anchorage, Alaska, where he graduated from Service High School. Gunderson completed a carpentry apprenticeship within a carpenter’s union.

He lived in Oregon for 15 years where he met his wife Jacque. They have four children, three are in college while a fourth is a sophomore at Chinook High.

Justin Simenson

Simenson said he wants to be a part of the public education system and help the community out. He also wants to make sure education in the district keeps going in a positive direction.

A former assistant chief of police in Chinook, Simenson now works for CHS Big Sky in feed sales. He grew up in Big Sandy, where he went to school, though he transferred to Kremlin-Gildford High School, where he graduated.

Simenson is a graduate of the Montana Law Enforcement Academy in Helena and has an Associate of Science from Dawson Community College.

He and his wife, Tomi, have two sons.   

In the Chinook election, candidates will share the ballot with requests for the continuation of two general fund mill levies: one for the elementary and the other for the high school.

Chinook Superintendent Darin Hannum said the district is asking voters for a continuation of a mill levy that will bring in $2,389.48 for the elementary school.

The money generated will go to the school district’s general fund to be used to maintain staffing, curriculum and basic operations.  

“Basically, what we are trying to do is keep everything the same as far as our staffing and general fund,” Hannum said.

The levy increase will represent an additional .72 a year in property taxes for a house assessed at $100,000 of market value and  $1.43 for a $200,000 home.

At the high school, declining enrollment is causing the district to ask for more in a general fund mill levy — $57,535.76.   

Hannum said in the past three years the three-year average enrollment has dropped from 135 to 120.

If approved, the mill levy will cost the owner of a $100,000 house an additional $10.27 and $20.55 for a $200,000 house.