Hear from people who attended Thursday's meeting in the video below: Appleton schools face $13M deficit: Referendum or cuts ahead

NBC 26 attended a listening session at the district's Welcome Center to hear how residents believe the deficit should be handled. The district says the funding shortfall comes from high inflation and reduced state and federal funding, making it difficult to pay for expenses like employee healthcare.

"Like every employer, we can't afford 10 to 15% increases," said Greg Hartjes, Appleton Area Schools superintendent. "When our revenue goes up by two to three percent in a year, we just really struggle."

The district has three main options: cutting staff, closing schools, or asking taxpayers to approve additional funding through a referendum.

"Are there cuts t

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