THREE FORKS — As operational costs rise and mill levies fail, the Three Forks School District is having to do more with less.

"When we think of money for a levy, how it impacts—it does impact children because a child’s experience, their education, is only going to be as good as the teacher that’s in that classroom," says Superintendent Rhonda Utlaut.

WATCH: Failed Mill Levies Leave Three Forks Schools Grappling with Financial Strain

On May 6^th, 2025, Three Forks voters turned down three mill levies—two of which would have increased salaries and operational funding for the elementary and high school.

"Most districts across the state have had to deal with high inflation—what compounds, what happened at Three Forks, is we did have a bond pass, so we have an additional 30,000 square feet—that means adding utilities, custodial fees, all those operational costs," Utlaut says.

But despite rising costs, a mill levy hasn’t passed in Three Forks since 2017. And the principal of the elementary school, Steve Fanning, says living here hasn’t gotten any cheaper.

"When you also have staff members that can’t afford to live in that community for starters because it’s so expensive, and then they don’t get wages to keep up with the cost of living, it is really difficult and unfortunately over the years we have lost some very quality staff members because of that," says Fanning.

Working with a funding deficit, the school can currently only offer foreign language courses online, and is unable to further programming, or offer much-needed raises.

District Clerk, Alisa Meeks, says, "We care about the kids and giving them the best opportunities we can and the best teachers we possibly can. And so we need to provide our teachers with what they need to have a good quality of life."

On May 8th, House Bill 252, also known as the Stars Act, was signed by Governor Gianforte. It will increase teacher wages statewide, providing Three Forks with $251,000.

"And it is going to provide a modest amount for the majority of staff, but it’s going to do a substantial increase for our new teachers, which we’re very thankful for," says Utlaut.

According to the National Education Association (NAE), Montana currently has the lowest starting wages for teachers in the country, making the act an important win for state education.

Fanning hopes to see more local support in the future.

"Can we do a better job as a district to promote that and get the word out? Possibly. And that’s where I will encourage folks—if they want to get involved, if they want to help with the process, if they see a way we can improve, please reach out and share that with us. It’s a team effort," says Fanning.

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