An appeal for an extra-voted millage was made to fund a technology upgrade at Suttons Bay School.

The need was discussed Monday night at the workshop meeting of the Suttons Bay Board of Education. Technology committee member Kim Eike explained the situation to the board and audience members attending the meeting.

“With our current funding situation, we’ve been (able) to devote very little money to technology,” Eike said. “The state Legislature has proved gutless in opening up the sinking fund language to allow computer purchases … our technology is outdated and we have a need for a good infusion of dollars.”

Eike said there are computers in use at the school that the business world would have discarded long ago. He estimated that only 30 to 50 percent of district classrooms have panels that display information on a screen.

“That should be much closer to 100 percent,” he said. “When I was in school, you wouldn’t think of having a classroom without a blackboard. These panels are today’s blackboards.”

Board trustees verbally supported seeking the extra-voted millage to compete with neighboring school districts.

“No one can match what we’re doing with the virtual classroom and we’re doing it with Stone Age equipment,” Superintendent Mike Murray said.

Trustee Roger Merriman compared the technology made available to district students to giving a 30-year-old chemistry book to students. The estimated cost of bringing the school’s technology up to date is $1.6 million. One mill is the equivalent of about $400,000.

Suttons Bay voters approved a 5-year quarter-mill sinking fund levy last fall that expires in 2014. However, state law limits the use of the funds to wiring or materials for installing technology, and does not include equipment or software.

Neither a specific millage levy nor a length of term was discussed Monday. However, Eike said no millage would be longer than the useful life of the technology.

Board members also briefly discussed at what point they could approach the public with a request. Murray told them that there are two election dates open to the district — May and November.

“The deadline to declare a request for the May election is Feb. 23, which is too soon for us,” he said. “The next date is November.”

One advantage to a November proposal is that as part of the general election, there would be no additional cost to the district as there would be for a special election. On the other hand, the school proposal would be at the end of an extensive November election ballot that could also prove problematic.

No action was taken on the issue, which is expected to be discussed further at upcoming meetings of the school board.