MATTAWA - Patrons of the Wahluke School District will be asked to vote for a maintenance and operation levy on Nov. 3.

According to Superintendent Aaron Chavez, this levy will replace a levy which is expiring. The taxing rate for the new levy will be $2.91.

A property valued at $100,000 will be taxed $291 per year to support programs not covered by state basic education funding.

Chavez announced there will be a levy meeting tonight, Tuesday, Oct. 1, at 3:30 p.m.

In other education-related news, Chavez announced the district will pilot Smarter Balance this year at the elementary and junior high schools. Smarter Balance is the new name for Measure of Student Progress, or MSP, which expires this year.

Starting next year, Smarter Balance will be an annual assessment to measure student learning based on the nation-wide Common Core Standards.

"In an effort to give our students and staff the extra practice needed for the new online assessment, we have opted to pilot Smarter Balance, giving our students an extra year to practice using a computer-based test before it will be critical," Chavez said.