With property taxes in Eau Claire going up once again, it seems many in the community are disgruntled with the Eau Claire School District.

But Superintendent Dr. Ron Heilmann wants to change that, by reaching out to community members.

Ron Heilmann says between 70 and 80 percent of the population does not currently have a student in one of Eau Claire's schools, and he says connecting with them can be quite a challenge. So when he was first approached about a new way to communicate with the public -- he jumped at the idea.

Heilmann says, "Maybe we should take the bull by the horns so to speak and actually produce our own programs."

And that's exactly what Jeff Thompson and wife Terri Piper Thompson are doing. Jeff says, "I think a lot of times people forget that for the most part, the school district is for the kids. And these stories show some of the ways the district is doing that."

From highlighting the SAGE program to looking into Longfellow's after school program and how they are helping underprivileged kids, the Thompson's are trying to show a different side of Eau Claire Schools.

Terri says, "Yes, budgets are very tight in our schools and I think that's been publicized a lot.
But, we want to let people know that the quality of education in Eau Claire is very strong."

Heilmann says reaching out when the district isn't just asking for money is an important step in gaining trust and respect. He explains, "Because really probably the only time they think about public schools is either when it's featured on a news program or when they get their tax bill, and we're trying to simply reach out and let them know what we do on a day in and day out basis."

The Thompsons's are working on a zero dollar budget, but they say in the future they would like to expand their show and possibly even get interns to help them out.

The community TV show is currently working on it's second half-hour segment -- the current show is airing on community television and can be seen on the district's main web site.