Education
State superintendent calls out Republicans’ war on schools in fiery speech
In her first annual State of Education address, Wisconsin’s new state schools superintendent Jill Underly did not hold back. “We’re now failing a generation of kids,” Underly declared. “And we’re failing our state by putting Wisconsin’s economic future at risk.” Standing in front of the bust of Fighting Bob La Follette in the Capitol rotunda, […]
Conservatives, anti-maskers target school boards around the state
A conservative citizens’ group took over the annual Kenosha School Board meeting on Tuesday night, pushing through a cut in school board member salaries and a property tax reduction. “With rage still apparently simmering from a recent school board vote to require face masks in schools, a different crowd outnumbered the regulars Tuesday night,” local […]
Republicans invite critical race theory evangelist for hearing on education bills
Months after they were first introduced, Republicans in the Wisconsin Legislature are set to hold a hearing Wednesday on a slate of bills meant to prevent so-called critical race theory from being taught in schools. At the hearing, the activist responsible for injecting the academic theory into the public consciousness this summer is scheduled to […]
After family links child’s death to COVID-19, Fort Atkinson school board approves mask mandate
The Fort Atkinson school board has instituted a mask requirement for the school district after the reported death of a 13-year-old student from COVID-19. During public comments Thursday night, parents in the district pleaded with the board to start requiring masks, the Wisconsin State Journal reported Friday. The board subsequently approved a requirement by a […]
Jill Biden visits Milwaukee school
On Wednesday First Lady Jill Biden traveled to Milwaukee for the first time since Inauguration Day, to visit Marvin E. Pratt Elementary School and talk about keeping students safe as they return to in-person learning. Pratt, a Milwaukee Public School that receives federal Title I funding because of its high number of children in poverty, […]
Citing COVID risk, Democrats on Assembly education committee walk out
As students and teachers begin an uncertain school year, with classrooms open for in-person instruction and the delta variant surging, the Assembly education committee met on Tuesday for a hearing on a bill to improve reading scores and tackle the achievement gap. But just as the hearing got underway, all the Democrats on the committee […]
No masks may mean fines, lawsuits and lost school insurance
The television cameras were rolling as students boarded the yellow buses at Germantown’s Kennedy Middle School without face masks. Nor was a bus driver wearing his mask as he pulled away. Milwaukee WTMJ 4 interviewed Germantown Superintendent Brett Stousland who only said that the district “recommended” masks. Stousland stated to the camera that he was […]
Nass asks Republican leadership to sue UW System over COVID mask mandates
Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) wants to pick a fight with Tommy Thompson. Last month, Nass and his fellow Republicans on the Joint Committee for the Review of Administrative Rules passed a motion attempting to force all UW System COVID-19 policies to first be approved by the committee. Thompson, the interim president of the UW System and […]
UW-Madison reports 90% of campus is fully vaccinated
Less than a week before classes begin, UW-Madison reported that 90% of its campus community is fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The school has reached a high vaccination rate despite UW System leadership shying away from vaccine mandates — even though other, similarly sized Big Ten universities have gone ahead with vaccine requirements. As of Sept. […]
Still avoiding vaccine mandates for UW, Thompson dares Legislature to fight him over masks
UW System Interim President Tommy Thompson warned legislative Republicans against picking a fight with him over COVID-19 mitigation measures as he reiterated his stance against mandating vaccines for students, staff and faculty on UW campuses. The former Republican governor, who made news earlier this week when he dared legislators to sue him and the UW […]
Family files complaint against Ashland Schools alleging discrimination against Native students
An Ashland family that alleged in February the School District of Ashland was enforcing COVID-19 mitigation policies differently against their Native American students than their white counterparts has now filed a complaint with the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) that states the district has systematically discriminated against Native students. Kelly and Eric Maday filed […]
School boards across Wisconsin face contentious meetings and ‘bullying’
Across Wisconsin, school boards have become the battleground for some of the state’s most contentious fights over COVID-19 mitigation policies and the country’s effort to grapple with its history of racism. In Oconomowoc, three school board members resigned earlier this week, citing a “toxic” environment. In Whitefish Bay, parents attending a school board meeting jeered […]