Education
Milwaukee candidates and allies react to a difficult election
When results from the April 7 election were finally announced a week late, many voters were still aghast that the election happened at all. Candidates and legislators now have the opportunity to look back at what they’ve learned from campaigning during a pandemic — what worked, what didn’t, and what effect outside groups might have […]
State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski’s ‘outside the box’ grant for public schools
Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction will receive a special grant of $5.25 million from the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands’ Common School Fund, chaired by State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski, to cover technology needed for remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic. “The Department of Public Instruction is grateful to the State Treasurer’s office and the […]
Why is the Milwaukee county executive race so important to Betsy DeVos?
Betsy DeVos, President Trump’s Secretary of Education, has long funded politicians who support voucher and charter-school schemes through her group, the American Federation for Children. The same American Federation for Children has funded school privatization efforts all over the country. Betsy DeVos is partly responsible for one of the biggest school reform disasters in the […]
Wisconsin’s student reporters cover a global story for campus communities
College students around Wisconsin have scattered across the country, heading home as their campuses shut down amid the COVID-19 pandemic. They’re adjusting to the new reality of online classes, they’re re-entering life at home with parents and seniors are dealing with the emotional fallout of having their college lives abruptly cut short as they enter […]
Wisconsin schools scramble to go online
On Monday morning, 28 students received lunch and breakfast to go along with a packet of learning material at Milwaukee’s Bay View High School. There were some rough spots along the way; materials for grade nine came in late, materials for grades 10-12 were missing. But parents and students need to come daily to receive […]
Sen. Luther Olsen challenges school-choice advocates over open enrollment
Should students across the state of Wisconsin be allowed to spend part of their day outside their regular school, taking classes at public schools in other districts or at private and charter schools? That was the contentious subject of debate at Wednesday’s Senate Education Committee hearing. Senate Bill 789, introduced by Sen. Alberta Darling (R-River […]
U.S. Senate votes to ax DeVos student loan policy
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Senate voted on Wednesday to overturn a controversial regulation from Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that her critics say hurts defrauded student loan borrowers. Senate Democrats forced the vote under the Congressional Review Act, a law that allows Congress to overturn federal rules within 60 days after they’re finalized. The U.S. House […]
Wisconsin schools are ill-prepared for coronavirus
My nine-year-old granddaughter became visibly upset watching TV, as images of people in surgical masks walking the streets in panic over the coronavirus crossed the screen. She wanted to know if she or her family was in danger. With television and social media, our children know about the global virus pandemic. What should we be […]
Gov. Evers should insist the Legislature reconsider his win-win proposal
An unexpected budget surplus gives Wisconsin a golden opportunity to make investments in our children and our schools that will pay big dividends down the road. But some legislators are refusing to use a portion of the surplus to provide Wisconsin schools with the resources they need to educate today’s children and tomorrow’s workers — […]
Divided budget committee passes Republican tax cut
On a party-line vote, the Wisconsin Legislature’s Joint Finance committee on Monday advanced a $250 million tax cut proposal that Republicans introduced Friday after learning in January that state revenue projections were $452 million ahead of budget. The committee unanimously recommended two other tax-cutting measures that were part of a Republican-authored package introduced Feb. 10 […]
What happened to Gov. Evers’ proposal on schools?
School funding did not come up in the Assembly yesterday, despite Gov. Tony Evers’ call for a special session to discuss his proposal to spend part of the state budget surplus on reducing property taxes and increasing the state’s share of education funding. Democrats started the day praising the governor’s call to restore the state’s […]
Advocates plead with legislators to take up school funding in governor’s special session
Gov. Tony Evers has called on the Legislature to meet in special session on Tuesday at 1 p.m. to take up his plan to spend part of the potential budget surplus to reduce local property taxes and increase state funding for public schools. Evers wants legislators to consider using $252 million of a projected $451.9 […]