Education
The schools our students deserve
As directors of the Milwaukee Public School Board, we strongly believe in giving every student, no matter what they look like or where they come from, the public schools they deserve. The Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) last attempted a referendum in 1993. Since then, 410 of Wisconsin’s 421 school districts – 97% – have passed […]
UW-Eau Claire sanctions students in racist incident
Disciplinary sanctions have been levied against students involved in racist Snapchat postings at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire last month, the university announced Friday, but officials withheld details citing federal student privacy laws and the advice of the UW system’s general counsel’s office. “In the spirit of transparency, I asked the general counsel to determine […]
Listen to the children
Policymakers, especially those holding elected office, often have a bad habit of failing to listen to those most impacted by a problem. That failure, of course, usually ends up with ineffective legislation, or no legislation at all, to address whatever the problem may be. Wisconsin high school students are reeling right now, as two students […]
School officials talk about safety in wake of shootings
On Monday morning at Waukesha South High School, a police officer shot a 17-year-old student who pulled out a gun and pointed it at an officer. It was just the beginning of a week of gun scares and lockdowns at eight different Wisconsin high schools. On Tuesday, a student was shot after stabbing a school […]
Police investigating multiple possible school threats
The confrontation between police officers and a high school student in Waukesha was followed by a rash of other incidents and lockdowns at Wisconsin schools this week. An Oshkosh West High School student and officer were injured after the student stabbed the police officer. Separately, Sparta-area schools were closed as a precautionary measure due to […]
Dems battle Education Secretary Betsy DeVos over student loan forgiveness
WASHINGTON — A long-simmering feud between U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos and congressional Democrats over student loan forgiveness is heating up as hundreds of thousands of borrowers continue to wait for help on loans they claim were fraudulent. DeVos narrowly avoided a congressional subpoena earlier this month after a lengthy fight against the U.S. House […]
Racist social media incident investigation is complete
An investigation into a series of racist Snapchat social media messages circulated among members of the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire football team has concluded, but it will be next week before sanctions for those involved in the incident can be finalized, the university’s chancellor said Wednesday. Chancellor James C. Schmidt told the Wisconsin Examiner in […]
Racist messages prompt outcry, investigation at UW-Eau Claire
This article includes reporting by staff of the UW-Eau Claire student newspaper The Spectator, including Managing Editor Rebecca Mennecke, Lea Kopke, and Ta’Leah Van Sistine. A series of racist social media messages, accompanied by images of a Ku Klux Klan cross-burning, has sparked a week of discussion and protest at the University of Wisconsin-Eau […]
Elizabeth Warren’s plan would help Milwaukee public schools
Recently, U.S. Senator and Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren rolled out an impressive plan to ensure every child in this country can get a great education at a public school. As newly elected members of the Milwaukee School Board of Directors we are charged with advocating for our students and community. We feel strongly that […]
As Milwaukee enters the school referendum race, it should look to St. Paul
The Milwaukee public school district is at the starting blocks, ready to run the referendum race in April 2020. Crossing the finish line with a successful school referendum is not a given, but in the past few years, Wisconsin’s school districts have scored an impressive string of victories persuading their local taxpayers to fund both […]
As DPI releases school report cards, public school advocates give legislators report cards of their own
Today, as the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction issued its annual school and school-district report cards, a public-school advocacy group released its own ratings — grading state legislators. The report cards, created by the Wisconsin Public Education Network (WPEN), assess lawmakers in each of five categories based on their most recent budget votes. The categories […]
Rightwing groups sue state over test score report
The rightwing Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL) filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI), claiming the agency violated state law by “selectively” releasing data on test scores from charter and private voucher schools. WILL is representing School Choice Wisconsin (SCW), WILL Research Director Will Flanders, and Matt […]