Milwaukee Public Schools moving forward to meet challenges

Gregory Thornton:

When I became superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools in July 2010, I knew the district - like many other urban school districts - faced deep financial challenges. But I had confidence that the Board of School Directors, administration and staff understood the urgency and were committed to make tough decisions to secure the district's financial future for the 79,000 students we serve.

An independent, third-party analysis of MPS finances released recently by the Public Policy Forum found the tough decisions made by the district over the past two years are showing signs of paying off. MPS' fiscal condition has improved significantly, with savings of nearly $400 million. While much of the Public Policy Forum report focused on past years, the real story is the future of MPS and the continued efforts of the district to move forward to address additional fiscal challenges.

Four key factors are the root causes of MPS' financial pressures: rising health care costs; increased legacy costs for retiree benefits; declining enrollment, which results in less revenue; and the high level of dependency on state and federal funding, which can be very volatile and complicates MPS' ability to be in control of its own financial future.

Posted by Jim Zellmer at January 6, 2013 1:37 AM
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