Kaylah Huynh:

State Superintendent Jill Underly wants to put the responsibility of funding schools back on the state, she recently told the Cap Times in an interview.

Underly, who leads the state Department of Public Instruction, is proposing over $4 billion in spending toward schools for the 2025-2027 state budget.

The plans would reimburse 90% of schools’ special education costs, tie taxation limits to inflation, and prioritize spending on mental health, nutrition and teacher retention.

Underly also aims to limit school-related property tax hikes to an average of 1.5% over the next two years by increasing the amount of money school districts are allowed to spend per student. The higher limit would cost the state about $1.2 billion.

The proposal comes after over a quarter of public school districts asked voters in November referendums to raise property taxes to support schools. In Madison, voters approved a pair of school referendums totaling $607 million for operating costs and facilities improvements, the costliest ask among the 121 districts that went to referendum. 

*** No mention of the DPI’s ongoing rigor reduction efforts…. more.

The data clearly indicate that being able to read is not a requirement for graduation at (Madison) East, especially if you are black or Hispanic”

My Question to Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers on Teacher Mulligans and our Disastrous Reading Results

2017: West High Reading Interventionist Teacher’s Remarks to the School Board on Madison’s Disastrous Reading Results 

Madison’s taxpayer supported K-12 school district, despite spending far more than most, has long tolerated disastrous reading results.

“An emphasis on adult employment”

Wisconsin Public Policy Forum Madison School District Report[PDF]

WEAC: $1.57 million for Four Wisconsin Senators

Friday Afternoon Veto: Governor Evers Rejects AB446/SB454; an effort to address our long term, disastrous reading results

Booked, but can’t read (Madison): functional literacy, National citizenship and the new face of Dred Scott in the age of mass incarceration.

When A Stands for Average: Students at the UW-Madison School of Education Receive Sky-High Grades. How Smart is That?