A Parental Choice Victory in Milwaukee

On March 27, at a meeting of the School Choice Wisconsin (SCW) and Alliance for Choices in Education (ACE) boards, as well as invited members of the broader choice coalition, we agreed to pursue the single goal of �minimizing impact of provisions in budget bill�. On Monday, June 29, the Governor signed into law a budget that excludes the most damaging provisions to the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (program) that were a part of the original budget bill.

Over the course of several meetings since March 27, school leaders spoke out loudly and consistently that the following provisions in the original budget bill would severely damage the program: (1) complying with chapter 19 requirements for open records and open meetings, which included providing information to �any person�, (2) administering the WKCE, and (3) obtaining accreditation prior to opening new schools or expanding grade levels.

Now, three months later, we are pleased to inform you that we successfully minimized the impact of provisions in the budget bill, and in the process, built valuable support from elected representatives from the city of Milwaukee who are invested in the long-term sustainability of the program. By following the agreed upon strategy discussed during the March 27 meeting, we worked closely with legislators on the Joint Finance Committee (JFC) to remove and/or amend provisions of the budget bill, with a laser focus on the three provisions cited above. Those same legislators who advanced our goal at JFC continued to work tirelessly throughout the entire budget approval process. Together, we worked to ensure that our schools would not suffer the weight of damaging provisions originally proposed in the budget bill. Our legislative allies also led the charge to thwart onerous provisions including licensure and certification, a bilingual-bicultural education program, and rolling back the cap. These provisions would have caused severe damage and the possible closure of some good schools.

Our work has not ceased; we must work with DPI to implement the new regulations and to clarify on-going concerns. For example, we already are engaged in conversations with DPI to clarify implications of the 3rd grade reading test provision. We remain extremely concerned about current and long-term funding challenges. Given the economic times, this remained the area where we were unable to gain traction. We know well the gravity of the new 2.5% cut and what it means to each school, but most importantly, what it means for our children. While acknowledging the difficulty, we are committed to pursuing every option to restore and expand funding levels.    

We thank you for your time, insights, and candor in expressing disagreement and agreement on strategies and proposed language. Your attendance at coalition meetings, Friday meetings, principals� council meetings and committee meetings is the reason why the final results were not as damaging as they could have been.
As the coalition moves forward, we must leverage the most recent regulations, our long-standing and newly developed allies, and the strengths of our high-performing schools to improve the overall quality of the program. We must also be vigilant in implementing measures of accountability, providing greater transparency and telling the story of our successes.

It is critically important that we seize upon these successes and collectively work together. We urge all school leaders to become more actively engaged in charting our course and ensuring the success of the program. We invite school leaders to join the principals� association (formerly principals� council) or various subcommittees of the association. More information on how school leaders can get involved will be provided in the coming days.

Below are the links to the following documents:

1. A table summarizing the new language
http://baeo.org/files/Process_Summary_of_MPCP_in_AB_75.pdf

2. A summary of the legislative process
http://baeo.org/files/LanguageSummaryv2.pdf

Below is a link to the signed budget. The relevant pages are 469-476.
http://www.legis.state.wi.us/

Thanks again for your work to provide quality educational options for the undeserved children in our city. We look forward to your increased engagement!

Sincerely,

Howard Fuller
Katy Venskus