Browsing: K-12 Education

Principal Julieane Cook of St. Martini Lutheran School on Milwaukee’s south side takes time out twice a day from her administrative duties for “sensory breaks” – where she works with special needs students because no additional staff or resources are available. Private school principals and administrators say in a Badger Institute survey that many special needs children in private schools are left behind because of inequitable allocation of federal resources. Click on the News tab at the top of the page to read the story.

Special needs students are left behind because of inequitable allocation of federal resources, administrators say in survey

Federal requirements in special ed are especially burdensome, educators tell Badger Institute in survey

Funding regulations hamper districts and don’t improve education, local officials say in survey

Paperwork takes staff away from daily responsibilities and educating kids, officials say.
By Julie Grace
November 13, 2017

Following institute’s story, Gov. Scott Walker asks Department of Public Instruction to resubmit Wisconsin federal funding plan.

Admitting students with little chance to graduate helps no one; tying UW System funding to graduation rates would force change.

Managing federal education dollars is costing Wisconsin taxpayers millions and benefiting children hardly at all.

Institute releases data on the federalization of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction.

Many Wisconsin high school graduates arrive at college unprepared and end up in remedial math and writing classes, which makes completing a degree unlikely.

“Our philosophy used to be procure (funding) and then figure out how to use (the money),” Director of Business Services Andy Chromy said.

Hundreds of districts in Wisconsin and thousands more nationwide are saddled with the Single Audit of federal funds that feeds a bloated bureaucracy in Washington while adding little or no value to educational efforts.

“My family wanted private schools because private schools take education seriously. They offer a more rich education and prepare me for my future,” said Sahara Aden, of Milwaukee. But her family couldn’t afford the steep tuition.

Many of LakeView Technology Academy’s graduates are leaving high school with half of an associate’s degree in their pockets. Others are entering four-year universities as second-semester freshmen.

The Dane County Child Support Agency will be rolling out a pilot program called the Forgiveness of Arrears for Completion of Education.

The special education voucher program will help a small but deserving group of kids who repeatedly have been denied the opportunities available to their non-disabled peers.

There is strong public support for special needs vouchers: 62% of Wisconsin residents support such a program, according to a WPRI poll.

The Wisconsin Special Needs Scholarship initiative would give parents the opportunity to do what they believe is best for their child, much like parents who seek the best medical treatment for their child’s illness.

The system is performing so poorly that major changes, not just tweaks, are needed.

According to a WPRI poll, 62% of Wisconsinites somewhat or completely support a special needs voucher proposal, while 27% are somewhat or completely opposed.