In this episode: What the passage of the referenda means for us What the district is doing and can do more of in building trust What makes participation in local school gov't difficult and what we can do about it. A surprising amount of Hannah Arendt. LINKS: My contact info The district's long-range facilities plan WSD facilities referendum project…

University of Massachusetts professor Jack Schneider joins us to talk about what local school governance does for us as citizens, how to do it well, and what stands in the way. LINKS to stuff we've written together: "Putting the Public Back Into Public Accountability" (Kappan) "In Praise of Ordinary Measures" (Educational Theory) Educational Accoun…

Okay, if every local district is in the same bind, and taxpayers and schoolkids everywhere are being pitted against each other, then how do we get together and apply pressure on the state? I'm joined by two folks who've been organizing pressure campaigns and harnessing the kind of anger we're seeing in our community for a long time: the Wisconsin P…

In this episode: What the referenda are asking for What the money will be used for What effects can we expect if they pass What are the plans if they fail? Why our community loses no matter which way the vote goes. And of course: What the state might do to help, and why it has to. LINKS: ADA standards (the law), since people keep asking. MDRoffers …

UW-Madison's Chris Saldaña joins us to talk about Wisconsin's school finance regulations in comparison to other states' policies, and we think through some ideas we've considered before, around the way that local institutions--including citizen groups and taxpayer organizations--might hold states or local institutions accountable themselves. LINKS:…

Kathleen Knight Abowitz joins us to talk about her recent research into school board members in her home state of Ohio, the squeezes that school leaders find themselves in between state pressures from above and constituent demands from below, and how easy it is to forfeit local trust and how hard it is to rebuild. LINKS: Kathleen's Publics for Publ…

In this episode: Bipartisan agreement(?!) between Tosa representatives on increasing special ed funding? Facilities referenda, 20-year bonds, and time-indexed community-building How did our $4m budget mistake happen, and what does it mean? Are upgrades to ADA standards "needs" or "wants"? LINKS: WSD School Board budget presentation (10/9) WSD 2022-…

In this episode: I correct myself to say MUHS does indeed enroll student with disabilities I go through the district's published plans to save $14m annually in case we vote down the operating referendum I acknowledge and go through the facts that (a) total state aid to WSD has indeed kept up with inflation and (b) spending on administration rose by…

In this episode: Can we fix our budget issue by cutting administrators rather than teachers? Why are teachers suddenly having their raises wiped out by new healthcare contributions? How do we cut our expenses without affecting our teachers? Can we boost revenue by robbing casinos instead? LINKS: Wisconsin Policy Forum report on teacher pay (Nov, 20…

In this episode: The correct tax impact of our two referenda Does Open Enrollment "solve MKE's problems?" School Choice and (State-)Constitutional Promises Resident Enrollment Projections and National Population Decline Show notes! Comprehensive revenue (select district from dropdown) (Also, if we WERE interested in a low-cost, politically-inexpens…

In this episode: The recent "merger" revelation and what it means The history of school district boundaries and the things they separate How and why Open Enrollment and Chapter 220 were created What we have gained from OE over the years and what we hope to gain by drawing it down Show notes: WSD merger stuff Special school board meeting to release …

In this episode: WSD's long-range facilities plan How and why junior highs emerged How and why middle schools replaced them What happened when K-8 models became popular Will 6th graders do okay in elementary schools? What does the research say about 7-12 models? Contact me with questions! References/Bibliography (or: my browser tabs for the last tw…

In this episode: Important background for interpreting educational research How we deal with value pluralism and fundamental uncertainty How educational research responds to and provokes anxiety and moralizing How we can avoid enmity and grift as we argue about research Contact me!

In which an expert on the history of education finance talks about the evolution of school funding, the different options that we've seen over time, and the various advantages and drawbacks of each. LINKS: Matt's book, Dividing the Public Boston Globe piece on conservative school boards in WI Arrowhead Union HS District's testimony to legislature. …

In this episode: More details on revenue limits and state aid Explaining Tosa's increase in state aid next year Statewide impacts from Milwaukee's referendum Special education funding and revenue limits LINKS contact me! Wisconsin Uniform Financial Accounting Requirements legislative fiscal bureau brief on revenue limits 2023-2024 July 1st estimate…

In which we talk about the specifics of the referendum questions we'll see on our ballots in November and the district's plans relating to the proposed funding. With additional complaints about state-level policy that pits housing affordability against school funding and some wonkery about the difference between recurring and non-recurring referend…

In November 2024, voters in our leafy suburb of Milwaukee will join the majority of Wisconsin school districts in having to approve a sizable local tax levy or else suffer draconian cuts to its public schools. This series looks at how we got here and what we can do about it, beginning with voting on the referendum. Hosted by: Derek Gottlieb (derekg…

In which we cover the fundamentals of the Wauwatosa School District budget situation, of school finance in Wisconsin as a whole, of property tax and referendum mechanisms, and of revenue-limit legislation. LINKS to cited sources: General WI Educational Funding State Aid to WI School Districts (source: Legislature pub) Referenda-use in Wisconsin (Fo…