A radical privatization proposal has been inserted into the Wisconsin state budget and approved by the budget-writing committee. The plan initially applies to Milwaukee (where the public schools outperform voucher schools and get similar test scores to charter schools), but it could be extended to Madison, Racine and other “large, racially diverse” school districts. Under the plan, a commissioner would be appointed and have the power to fire all staff, both teachers and administrators, and hand the school off to a private operator to run as a charter or voucher school. In other words, public assets, schools paid for by the community, will be given away to private operators.
Under the plan, an independent commissioner appointed by the county executive would take control of three of the lowest-performing schools in the district after the 2015 school year. Everyone who works at the school would be fired and forced to reapply for their jobs. The commissioner could also convert the schools into private — but non-religious — voucher schools or turn over operation to an independent charter school.
For the first two years, up to three schools could be chosen. After that, five more a year could be added.
Republican supporters of the plan said they wanted something dramatic to turn around chronically failing schools in Milwaukee. The most recent school report card ranked 55 schools within the district as “fails to meet expectations,” the lowest of five rankings.
Some Democratic legislators were outraged:
But Democrats said the plan does nothing to address the root causes of problems in Milwaukee schools, including high poverty, and they argued the Legislature should not interfere in running the city’s schools.
Democratic Sen. Lena Taylor, the only lawmaker from Milwaukee on the Joint Finance Committee, blasted the proposal as part of a history of diverting resources from public schools in Wisconsin’s largest city.
“For years, individuals who sit on this committee and in this building have known that they have been raping the children of MPS,” Taylor said.
The comparison drew a sharp rebuke from Rep. Dale Kooyenga, R-Brookfield, one of the plan’s authors.
“I just find that sick,” he said. “That’s actually sick.”
Taylor refused to back down.
“I get it. The word ‘rape’ sounds offensive,” she said. “But when you consider the fact that 15 out of 100 kids can read on grade level while $89 million have been skimmed from the education of kids, and that you don’t invest it in even the crisis areas, who are you fooling?”
Reblogged this on History Chick in AZ and commented:
This is outrageous!
Human traffickers always deny that what they do is bad, or destructive.
I’ll be surprised if the midwest gets rid of public schools. Public schools were absolutely central to the people who built these states.
Ed reformers have been trying in Ohio for 17 years, but public schools are remarkably resilient. They’ve survived everything the national lobbying groups and ever-changing cast of ambitious and feckless politicians threw at them 🙂
I think Wisconsin probably rallies around their public schools. Radical ed reform is new there. It takes a little while for people to catch on.
I would have said that too a few years ago but WI keeps electing Scott governor. I have friends, I went to college in WI, who I would have said were liberals and all for public schools…but they vote for that guy every time. I wouldn’t be so sure that Scott doesn’t have a lot of the state fooled. They used to be a mostly socialist state with some of the best public schools in the country …. now look at WI, what a hot mess.
Such an ingenious plan…. continue to take over the lowest 5% of schools every year in order to hide them from public view through privatization schemes. Then the local population can continue to watch in frustration as their children are neglected and blamed for their lives of poverty. It makes it easier to push the poor children into the private-for-profit prison pipeline.
Fire unionized teachers and replace with non-union teachers –good way to starve the teachers union of dues money.
Their privatizing scheme is way more offensive than its metaphoric description of ‘rape.’ To me, its maliciousness reaches to the level of ‘human trafficking’ or ‘work visa scheme’ to exploit foreign worker under the name of trainee.
A school choice advocacy group in PA is proposing something similar. You can read about it here: http://watchdog.org/214798/pennsylvania-bill-put-failing-schools-state-control/
Hope Wisconsin folk read up on Newark, NJ “Renew Schools” where principal is replaced/teachers must re-apply for position. Per John Mooney NJ Spotlight (fall 2014) education writer & Bob Braun, Renew Schools are not showing improvement.
As bad as this part of the budget it (and it is awful), the following education provision is worse.
http://host.madison.com/news/state-and-regional/wisconsin-may-be-first-to-license-teachers-without-degree/article_b0686fbd-bdff-53eb-b704-5e57b82dab48.html