Kessler on Voucher Proposal: "It's pretty dead."
By Dani McClain, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel School Zone Blog
Last Update: January 21, 2008
His plans to talk to Gov. Jim Doyle about revamping Milwaukee's school voucher program are at a standstill, Rep. Fred Kessler (D-Milwaukee) said in a meeting with the Journal Sentinel's editorial board today.
Kessler's proposals were a hot topic of debate last week, after Alan Borsuk reported that Doyle's office had cancelled a meeting to talk through the ideas.
"I have no guarantee that this will be dealt with at any point," Kessler said of his plan this afternoon.
Kessler also said that the memo he sent to seven Assembly Democrats from Milwaukee was a first draft, and that he was willing to accept criticisms that some of his proposals are already incorporated in the voucher program.
For example, Kessler's plan included requiring teachers in voucher schools to have bachelor's degrees. Turns out the accreditors who regulate choice schools already require this.
"If somebody had said to me, 'That's already the case," I would have backed off," the lawmaker said in today's meeting. "Everything in that memo comes close to my personal beliefs, but I'm also willing to accept factual rebuttal."
The above blog post appeared in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Education Zone Blog.