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Ali Schwartz
Ali Schwartz
In an opinion piece published today on the website for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, School Choice Wisconsin President Nicholas Kelly highlighted research that showed schools in Wisconsin’s private choice programs delivered exceptional bang for the buck when compared to public schools. The study can be found here. Excerpts from the op-ed are below, and the full piece can be read here. School choice triumph: Report card analysis shows voucher schools out-perform public schools Milwaukee Journal Sentinel August 31, 2023 Education was a big winner of a bipartisan agreement in the recently enacted state budget. Public schools will receive an increase…
Read MoreFor 62 years, the school now known as Journeys Lutheran School in Hales Corners has been providing high-quality education for students with learning difficulties. Established by the South Wisconsin District of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod, Journeys has had locations in Milwaukee, Mequon, Glendale, Greendale and Hales Corners over the years, with a number of different names to go along with the different addresses. But while the name, size and location of the school have changed over the years, what hasn’t changed is the school’s commitment to preparing students with unique learning challenges to realize their full educational, social and…
Read MoreMost students aren’t excited about anything to do with school in the middle of July. But there were lots of smiling faces this weekend at the backpack drive School Choice Wisconsin and Hispanics for School Choice in downtown Milwaukee. As director of outreach for Hispanics for School Choice, I often meet with students and parents in a variety of settings. This last weekend was no different. Hundreds of students and parents visited our booth at the Mercadera Market held at the Deer District. Even Bango, the Milwaukee Bucks’ mascot, got in the action and stopped by to hand out backpacks and school supplies and pose…
Read MoreFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE School Choice Wisconsin Welcomes Linda Appleby as Director of Development WEST ALLIS, Wis. (January 10, 2023) – Linda Appleby will join School Choice Wisconsin as Director of Development effective January 16, 2023, according to Nicholas Kelly, SCW President. Appleby has extensive experience in complex fundraising environments, including healthcare, higher education, and religious organizations. She brings a deep commitment to parental choice and has worked actively to expand options and improve educational results in her hometown of Beloit. “Linda brings an entrepreneurial spirit and an innovative approach to fundraising that has produced remarkable results. We were struck…
Read MoreFor Immediate Release September 29, 2022 Contact: Nicholas Kelly On September 29, 2022, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction released the state test scores via the Wisconsin Student Assessment System. As in prior years, students in Wisconsin’s school choice programs outperformed traditional public school students on the college-readiness ACT exam. “This continuing pattern is quite noteworthy,” said Nic Kelly, School Choice Wisconsin president. He added: “The fact that choice students from low-income and working-class families score higher on average than public school students is consistent with other data and research. Despite taxpayer funding at 60% of public school levels, choice…
Read MoreFor Immediate Release September 23, 2022 Contact: Nicholas J. Kelly Statement from School Choice Wisconsin and Bender Consulting LLC: School Choice Wisconsin (SCW) and Jim Bender, after more than a decade of success working together to advance educational options for parents, are moving forward on different paths but will remain allies in the fight for school choice. “SCW is grateful to Jim for his service. He has been an effective advocate for our mission of providing parental choice to all families,” said SCW Board Chair Bob DeKoch. “We continue to share a commitment to that goal.” As SCW President and…
Read MoreGood news for educational freedom: School Choice Wisconsin is seeing an increase in entrepreneurial activity on the statewide school landscape. In the last two months, eight schools have reached out to SCW for onboarding assistance as they seek to participate in the Wisconsin Parental Choice Program. The statewide Wisconsin Parental Choice Program provides students whose families meet income qualifications the ability to attend a participating private or religious school of their choice, tuition free. Of the eight schools who reached out to School Choice Wisconsin, five are new start-ups. The five are in various stages of planning and launching. The…
Read MoreLast night Marquette University hosted a GOP primary debate featuring three Republican candidates. Two of the candidates, Rebecca Kleefisch and Tim Michels, voiced support for universal school choice during the debate. Candidate Tim Ramthun has expressed support for universal choice on his website but made no comment on the subject last night. School choice continues to be a major topic of discussion among all parties here in Wisconsin. A statewide primary is set for Aug. 9. — School Choice Wisconsin
Read MoreThe Wall Street Journal is among those noticing that school choice is garnering support around the country. Take a look at their recent editorial video on choice.
Read MoreToday the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to allow parents in Maine to use state funds to pay tuition for religious schools. This is an important case for the choice movement and a big win. The case was titled Carson v. Makin, No. 20-1088. See this story from The New York Times.
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