Skip to content
News
WEST ALLIS — School Choice Wisconsin President Nicholas Kelly released the following statement in response to a lawsuit filed by Minocqua Brewing Co. President Kirk Bangstad that would kick 50,000+ low-income students out of Wisconsin’s parental choice programs: “Efforts to kill school choice will hurt thousands of low-income families throughout the state. In Milwaukee and Racine, where four out of five choice students are Black and Hispanic, this would fall most heavily on families desperate for educational options.” A press kit providing background information on School Choice Wisconsin and Wisconsin’s choice programs can be found here. Contact [email protected] for media inquiries.
Read MoreWEST ALLIS — New data released today by the Department of Public Instruction shows that participation in Wisconsin’s parental school choice programs continues to grow. Nearly 55,000 students are enrolled in one of Wisconsin’s four parental choice programs — an increase of 2,760 from last year — attending one of 383 schools. Both marks represent record participation. This comes on the heels of Governor Tony Evers and Republican legislative leaders agreeing to an historic bipartisan funding increase as part of state budget negotiations earlier this year. “School choice is growing because it works. All parents deserve the right to find…
Read MoreOctober 10, 2023 (WEST ALLIS) — Students in Wisconsin’s parental choice programs outperformed public school students across a range of test results released by DPI today. Families who participate in the parental choice programs must be at or below the following federal poverty percentages when they apply: 300% (MPCP and RPCP) and 220% (WPCP). These students are some of the most economically disadvantaged students in Wisconsin. The comparisons below show: Choice students in Milwaukee and Racine outscore Milwaukee and Racine public students from all income levels on academic proficiency tests. Choice students outscore students from all income levels on college-readiness…
Read MoreWEST ALLIS — School Choice Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Institute of Law and Liberty (WILL) today released a new report that shines new light on the amount of special needs students in Wisconsin’s choice schools serve students with disabilities. The report, Serving All: Students with Disabilities in Wisconsin’s Parental Choice Programs, demonstrates that contrary to previously-reported, incomplete data, private schools in Wisconsin’s choice programs enroll roughly the same percentage of students with learning disabilities as public schools. Based on responses from schools enrolling 40 percent of students in the state’s choice programs, the SCW-WILL research found that more than 10…
Read MoreSchool Choice Wisconsin is excited to announce our annual Hispanic Heritage Month K-12 Art Contest. This year’s theme — Prosperity, Power & Progress — recognizes the significant achievements of the Hispanic community in areas of economics, business and politics. Entries must be hand-created drawings or paintings and must be delivered to the Hispanics for School Choice office at 10427 W. Lincoln Ave. #1800, West Allis, WI 53214 by October 13, 2023. Winners will be announced on Facebook on Nov. 2, with winners taking home cash prizes of up to $200. Learn more here, and we look forward to seeing many…
Read MoreWest Allis, Wisconsin – Nic Kelly, President of School Choice Wisconsin, issued the following statement after circulation of a co-sponsorship memo with six bill drafts by Wisconsin legislative democrats earlier today. The so-called “Investing in Our Kids’ Education Initiative – Public Money for Public Schools” bill package seeks drastic and harmful changes which would block new enrollments to and fully phase-out all of Wisconsin’s Parental Choice and Special Needs Scholarship Programs. “School Choice Wisconsin Action is disappointed that any legislator who has witnessed the positive impact of the choice program in Wisconsin for the past 30 years continues to perpetuate…
Read MoreThe laws establishing school choice in Wisconsin outline who is eligible to participate in the state’s parental choice programs. To enter the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program or the Racine Parental Choice Program, families must live in the Milwaukee or Racine school districts and have an income that doesn’t exceed 330 percent of the federal poverty level. To be eligible for the statewide Wisconsin Parental Choice Program, families can’t have an income of more than 220 percent of the federal poverty level. An analysis of choice student demographics provide a more detailed picture of who is being served by private choice…
Read MoreIn 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 MoreWEST ALLIS — According to new research published today, schools in Wisconsin’s parental choice programs are significantly more cost-effective than their public school peers. The analysis of publicly-available Department of Public Instruction school report cards and state and local funding data found that private schools in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, Racine Parental Choice Program and statewide Wisconsin Parental Choice Program all delivered significantly more bang for the buck than their public school peers: The Milwaukee Parental Choice Program was 89 percent more cost-effective than the Milwaukee Public School District. The Racine Parental Choice Program was 92 percent more cost-effective than…
Read MoreData from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction enable a comparison of public and private school cost-effectiveness. The results are described in a new School Choice Wisconsin report. Using conservative assumptions, the report shows a marked advantage for schools in the state’s private school choice programs. The advantage is most pronounced in Milwaukee and Racine. A lesser but still sizable advantage exists in the statewide program. Figure 1 shows that per pupil public school revenue substantially exceeds that at private choice schools. DPI Report Card scores show a different picture. Despite less revenue, Figure 2 shows higher Report Card scores…
Read More