Skip to content
News
Some very nice news surrounding a choice school in Milwaukee this week. St. Augustine Preparatory Academy, a Milwaukee Parental Choice Program school, broke ground this week on a grade school facility on Milwaukee’s south side. The $49 million building will have room for 900 K4 to 5th grade students. The K4–12 school, expected to be completed in 2023, will be the biggest single-campus school in Milwaukee and will have space to serve 2,400 students, according to a press release, BizTimes reported. One of the most interesting facts to emerge: Since the school opened, crime in the area has fallen by…
Read MoreBy School Choice Wisconsin Students in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program continue to outperform their public school peers, says a new report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL). Proficiency rates in private choice schools were 4.6% higher in English/language arts and 4.5% higher in math on average than proficiency rates in traditional public schools in Milwaukee, says the Apples to Apples report from WILL. The report draws on data from the state Department of Public Instruction’s WISEdash system for the 2020–21 school year. Among the report’s other findings: Forward Exam participation was higher in Milwaukee choice and…
Read MoreIt’s heartening to see movements for school choice gathering steam around the U.S., following the lead of School Choice Wisconsin’s founders, who spearheaded the drive toward parental empowerment. If you cruise around Google News or other news aggregators, you’ll see how broad the interest in school choice is across the country. Here are a few links of interest. Brandon Jennings attempting to launch Milwaukee voucher school School choice in America Elected officials can’t ignore reality on school choice The growing enthusiasm for school choice reflects the views found in a recent survey School Choice Wisconsin commissioned. In the survey, conducted…
Read MoreFor Immediate Release April 28, 2022 Two polls, two positive results for school choice in Wisconsin. A Marquette Law School poll released on April 27 shows majority support for dropping family income limits on choice programs in the state. “Extending vouchers for students to attend private or religious schools statewide and without family income limits is supported by 58%,” says Marquette Law School’s news release on the poll. This aligns with a School Choice Wisconsin survey conducted in February 2022 by OnMessage Inc. In that survey, 65 percent agreed that income restrictions need to be dropped so that every…
Read MoreDownload the School Choice Wisconsin Focus Group Presentation 2022.
Read MoreClick to view or download PDF version Download the 2022 Spring Newsletter
Read MoreMarch 30, 2022 By George Mitchell While Superintendent of Public Instruction, Gov. Tony Evers wrote to legislators a decade ago that expanding the Wisconsin Parental Choice program was “morally wrong.” Evers said he reached that conclusion because the program “has not improved overall student achievement.” Fast forward to the present. Under criteria applied by none other than Evers’ education agency, private choice schools in the state’s largest choice program — Milwaukee — score higher on the DPI Report Card than do public schools. DPI data show that by other measures — such as the college-readiness ACT test — students in the state’s…
Read MoreFor Immediate Release April 15, 2022 Governor Evers vs. Public Opinion School Choice Wisconsin issued the following statements regarding Governor Evers veto of AB 963: “Governor Evers’ vetoes are at odds with the views of parents and likely voters across the state. They support making all families eligible for the state’s school choice programs. They support the rights of parents to be actively involved in their children’s education, including in the review of instructional material,” said Nicholas Kelly, president of School Choice Wisconsin. “Good Friday not so good for parents – Governor Evers vetoed multiple education bills today resulting in…
Read MoreFor Immediate Release April 15, 2022 Governor Evers vs. Public Opinion School Choice Wisconsin issued the following statements regarding Governor Evers veto of AB 970: “We have seen a surge in support of parental empowerment in education. Today’s vetoes not only ignore the public’s backing of education dollars following the child but retains barriers to parents finding the right solution for their families,” said Nicholas Kelly, president of School Choice Wisconsin. “Good Friday not so good for parents – Governor Evers vetoed multiple education bills today resulting in high-demand options being out of reach for many in Wisconsin. His…
Read MoreFor Immediate Release February 28, 2022 One of the nation’s leading opinion research firms conducted a random, scientific sample poll in February of likely Wisconsin voters. The survey focused largely on education issues. It showed significant support, across the political spectrum, for policies that expand parent options. Respondents also were in broad agreement on what they see as constituting “parent rights.” “There’s been a parental awakening in Wisconsin. While voters might be divided on any number of non-education issues, there is substantial agreement when it comes to education,” said Nicholas Kelly, President of School Choice Wisconsin. A comprehensive summary…
Read More