SCHOOL CHOICE BLOG
What We’re Reading: School Choice Gathering Steam
It’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 [...]
A Tony Evers’ Veto on School Choice for All Would Be Morally Wrong
March 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 [...]
Choice Schools and Families Stranded When DPI Drops the Ball
This year in Wisconsin, 49,000 students are enrolled in private schools through the Milwaukee, Racine, or Statewide Parental Choice Program. These are students in hard-working lower-income families who have been given a voucher to attend [...]
Why Not School Choice?
January 26, 2022 By Edgar Zaragoza Wisconsin’s private school choice program has benefited my family and—through my work at the Green Bay Area Catholic Education School System (GRACE)—I’ve personally seen it change the lives of hundreds [...]
How the Milwaukee School Choice Program Inspired a National Movement
January 24, 2022 By Susan Mitchell In 1990, the Milwaukee School Choice Program served only 341 students at seven schools. Last year nearly 29,000 students — 1 in 4 Milwaukee school children —used it to [...]
Common Sense Wisconsin Releases Power Education Blueprint
Around the country we have seen a number of new education policy proposals that empower parents in K-12 education. Even in states that are not traditional sources of educational options, the pandemic has engaged parents [...]
Dane County School Closure Order Invalidated
Last August, days after some schools had opened and days before most schools were ready to open, the Dane County Health Department issued a school closure order for all schools, public and private serving grades [...]
Emergency Assistance For Non-Public Schools (EANS) Roundtable
Due to the evolving nature of EANS funding, School Choice Wisconsin Action (SCWA) hosted a roundtable discussion on May 12, 2021 for school staff members to ask questions and share information. Our panel included Lori [...]
SCWA and WILL Secure Concession from MPS on Transportation
MPS is moving forward with a current-law application of transportation benefits with private schools and parents for the entire school year. They have made commitments to legislators that their intent is to fully allocate eligible [...]
Milwaukee Schools Can’t Reopen Under Current COVID-19 Restrictions
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: "Milwaukee schools and universities that have been planning to offer face-to-face instruction this fall may need to shift gears after the city health department quietly enacted stricter guidelines for when [...]
Work Program Gives Students Competitive Edge
In the business world, organizations look for people whose experience can benefit them. So why would a company employ teenagers who need to be trained in the very basics of the working world? “We do [...]
Students in Parental Choice Programs Outperform Peers
Data released today by the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) shows that again this year, students in the Parental Choice Programs are outperforming their peers. As with all test data, a one-year snapshot has limitations [...]