SCWA takes action with “perfection” lawsuit

WEST ALLIS, Wis. (November 30, 2022) – After many years of frustration, today we fight back. Our mission at School Choice Wisconsin Action is to advocate for our member schools and families in the parental choice programs. On behalf of our member schools, School Choice Wisconsin Action (SCWA) and two Wisconsin Parental Choice Program (WPCP) schools have filed a lawsuit with the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty (WILL) against the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) for what we are calling the “perfection rule.”

The case challenges DPI’s burdensome policies for the Choice application and verification process. As many of you have experienced, the smallest typo on an application can result in a student losing their voucher. Similarly, schools routinely report to us the difficulty they have in collecting acceptable residency documentation. Families with language barriers find the application process even more challenging. “DPI’s burdensome rules prevent otherwise eligible families from accessing the choice program and waste school resources,” per SCW Vice President, Carol Shires.

Over the last few years, School Choice Wisconsin Action has seen families left devastated that they will be removed from the choice program due to the “perfection rules” put into place by DPI. Families are sometimes forced to uproot their child from their school and private schools are left with no recourse to fix or adjust the problem for these families. SCWA is now taking action to prevent this from happening in the future.

Read WILL’s press release on the lawsuit:
School Choice Wisconsin Action & Schools Sue Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction Over Unlawful Regulations