Thank you to @madison_365 for recognizing me as one of WI's Most Influential Black Leaders. I'm grateful to lead our work @cfc_mke to ensure students in MKE and across WI receive the excellent education they deserve, at a high-quality school of their choice. buff.ly/rsSFMfk

In today's special Thursday edition of the Corner, we shared our take at @cfc_mke on the recent School & District Report Card release. Progress in MKE's public charters and private schools, ongoing challenges at MPS - and a continuing mess from DPI. mkeedunews.substack.com/p/school-and...

It's the 3rd Fri in Sept - WI's enrollment count date for publicly-funded students. Unfortunately, its also a day when misinformation abounds. Read CFC's Fact Check to get schooled: Fact Check: How Wisconsin students are counted and schools are paid mkeedunews.substack.com/p/fact-check...

@the74.bsky.social with a great, thought-provoking piece about the failures of local school boards, and how they echo broader challenges to (small-d) democratic governance. Its an issue here in MKE, but also across the country - & one we must reckon with. www.the74million.org/article/how-...

In today's Corner, I shared our take on the recent state Report Card revamp: "The bottom line: Families, educators, and the public deserve a report card that's honest, accurate, and trustworthy - and right now, WI's Report Cards are failing to measure up." mkeedunews.substack.com/p/school-and...

You need to give teachers a job that it’s actually feasible to do www.slowboring.com/p/the-promis...

In today's Corner, I shared @cfc_mke's take on the state budget, the real wins it delivered for ALL our kids and schools, & why cross-partisan compromise required courage - not cowardice - from @govevers, @repvos, @senatordevin, & @senhesselbein mkeedunews.substack.com/p/kid-first-...

Had a chance to share CFC’s perspective on @govevers.wisconsin.gov academic audit of @milwaukeemps.bsky.social on @wuwmradio.bsky.social. “This is not a resource-poor district anymore. And that’s a different place than we’ve been in over the decades.” www.wuwm.com/education/20...

LOTS of sniping from special interests & their lege allies making perfect the enemy of progress, but at City Forward Collective, we see gains for all kids in the budget deal. @govevers.wisconsin.gov, Sen Hesselbein @senatedemswi.bsky.social, and GOP leaders all deserve credit for a 💪🏿 compromise.

👏🏿 We know this formula works: “Close low-performing, underenrolled schools. Expand high-performing, in-demand schools… As parents clamor for more choices, policymakers should focus on providing a high-quality portfolio of options to choose from.” www.the74million.org/article/big-...

Disappointing to see MKE-area supes use misleading talking points, pitting students & schools against each other. We all agree, WI should increase special education funding - don't demagogue families' choices to make the case. www.jsonline.com/story/opinio...

In today's Corner, I shared CFC's assessment of the FY26 proposed MPS budget -- and some thoughts on the refreshingly direct honesty that the new Superintendent is delivering on the district's academic & financial circumstances. mkeedunews.substack.com/p/clarity-an...

Great work by @journalsentinel, providing a straightforward and accurate summary of WI's special education funding challenges - & not falling into the trap of making misleading public/private comparisons on reimbursement rates. www.jsonline.com/story/news/e...

Great read - so much also translates into Dems’ refusal to embrace education abundance. @WisDems, esp legislators, are repeating this boasting about policy failures with attacks on high-quality school choices. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/08/o...

Important news - we at City Forward Collective will be watching closely. We've been clear about our position: WI students and families deserve honesty, transparency, and accountability to high expectations - and DPI's current standards fail to meet that mark. www.jsonline.com/story/news/e...

In today's Corner, I shared reflections on a promising, imperfect, & incomplete start for new leadership at MKE Public Schools. This time must be different, and hope is not a strategy. MPS' students deserve succes, & we can't afford to repeat past failures . mkeedunews.substack.com/p/a-turning-...

I shared our thoughts at City Forward Collective on the need for more kid-first, cross-partisan cooperation on K12 funding in the next state budget -- and the long-overdue need for broader reforms to end the school funding food fights every two years. www.jsonline.com/story/opinio...

I shared my thoughts on why chaos & confusion in federal edu policy is hurting MKE's students and schools, esp as an AmeriCorps alum thru @teachforamerica.bsky.social. Destabilization & destruction without direction is a distraction, and an impending disaster. open.substack.com/pub/mkeedune...

In today's Corner, I shared CFC's recent work on WI's school funding, the need for a new approach, & our hopes that bitter partisan rancor will once again give way to kid-first, pragmatic compromise. Finding Common Ground in Wisconsin's School Funding Debate mkeedunews.substack.com/p/finding-co...

It’s not enough to just know that one is backed by the blues and the other by the reds. Underly’s performance has been poor. The performance of our public schools is lagging. Kinser shows promise to be a change agent. And change is what we need. yellowstripsdeadarmadillos.org/2025/03/30/m...

Brittany Kinser and Jill Underly met with Wisconsin State Journal editorial board, before it recommended a candidate to voters in the April 1 election for Department of Public Instruction

Really appreciated @danshafer.bsky.social's take on the WI State Supe race, and broader edu policy debate. It's necessary & important that voices on the left are willing to be forthright about the problems with the K12 edu status quo, and the need for change. open.substack.com/pub/recombob...

👏🏿 💯 👏🏿 @jecausey: "If the @MilwaukeeMPS school board continues to accept the status quo in the face of these challenges, there needs to be accountability & a thorough reevaluation of their positions. This is non-negotiable...Years? Time is running out."

I shared our thoughts at CFC on another turbulent week for Milwaukee Public Schools, including a new Supe, a damning set of audit findings, and yet more operational and compliance shortcomings This Time Must Be Different mkeedunews.substack.com/p/this-time-...

As the @milwaukeeMPS school board meets to select a new MPS Superintendent, we @cfc_mke are sharing polling findings on city residents' concerns about the district's cascading academic & financial challenges. https://bit.ly/4199Sx7

Thank you to @milwaukeenns for allowing me to share some thoughts & reflections on the @naep_nces results for students in MKE and WI. https://bit.ly/4jNj1Tm

Spin translation: @drjillunderly @wisconsindpi apparently believe that identifying even/odd numbers and counting tally marks are "a grade level above" WI 4th graders' abilities. https://bit.ly/3Cl4Hkn

In a special Wednesday edition of the Corner, I shared @cfc_mke's take on today's sobering @naep_nces results for WI and MKE students. https://buff.ly/40Av9OQ

I'm not usually one for AM hot takes, and there will be a more complete analysis to come from us @cfc_mke, but even on an early read, the @NAEP_NCES scores tell a clear - and troubling - tale of 3 gaps for MKE and WI https://bit.ly/4hCpezU

It's been hard to find in-depth coverage on the @wisconsindpi State Supe primary on 2/18 - likely due to @underlyforwi not responding to most requests. @ajbayatpour's series with the candidates has been solid - gere's his interview with @kinserforwi: https://bit.ly/3Crurvq

As someone said to me this week - we need to complexify convos about private school choice programs. This is a great example of why that’s exactly right: Private Schools Can Give Students With Disabilities the Flexibility They Need – The 74

👏🏿 💯 👏🏿 @CaireKaleem: We must shift our focus from partisan squabbles to pragmatic solutions that will equip our next generation with the tools they need to tackle tomorrow's challenges.

This is great reporting from @journalsentinel, and the data are striking: more than 3k calls per year, clustered at 11 @milwaukeeMPS high schools.

In today’s Corner, I shared @cfc_mke’s New Year’s call for bold, student-centered leadership for students in MKE & across WI. From @jillunderly and @wisconsindpi lowering standards, to @milwaukeemps’ rudderless approach, we face critical choices ahead. https://open.substack.com/pub/mkeedunews/p/wi…

@govevers, we @cfc_mke agree - @drjillunderly & @wisconsindpi's decision to lower standards in a secretive, closed door process (complete with NDAs) for our state's students was a mistake. https://buff.ly/3BZUVDQ

This is a troubling story - & why I’m wary of unregulated ESAs. Choice is a means to the goal of quality education & student outcomes; it’s not the end. Transparency and accountability for performance has to be part of the deal for ANY entity that receives public funding to serve students.

This piece is about college students, but also applies to K12 school performance. It’s why WI school & district report cards - which in MKE weight growth at 9x proficiency - need to be fixed. “High marks are for excellence, not grit.” https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/26/opinion/school-grades-a-qua…

I’m seeing a growing number of students complain: “My grade doesn’t reflect the effort I put into the course.” Public service announcement: An A is for excellence, not for effort. The true measure of learning is not the time and energy you put in. It’s the knowledge and skills you take out.

From our family to yours - Happy Holidays!

"No district will increase its property taxes by more than @MilwaukeeMPS, whose 29.6% increase amounts to $94.7 million, or more than a quarter of the total statewide levy increase. In April, the district passed a $252 million recurring operating referendum." https://bit.ly/4goc74u

This month's @MilwaukeeMPS committee meeting presentation is yet another example of the issues with @WisconsinDPI's School & District Report Cards, and why MKE students, families, and stakeholders need honesty, transparency, and accountability.

Today is Giving Tuesday - so we're giving MKE an honest look at how our city's K12 schools are doing, with updates to our State of MKE Edu At-A-Glance one pager, and several of our data tools. Find links and our summary of the data in today's Corner mkeedunews.substack.com/p/the-truth-...