Among other steps, board members directed the expansion of the Black and Latino Male Achievement program and creation of similar programs for female and LGBTQIA+ students.
Facing the task of helping more than 70,000 students recover from the pandemic as state lawmakers are poised to hold education funding flat, Milwaukee School Board members are scheduled to vote Thursday on a tight annual budget and historic temporary infusion of federal stimulus dollars.
Amending the plans already put forward by administrators, board members have called for several new programs, including more trades courses and a major expansion to the district’s Black and Latino Male Achievement program to offer mentorship and other support for female and LGBTQIA+ students of color.
Students and community leaders have asked for some additional changes. At a rally Wednesday night, students with Leaders Igniting Transformation called for more mental health services and less spending on security. Though the district previously cut contracts with police, the district still employs 274 safety assistants.
They haven’t done so well in Milwaukee. By Terry Falk - May 18th, 2021 02:41 pm //end headline wrapper ?>School classroom. (Pixabay License).
The charter school movement was a grassroots, up-from-the-bottom school reform beginning in 1992. Milwaukee followed that model of chartering schools. But a decade later, a corporate model began to emerge with providers trying to become the Walmart or Target of the charter school industry. Today those plans look more like a bankrupt Sears, both in Milwaukee and across the nation.
American Quality Schools
When American Quality Schools (AQS) applied for an MPS charter in 2012, it had 16 schools in 3 states. As a school board member, I looked into AQS operations as problems began to emerge. The board ultimately turned down the charter. Today AQS has lost all its charters except one, and that is in danger of closing.