Since we already heard from the wealthy school district of Menominee Falls, and their whining about tax money going to fund vouchers school somewhere else, here's a followup from two more Walker districts that woke up and smelled the coffee:
WPR: Leaders from school districts in heavily Republican counties
told GOP lawmakers today that Governor Scott Walker's education budget would
hurt them without some changes.
At a public hearing on the budget in Greendale, Kettle
Moraine Superintendent Patricia Deklotz told lawmakers her Waukesha County
district used those so-called "tools" to cut costs and increase
programming for students. But she says to freeze funding now will damage great
schools like hers: "The proposed budget feels like a sledgehammer when
what we need is a surgeon's scalpel."
West Bend School Superintendent Ted Neitzke says he also
used Walker's tools to cut spending by $3.6 million in his Washington County
district. Neitzke says West Bend was expecting a surplus next year, but that
will not happen if Walker's budget becomes law: "By locking us at zero, it
puts us in a deficit situation which we were not expecting.
Neitzke and Deklotz were among several school administrators
and teachers who spoke in favor of a plan by Republican senators Luther Olsen
and Mike Ellis that would increase funding by $150 per student. Details of that
plan are still in short supply but are likely to emerge in the next couple
months as the legislature's Joint Finance Committee starts voting on the
budget.
Why was Nietzke expecting a surplus? Hasn't he been paying attention?
ReplyDeleteDear West Bend School parents and admins: by all means contact your elected representatives about this. Remember, you folks elected people who only represent citizens who agree with them. Not so fun to be on the other side of the door, of course, but welcome to New Wisconsin.