Category Archives: “education finance”
MMSD Administrative Analysis of Madison Prep and a Rumor
The Staple Singers – “This May Be The Last Time” (click to listen or download) The required Administrative Analysis of the Madison Preparatory Academy charter school proposal by the Madison Metropolitan School District staff has been posted, and it doesn’t … Continue reading
“It’s time to spread the truth about impact of budget on Wisconsin’s public schools”
The Jam – “Time for Truth” (click to listen or download) I haven’t posted any Wisconsin Alliance for Excellent Schools advocacy material this way lately, so here goes. Short version: The “tools” aren’t working, our students aren’t getting the opportunities … Continue reading
What Madison Prep Doesn’t Want You to See
Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine” (click to listen or download) Earlier this week The Urban League of Greater Madison (ULGM) provided the Madison Metropolitan School District with new, draft documents, a “Business Plan” and another Budget. I learned of these … Continue reading
Filed under "education finance", Accountability, Best Practices, Budget, education, Equity, Gimme Some Truth, Local News
Some Truth About Urban Prep and Why It Matters
The Undisputed Truth – ” Smiling Faces” (click to listen or download) Introduction To bolster their case and push their agendas, advocates for market-based education reform and market-based policies in general tout “miracle schools” that have supposedly produced amazing results … Continue reading
Madison Prep – 1,2,3 Yellow Light (updated)
The Talking Heads, “1,2,3 Red Light” (live, 1977 — click to listen or download). [Update — I forgot a huge issue: Waivers. ULGM had previously asked for a blanket waiver of all MMSD policies and some state laws. There has … Continue reading
Is it “all about the kids” (and what that might mean)? — Take One (in relation to ULGM and Madison Prep)
Sir Mack Rice “Money Talks” (click to listen or download) My training as a historian has taught me that all knowledge is tentative and that this is especially true when it comes to assigning motives to people’s actions. It has … Continue reading
Of two minds and no sense in Two Rivers
There is an editorial in the Herald Times Reporter on the Two Rivers school budget that presents contradictory ideas and ultimately makes no sense. If you dig a little deeper, you’ll find more that doesn’t make sense. The editorial titled … Continue reading
So you want to be my Senator?
Tammy Baldwin is running for the US Senate. I’ve been pleased to have her as my Congressperson, but her record on education is undistinguished and unlike Russ Fiengold she rarely — if ever — has stood in opposition to the … Continue reading
Save Our Schools Rally — Madison, July 30, 2011 — 3:00 PM
The Staple Singers -”Long Walk To D.C” (click to listen or download) Yes, it is a long walk to D.C. and many of us who care deeply about the future of public education will not be able to join the … Continue reading
Education, Taxes, and MMSD Board Goals
I was struck by the relationship between two things in recent Wisconsin State Journal stories. The first of these is the graph above illustrating the cuts of over 150 Special Education staff positions (from Matt DeFour’s report on the new … Continue reading
