A couple of readers have taken issue with a shot I took at Gov. Scott Walker in my earlier post on the proposed South Milwaukee School District budget cuts.
And they’re right. I was wrong to put this problem on Walker.
Indeed, there is plenty of blame to go around when it comes to the state’s inadequate funding of schools, and the problem certainly pre-dates our current governor. It’s also not a Democrat or Republican issue. Both parties have failed us here. Scott Walker, Jim Doyle, Scott McCallum, Tommy Thompson and all the legislatures in between share in the responsibility.
Simply, there has been a shocking lack of political courage when it comes to education funding over the years, a lack of courage from leaders to stand up and say that full 2/3 funding of schools — without getting there through forced budget reductions — is a priority and should be not be compromised.
Until that happens, and until revenue caps on school districts are addressed, you will continue to see school districts across the state struggle to fund their education programs … and face major cuts annually.
It’s what has happened in South Milwaukee for years, and it will continue to happen until politicians decide they don’t want to keep pushing hard decisions around education down the road.
Some laugh when they hear people say “it’s about the kids.” Well, this is.
All you have to do is look at the proposed cuts in South Milwaukee for 2011-12, and you can see that there is really no fat being trimmed from this budget. These are cuts that will directly impact learning, both inside and outside the classroom.
The question becomes: When will someone in Madison do something about it? When is enough, truly, enough?
No, Scott Walker did not create this problem. He inherited it. Let’s hope he is the one who solves it.
South Milwaukee Blog 
Thank you Erik! Wisconsin taxpayers need to think about what they want our schools to be, how they can prepare our children for the future workforce, how to pay for it and demand that it be done.
One of my past frustrations in talking with one of our former elected officials about school funding was that they didn’t sit on the State’s Committee on Education. Well, South Milwaukee now has an elected Senator that IS on the Committee of Education.
I encourage everyone to contact this Senator, tell him to return from Illinois and get to work on finding an equitable solution for all of Wisconsin’s kids!
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Erik,
It is agreed that Walker inherited a collosal mess when it comes to Education that took 18 years to make, but he did not have to reduce revenue caps to a negative increase. That is his own doing . He has in the very same bill to increase the amount of vouchers and take away income limits for people that desire vouchers for choice schools. I don’t understand how that can possibly “help” public education.
Music Mom – In a previous post, you mentioned the constitutionally guaranteed right to education. Where does that say “public” education. If a private / choice school has a better idea, why not? It’s possible that the public schools can learn something from a little competition. Education is the important thing. Where the kids get it, not so much.
When YOU say “it’s about the kids”, I believe you. When our school board says “it’s about the kids”, I believe them. When a teachers say “it’s about the kids” while abandoning the classroom and / or forcing a shutdown of the school to protest about “rights” (even though public workers rights are protected by law elsewhere and the budget hadn’t been announced yet), I have a hard time believing them.
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