State of Wisconsin Archives: on Education
Sarah Godlewski:
Boosted funding for books and tech in school libraries
Sarah saw that Wisconsin values and fiscal responsibility were under attack.
- Delivered record funding for books and tech in school libraries
Source: 2021 Wisconsin Senate campaign website SarahForWisconsin.com
Apr 20, 2021
Sarah Godlewski:
COVID: $5.25 million disbursed for distance learning
As chair of the Board of Commissioners of Public Lands and our school trust funds, I oversaw two record distributions to support
public schools and stepped up to make a special disbursement of $5.25 million when COVID hit for technology to help students participate in distance learning during the pandemic.
Source: 2022 Wisconsin Senate: StateTreasurer.wi.gov press release
Apr 20, 2021
Tammy Baldwin:
Urges funding to help at-risk students' access to education
Senator Baldwin joined 40 senators in pressing congressional leadership to include in the upcoming coronavirus relief package significant funding for the Federal TRIO Programs, which are integral to supporting vulnerable students.
The letter comes as the economic fallout of the coronavirus crisis continues to exacerbate inequities in education. "Low-income students, students with disabilities, first-generation students, youth who are homeless, have limited
English proficiency, and who are in foster care, students in rural communities, and military veterans face greater obstacles to their learning experiences and are often encountering a more substantial impact from COVID-19 . These students are at risk
of permanently losing a chance to pursue higher levels of education. A significant increase in overall program capacity would allow significantly more vulnerable students to receive support that is critical to their success and to the economy's revival."
Source: 2022 Wisconsin Senate campaign website baldwin.senate.gov
May 20, 2020
Tony Evers:
Education debt affects not just students, but their families
We can't continue to ignore the elephant in the room of student debt. I will be creating a Task Force on Student Debt in Wisconsin. We have to work on making higher education available to more folks in our state. We have to understand
how education-related debt affects not just our students, but their families, too. And we have to address the fact that student debt is preventing folks from buying a car, starting a business, saving for retirement, and starting a family.
Source: 2020 Wisconsin State of the State address
Jan 22, 2020
Bryan Steil:
U. Wisc. Board should address technical skills gap
Q: What do you think is one of the biggest issues affecting your district and how would you work to tackle it in Congress?A: We have a skills gap; to make sure that individuals have the skills they need to be ready to go into the workforce to
earn a higher wage. And so as I look at the federal government, using my background on the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents, there is a real opportunity to move the decision-making from
Washington back to local educators, back to your local school board, back to the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents, back to your technical college board.
I think that's at the forefront of what needs to be the next step now that we've gotten the economy moving along at the rate we do.
Source: Wisconsin Public Radio on 2018 WI-6 House debates
Mar 20, 2019
Tony Evers:
$600M to restore special needs funding
We're going to make sure that we have resources to support our kids with special needs. For the past decade, we've not only cut funding for public schools, we've failed to fully fund services for special education. This has forced local
school districts and taxpayers to squeeze resources from other areas to provide these critical services. Our budget will provide an unprecedented $600 million-dollar increase in special education funding.
Source: 2019 State of the State address to the Wisconsin legislature
Jan 22, 2019
Leah Vukmir:
I want schools competing for enrollment
Q: Provide vouchers to parents to send their children to private schools with public money?Tammy Baldwin (D): No.
Opposes "giving taxpayer dollars to private schools."
Leah Vukmir (R): Yes. "I want schools competing for enrollment."
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Senate race
Oct 9, 2018
Leah Vukmir:
Get federal government out of business of student loans
Q: Refinance student loans at lower rates, paid for by increasing taxes on high earners?Tammy Baldwin (D): Yes. Voted for 2017 bill to do this. Also expand Pell grants.
Leah Vukmir (R): No. "We have to get the federal government out of the business of loans."
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Senate race
Oct 9, 2018
Scott Walker:
Expand charters & vouchers; straight per-pupil support
Q: Increase funding for K-12 education?Tony Evers (D): Yes. Increase by $1.4 billion. Increased $ for special education, kindergarten for 4 year olds, & teachers who work in high-poverty districts.
Scott Walker (R): Major cuts in 2011, more recent increases. Shifts from supporting low-income districts more to straight per-pupil support.
Q: Support expansion of charter schools & vouchers enabling parents getting public help for private school costs?
Evers: No. Would freeze enrollment in school choice programs & phase out unless public schools were fully funded.
Walker: Yes. Has expanded both charter schools & voucher programs.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Scott Walker:
Froze UW tuition; cut $500 million from higher ed
Q: Increase state funding for higher education?Tony Evers (D): Yes. Will Increase investments in both our technical schools & University of Wisconsin (UW) system.
Scott Walker (R): Froze UW tuition. Cut $500 million from higher ed support. Recently restored $100 million.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Tammy Baldwin:
Opposes giving taxpayer dollars to private schools
Q: Provide vouchers to parents to send their children to private schools with public money?Tammy Baldwin (D): No.
Opposes "giving taxpayer dollars to private schools."
Leah Vukmir (R): Yes. "I want schools competing for enrollment."
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Senate race
Oct 9, 2018
Tammy Baldwin:
Refinance student loans at lower rates
Q: Refinance student loans at lower rates, paid for by increasing taxes on high earners?Tammy Baldwin (D): Yes. Voted for 2017 bill to do this. Also expand Pell grants.
Leah Vukmir (R): No. "We have to get the federal government out of the business of loans."
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Senate race
Oct 9, 2018
Tony Evers:
Increase school funding $1.4B; freeze charters
Q: Increase funding for K-12 education?Tony Evers (D): Yes. Increase by $1.4 billion. Increased $ for special education, kindergarten for 4 year olds, & teachers who work in high-poverty districts.
Scott Walker (R): Major cuts in 2011.
Q: Support expansion of charter schools & vouchers?
Evers: No. Would freeze enrollment in school choice programs & phase out unless public schools were fully funded.
Walker: Yes. Has expanded both charter schools & voucher programs.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Tony Evers:
Increase investments in our technical schools & UW system
Q: Increase state funding for higher education?Tony Evers (D): Yes. Will Increase investments in both our technical schools & University of Wisconsin (UW) system.
Scott Walker (R): Froze UW tuition. Cut $500 million from higher ed support. Recently restored $100 million.
Source: 2018 CampusElect.org Issue Guide on Wisconsin Governor race
Oct 9, 2018
Tony Evers:
AdWatch: should have fired teacher caught viewing porn
The main attack line from the Republican Party of Wisconsin against Evers during the primary race has been about Middleton-Cross Plains School District science teacher Andrew Harris who was caught viewing pornographic materials on his work computer
during the school day.The state party already made the Harris case into a $500,000 ad buy purchased before the race was even called, signaling the case will be a cornerstone of Republicans' strategy to beat Evers.
Republicans have argued Evers should have revoked Harris' teacher's license, but Evers has said state law wouldn't allow him to at the time Harris' case came before the Department of Public Instruction because students were not exposed to the material.
Evers and lawmakers worked to change state law to give Evers the authority to revoke teaching licenses in cases like Harris'.
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on 2018 Wisconsin governor race
Aug 15, 2018
Phil Anderson:
Let parents decide with vouchers
Q: Do you support or oppose the statement, "Vouchers for school choice"?
A: Support. Only a parent should decide what education is best for their child, and should be free to do so with their own resources.
Source: OnTheIssues interview of 2018 Wisconsin Governor candidate
May 18, 2018
Kelda Helen Roys:
Oppose vouchers for school choice
Q: Do you support or oppose the statement, "Vouchers for school choice"?
A: Strongly Oppose
Source: OnTheIssues interview of 2018 Wisconsin Governor candidate
May 5, 2018
Kathleen Vinehout:
Let's get back to old fashioned teaching in the schools
We have to rethink how we go about educating our children and what we want to accomplish. The creativity, excitement and challenge of teaching have been stifled by rules, regulations and testing requirements.
We spend so much time and money on testing and evaluating that teachers don't have the time to teach or the resources and energy to try innovative approaches. We need a different plan.
Source: 2018 Wisconsin Gubernatorial website KathleenVinehout.org
Feb 22, 2018
Scott Walker:
Help college students refinance loans
To make college more affordable for students and working families, we froze University of Wisconsin tuition for all undergraduates from our state for six years in a row. We're partnering with financial institutions to help graduates refinance student
loans. And financial assistance for students in need is at an all-time high, making higher education possible for thousands of students at colleges and universities across the state.
Source: 2018 Wisconsin State of the State address
Jan 24, 2018
Bob Harlow:
Fund every student above the national per-pupil average
Make sure every school in Wisconsin is funded at or above the national per-pupil average: I believe that every Wisconsin kid deserves the opportunity to realize his or her full potential.
That's why I will make sure that every school in Wisconsin is funded at or above the national per-pupil average.
I will also streamline each educational and career step by providing opportunities for middle, high school, and UW system students to pursue college classes, internships, and research within the framework of their curriculum.
And, pass a law that ensures public money is only spent on public schools
Source: 2018 Wisconsin Gubernatorial campaign website BobHarlow.net
Mar 15, 2017
Scott Walker:
Private refinancing options for student loan debt
We need to focus on the price of going to college in the first place. For the past four years, we froze undergraduate, in-state tuition for students at all University of Wisconsin campuses. A typical student saves more than $6,300 over four years when
compared to the trend before the freeze. During the decade before our freeze, tuition went up 118%. Ironically, some of the people who were around when UW tuition went up more than 8% on average each year now want the state to create a new government
bureaucracy to refinance student loans.
We found a better way to help people with high debt. Our administration has worked with Wisconsin's very own financial institutions to promote refinancing options available to those with student loan debt.
Wisconsin credit unions and banks offer refinancing at rates that are the same or better than what is offered by many government-supported programs in other states.
Source: 2017 State of the State address to Wisconsin Legislature
Jan 10, 2017
Mike Gallagher:
No child forced to remain in a failing school
We are failing to prepare the next generation of citizens to get a job and thrive. I will fight to ensure every child in America has access to a high quality education. I believe teachers and parents at the local level are better able to manage
a student's education than bureaucrats in Washington, DC. We must ensure local control and flexibility, so that parents can choose the best education available for their children and no child is forced to remain in a failing school.
Source: 2016 Wisconsin House campaign website MikeForWisconsin.com
Nov 8, 2016
Mike Gallagher:
Reduce the cost of higher education
I will work to expand the accessibility and reduce the cost of higher education in order to close the skills gap that is costing our economy thousands of jobs. Expanding and promoting the importance of trade or technical schools is also important.
Our construction and manufacturing sectors need high skilled workers and we need to have an education or apprentice system that can meet these demands.
Source: 2016 Wisconsin House campaign website MikeForWisconsin.com
Nov 8, 2016
Bernie Sanders:
Low income kids deserve free education, including college
SANDERS: After the American people bailed Wall Street out, they should pay a Wall Street speculation tax so that we can make public colleges and universities tuition-free. Now it is their time to help the middle class. CLINTON: Both of us share the
goal of trying to make college affordable for all young Americans. I have a compact that would do that for debt-free tuition. We differ, however, on a couple of points. One of them being that if you don't have some agreement within the system from states
and from families and from students, it's hard to get to where we need to go.
SANDERS: 150 years ago, Americans said low income kids deserve to get a free education. That free education was from first grade to 12th. This is 2016.
A college degree today is equivalent to what a high school degree was 60 years ago. We should have free tuition at public colleges and universities. That should be a right of all Americans regardless of the income of their families.
Source: 2016 PBS Democratic debate in Wisconsin
Feb 11, 2016
Hillary Clinton:
My plan is debt-free college for young people
SANDERS: 150 years ago, Americans said low income kids deserve to get a free education. That free education was from first grade to 12th. This is 2016.
A college degree today is equivalent to what a high school degree was 60 years ago. We should have free tuition at public colleges and universities.
That should be a right of all Americans regardless of the income of their families. CLINTON: Both of us share the goal of trying to make college affordable for all young Americans. I have a compact that would do that for debt-free tuition.
We differ, however, on a couple of points. One of them being that if you don't have some agreement within the system from states and from families and from students, it's hard to get to where we need to go.
Source: 2016 PBS Democratic debate in Wisconsin
Feb 11, 2016
Scott Walker:
Continue with tuition freezes
And speaking of students, we helped make college more affordable at our University of Wisconsin campuses as we froze tuition--for the first time ever--four years in a row. During the ten years before our freeze, the average annual increase in tuition
within the University of Wisconsin System was over 8 percent. That was a 118 percent increase over a decade. Compared to the previous trend, our tuition freeze saves the average student more than $6,000 over four years.
Source: 2016 State of the State speech to Wisconsin legislature
Jan 19, 2016
Scott Walker:
Multiple strategies to increase accessibility of college
- We will allow for the full deduction of student loan interest on state income taxes.
- We will increase grants for technical colleges.
- We'll expand the emergency grants program for students at technical colleges and 2-year UW Colleges.
-
We'll increase internships within the UW System to help prepare students for future careers.
- We look to expand transparency by sending information to students each year about their current & projected student loan debt levels and education costs.
Source: 2016 State of the State speech to Wisconsin legislature
Jan 19, 2016
Scott Walker:
Choose schools based on objective info, not Common Core
We will ensure every child--regardless of background or birthright--has access to a quality education. We will continue to empower families to make the choice that is right for their sons and daughters. Tonight, I call on the members of the state
Legislature to pass legislation ensuring objective information is available for each and every school receiving public funds in this state. Provide the information and allow parents to make the choice.
No need for bureaucrats or politicians to make that choice--I trust parents. Give them access to objective information and they will make the choice that is best for their children.
And speaking of what is best for our students,
I call on the members of the state Legislature to pass legislation making it crystal clear that no school district in the state is required to use Common Core standards. Going forward, I want to eliminate any requirement to use Common Core.
Source: State of the State address to 2015 Wisconsin Legislature
Jan 13, 2015
Scott Walker:
Over past 4 years, graduation rates & ACT scores are up
The Wisconsin Comeback is working. School scores are up and more students are graduating.We empowered local school boards to hire and fire based on merit and pay based on performance, so they can keep the best and the
brightest in the classroom. And it's working.
Over the past four years, graduation rates are up. Third grade reading scores are up. ACT scores are up--and Wisconsin now ranks 2nd in the country.
Source: State of the State address to 2015 Wisconsin Legislature
Jan 13, 2015
Leah Vukmir:
Expand school choice
Every child, regardless of location or background, must have access to a quality education. That's why I have worked so hard to improve our public schools, as well as expand
school choice so that parents have the best options available for educating their children. We must also train our workforce by providing them with the tools needed to fill the jobs that are open. Education
Source: 2014 Wisconsin State Senate campaign website LeahVukmir.com
Nov 1, 2014
Glenn Grothman:
Oppose nationwide standards like Common Core
Q: People should be able to vote without photo identification?
GROTHMAN: Strongly Disagree
Source: Faith2Action iVoterGuide on 2014 Wisconsin House race
Sep 30, 2014
Glenn Grothman:
Repeal Common Core; it's unconstitutional
Glenn is in strong opposition to the implementation of the Common Core State Standards in Wisconsin. The top-down federal control of our education system is not only an egregiously wrong approach to education, it's in opposition to the United States
Constitution. Glenn has repeatedly voted against Common Core and all of its various components, and he has sponsored legislative proposals to repeal Common Core in Wisconsin. He will continue this fight in Washington.
Source: 2014 Wisconsin House campaign website, GlennGrothman.com
May 31, 2014
Glenn Grothman:
Vocal advocate for school choice
Glenn has also been a vocal advocate for school choice. He believes that all children should have access to a quality education. For this reason, Glenn authored legislation providing a refundable tax credit to parents of children in private schools.
Ultimately, Glenn was able to secure an income tax deduction for parents with children in private school. This accomplishment has been widely regarded as a huge step forward for school choice in Wisconsin.
Source: 2014 Wisconsin House campaign website, GlennGrothman.com
May 31, 2014
Scott Walker:
UW FlexOption: family-friendly flexible degree program
We also worked with the University of Wisconsin System on a new flexible degree program called UW FlexOption to help adult learners earn degrees in targeted fields. Nearly a quarter of all adults in this state have some college credit without a degree.
For many, time and money are the barriers to finishing that degree.I can relate. During my senior year at Marquette University, I was offered a full-time job at the American Red Cross.
I thought I would squeeze in a course here or there and finish things off in a year or two, but then Tonette and I got married. Then we had Matt. And then came Alex.
Next thing you know, you're putting all your extra time and money into your kids.
The UW FlexOption will provide a less time-consuming, less costly way to finish off a degree. It will help prepare more people to fill the critical needs we have in the workforce.
Source: 2013 State of the State address to Wisconsin Legislature
Jan 15, 2013
Mark Neumann:
School funding & mandates from states, not Feds
Question 2. Are you willing to help eliminate federal mandates and federal funding for education and reallocate those funds to the states?
Mark Neumann: Yes
Tommy Thompson: Yes
Source: 2012 Wisconsin Tea Party Senate Debate Questionnaire
Aug 13, 2012
Tommy Thompson:
School funding & mandates from states, not Feds
Question 2. Are you willing to help eliminate federal mandates and federal funding for education and reallocate those funds to the states?
Mark Neumann: Yes
Tommy Thompson: Yes
Source: 2012 Wisconsin Tea Party Senate Debate Questionnaire
Aug 13, 2012
John Schiess:
Vouchers for public, private or religious schools
Schiess indicates support for the following principles regarding education. - Support state education standards and testing requirements for K-12 students.
- Support requiring public schools to administer high school exit exams.
-
Allow parents to use vouchers to send their children to any public school.
- Allow parents to use vouchers to send their children to any private or religious school.
- Support using a merit pay system for teachers.
Source: Wisconsin Congressional 2008 Political Courage Test
Nov 1, 2008
John Schiess:
Supports moment of silence in public schools
Q: Do you support a moment of silence in public schools?A: Yes.
Q: Do you support voluntary prayer in public schools?
A: Yes.
Q:
Do you support sexual education programs that include information on abstinence, contraceptives, and HIV/STD prevention methods?
A: No.
Q: Do you support abstinence-only sexual education programs?
A: Yes.
Source: Wisconsin Congressional 2008 Political Courage Test
Nov 1, 2008
Tommy Thompson:
End Social Promotion; establish standards instead
In order to maintain the high level of achievement we have come to expect from our students, the days of promoting students to the next grade solely because of their age - “social promotion” - is over. Gov. Thompson believes we owe it to our students,
parents, schools and communities to guarantee that public education in Wisconsin has meaning. Students should be advanced to the next grade level based on academic performance that meets local expectations, not based on their age or social skills.
Under the governor’s plan, local districts would be required to adopt policies prohibiting social promotion and establish standards by which this is accomplished using the fourth- and eight-grade tests. The locally developed
academic standards will allow schools to gauge student performance against a set benchmark. Students who do not meet local criteria will not be advanced to the next grade.
Source: Wisconsin Governor’s web site, “Budget”
Dec 25, 2000
Tommy Thompson:
Created the nation’s first private school choice program
Frustrated that low-income parents in Milwaukee had few education alternatives for their children because of their economic status, Thompson pursued a landmark school choice program that empowered those parents to determine which school their children
would attend.In 1990, Thompson created the nation’s first private school choice program. This initial program allowed low-income parents in Milwaukee to send their children to a private non-sectarian school if they chose. This program was an important
first step to providing low-income families the same educational opportunities available to families with greater resources.
In 1995, Thompson expanded the private school choice program to include religious schools-another national first. The expansion
gave parents a true choice in schools, including more schools in walking distance of their homes. Thompson believes it makes no sense to bus poor Milwaukee children to a failing school across town when a very good school exists down the street.
Source: Wisconsin Governor’s web site, “Budget”
Dec 25, 2000
Tommy Thompson:
Instituted $5,100 vouchers for religious schools
The religious school choice program gives vouchers to parents, who then choose the school for their child. The money follows the child and is not to exceed the tuition costs of the private school. The amount of the voucher in 1999-2000 will be about
$5,100 per pupil. (Including those state aids and local taxes, the cost of educating each child in Milwaukee’s public schools is about $7,500.) If the actual cost at a chosen private school is less than $5,100, the voucher payment for that child is
reduced accordingly. To be eligible for the program, a student must come from a family whose income is at 175% of the poverty level or below - about $29,225 for a family of four.
After the religious school choice law passed just weeks before the
start of school in 1995, about 3,000 low-income parents moved quickly to sign their children up for the religious school choice program. “Religious values are not our problem,” Gov. Thompson said. “Drop-out rates and low test scores are.”
Source: Wisconsin Governor’s web site, “Budget”
Dec 25, 2000
Tommy Thompson:
Instituted statewide Charter School system
Wisconsin was one of the first states to have a statewide charter school program, providing the ultimate in local control - the ability for parents, teachers and the community to literally create their own school. This gives communities
remarkable flexibility to meet the unique needs of their students, a stark contrast to the one-size-fits-all education system of the past. School districts can create unlimited charter schools under the law.
Source: Wisconsin Governor’s web site, “Budget”
Dec 25, 2000
Page last updated: Oct 14, 2021