- The statewide expansion of school choice in Wisconsin
accounts for 3,000 students
beyond the core choice school districts.
Those districts are Racine and Milwaukee.
As of the current school year, there are 121 private schools
participating in the Milwaukee parental choice program.
Total Milwaukee enrollment is approximately 28,000 students.
The program is estimated to cost more than $200 million
in 2016-2017.
Racine has 19 choice schools, serving about 2500 students.
But it's Milwaukee that has been ground zero for the national
school choice movement.
We go there now to a democratic member of the assembly education
committee, who says it's time to put the brakes on state money
for choice schools.
Representative David Bowen is in Milwaukee and thanks very much
for joining us.
- Thank you so much for having me on your show.
- You're welcome.
Now, putting the brakes on school choice at this point
is going to take spike strips.
It seems likely it will be further expanded here
and nationwide.
What's your reaction to that?
- Well, I think the problem is that people
are playing partisan games when we really should be looking at
the evidence and at the data, right?
We know for a fact that just because there is school choice,
in a sense, it does not increase the educational outcomes of our
students, of the preparedness that our families have as they
deal with situations outside of the walls of their schools,
rising poverty, especially in the state of Wisconsin.
We've seen that there are challenges that just having
competition and choice does not address.
- What do you think of Betsy DeVos being named Secretary of
Education?
- Well, I think it was another move where we weren't really
looking at, you know, the person that's best equipped to really
focus on increasing educational outcomes.
I understand Ms. DeVos has connections on the choice and
privatizing education side
that have led her to circles
where people have picked her, you know.
And I think that it more so should be someone that has the
experience, that has the preparedness to take on such an
operation of the Department of Education and truly be aware of
everything that you need to be acclimated to, to really focus
on improving educational outcomes, not just using skewed
data and studies and big money
that has influenced our politics
and our education systems to change things the way that you
see fit.
- Do you feel as though she represents a threat
to public schools?
- I think she recognizes or resembles a threat
to quality public education
for all of our students.
You know, I think that we have a long way to go to actually make
sure that we are prioritizing, you know,
the outcomes and the things
that we need to do to increase those outcomes.
And we need folks
that are not going to bury their heads in the sand
or just cherry picking the things that they want to do.
We need folks that are really committed to addressing the lack
of focus that has happened on our education systems,
where we've put them behind.
We haven't invested the amount of dollars that it takes, on
rural and urban education, especially in Wisconsin.
And we need folks that are not going to just see this as a
partisan issue, but that are really committed to the outcomes
of our young people and, you know, helping our families have
access to a quality of life that compliments the experience that
our children have in education.
- Now, meanwhile, Governor Walker in his State of the State
said his budget would include what he called a "significant
increase for public schools." So what's your reaction to that?
- Well, the problem is that the governor continues to not focus
on the educational outcomes of all of our students.
In his State of the State he was talking about increasing funding
for rural school districts, which is half
of the approach that we need.
I don't think we can have another approach to improving
education by pitting school districts against each other,
rural and urban districts.
Another situation where we are not really moving in the
direction that we need to address the fact that we have
families all over our state that are affected by the things that
are also happening outside of those school walls.
We have a growing number of rural districts that are being
impacted by poverty to an alarming rate.
And I think the governor needs to change his focus.
- All right. We need to leave it there.
We'll be watching for what's in his budget.
Milwaukee State Representative David Bowen, thanks very much.
- Thank you so much.