This week, the Milwaukee Public School Board approved their revised budget of $1.6 billion, including adding classroom staff and cutting central office positions.
In the 2023-2024 school year, the Milwaukee Public School District (MPS) received $15.3 billion in revenue, equal to about $18,592 a student, an all time high even after inflation. However, the districts are proving to have less success, while having a higher price.
On December 1st of last year, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction released its first early literacy report. The report showed that students scoring below the 25th percentile on the required reading exam must receive additional support, including personal reading plans. (RELATED: Wisconsin Gas Tax Relief Unlikely as Evers Rejects Possible Relief)
From 4K to third grade, it was reported that 36.8%, 97,414 children, scored below the 25th percentile. Students in the First Grade struggled the most with about 47% of students falling below the 25th percentile benchmark. On the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress, only 31% of Wisconsin fourth graders performed at or above the proficient reading level, while 61% reached at least the basic level.
“If we do nothing to improve the literacy, numeracy, and digital problem-solving skills of Wisconsin’s workforce, we will see a decline in the earning power of its residents and the growth of its economy. We need to look at raising literacy levels,” said Michele Erikson, the Executive Director of Wisconsin Literacy Inc. Her company is a non-profit aimed at helping improve statewide literacy skills.
The MPS School Board just approved a $1.6 billion budget that district leaders say will add teaching positions, and close their $45.6 million deficit. The budget adds 159 teaching positions, expands paraprofessional hours, gives employees a 2.63 percent cost-of-living adjustment and reduces central office and contract costs. (RELATED: Marquette Poll Shows Broad Support for Failed Wisconsin Surplus Package)
In 2023-2024, MPS’s budget was about $1.5 billion, about 100 million less than it was just approved for today. However, math and English language arts proficiency remained below 25 percent, while chronic absenteeism in Milwaukee reached 47.5 percent.
