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Meeting Date:
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4/23/2020 - 6:30 PM
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Category:
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Reports and Communications from the Board Clerk/Chief Officer, Office of Board Governance
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Type:
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Info
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Subject:
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1. Monthly Report, with Possible Action, on Legislative Activities Affecting MPS, Including a Report of the Results of a School-funding Referendum and of School-funding Efforts in Light of the COVID-19 Pandemic
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Strategic Plan Compatibility Statement:
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Goal 1 Academic Achievement Goal 2 Student, Family and Community Engagement Goal 3 Effective and Efficient Operations
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Attachments
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Federal Education group COVID-19 funding letter, dateed April 6, 2020
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File Attachment:
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Background:
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In an extraordinary month in which Milwaukee’s schools have been closed due to a global pandemic, and amid confusion over the effect of the pandemic on the process of voting in the Spring Primary on April 7, citizens in Milwaukee overwhelmingly made clear their support for the students of Milwaukee Public Schools, with 78% of voters having voted in favor of a historic school-funding referendum for MPS.
In anticipation of the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, and with the unemployment rate moving higher than at any time since the Great Depression, organizations advocating for public education have called for a $200 billion federal funding package to protect students and schools and to improve opportunities in this incredible moment in history. Up to this point, however, only $13 billion of funding for public schools has been approved at the federal level. Meanwhile, although revenue estimates are not yet available from Wisconsin’s Legislative Fiscal Bureau, one co-chair of the state’s Joint Committee on Finance has stated that there may be a need to freeze state funding heading into the 2020-2021 fiscal year, the second year of the biennium.
Further detail of the efforts being made at this moment can be found in the attachment to this item.
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Fiscal Impact Statement:
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This item does not authorize expenditures.
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Implementation and Assessment Plan
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The District will continue to pursue appropriate support for students as part of the MPS Legislative Agenda.
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Recommendation:
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Approvals:
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Recommended By:
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Signed By:
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Chris Thiel - Legislative Policy Specialist
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Signed By:
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Jacqueline M. Mann, Ph.D. - Board Clerk/Chief Officer
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