On Monday, local legislators and community stakeholders released the overview of their alternative MPS reform plan, dubbed the Reforming and Advancing Children’s Education (RACE) for Success Act.
Sponsored by Rep. Tamara Grigsby and Sen. Spencer Coggs, the bill would allow the democratically elected MPS board to select the superintendent, while allowing the mayor some input on MPS policy, budget and superintendent selection. (See “Compare the MPS Reform Bills” chart for details.)
Grigsby told the Shepherd that the RACE for Success Act would create more community buy-in than the mayor-led proposal. That support, she said, was critical for securing federal “Race to the Top” dollars as well as votes in the state Legislature.
Moving Forward
Gov. Jim Doyle may call a special session of the Legislature to focus on MPS reform. The governor has the authority to call a special session devoted to a specific topic, but the Legislature is not required to act on a bill favored by the governor. It may take up a bill opposed by the governor, or not act meaningfully at all.
Doyle’s preferred bill—the Milwaukee TEACH Act, whose main sponsors are Sen. Lena Taylor, Sen. Tim Carpenter, Sen. Jeff Plale, Rep. Pedro Colon and Rep. Jason Fields—is opposed by Rep. Annette Polly Williams, who chairs the Assembly’s Education Reform Committee. Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker has shown little enthusiasm for the Doyle-backed plan, so it likely will not be fast-tracked in the Senate.
On Monday, Williams predicted that Doyle would not call a special session because “he doesn’t have the votes,” while the RACE for Success Act would attract more support among legislators.
Grigsby said that if a special session is called, then both bills should be debated in the Legislature and public hearings should be held in Milwaukee.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett—who has pushed for mayoral control of MPS—criticized Grigsby and Coggs’ bill, stating that it “does not offer the clear and direct lines of accountability that I have been advocating.”
At a Monday press conference, Coggs chided Barrett, saying that the RACE for Success Act would “empower the board to assist him” in making sure that schools and students are taken care of while Barrett is working as mayor and running for governor.
“He’s going to have his hands full,” Coggs said.
The mayor-led MPS proposal is getting push-back in the community as well.
On Saturday, an estimated 100 members of the Coalition to Stop the MPS Takeover protested outside of Taylor’s home. The coalition—made up of 28 local organizations, including the NAACP Milwaukee Branch, Educators’ Network for Social Justice, 9to5 Milwaukee, Citizen Action of Wisconsin, Voces de la Frontera, members of the MPS board and labor unions—plans to protest in front of Colon’s home on Nov. 21.
Taylor released a statement saying that her resolve “has not diminished” because of the protesters.
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