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MPS faces financial difficulties and approves PAC
MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) is struggling financially. On Thursday, the board approved a $1.5 billion budget for the next fiscal year and adopted a corrective action plan (CAP) aimed at stabilizing its finances with the Wisconsin Department of Instruction (DPI).
What do you need to know
- On Thursday, the board approved a $1.5 billion budget for the next fiscal year and adopted a corrective action plan (CAP) aimed at stabilizing its finances with the Wisconsin Department of Instruction (DPI).
- The move comes after a period of turmoil for MPS, which culminated in the resignation of Superintendent Keith Posley
- The district also faces the potential loss of millions of dollars in state aid due to financial irregularities
- MPS board member Henry Leonard said that by early September, MPS will have a better idea of where it stands on the audit portion of the district’s finances, and in the fall, MPS will implement a new plan that will address more financial issues in depth
The move comes after a period of turmoil for MPS, which culminated in the resignation of Superintendent Keith Posley.
The district also faces the potential loss of millions of dollars in state aid due to financial irregularities.
Henry Leonard was one of seven school board directors who voted “yes” on the budget and CAP.
“It couldn’t have happened sooner,” Leonard said. “I would have preferred this to have happened a few weeks ago, but I watched it closely this morning. I like how it’s set up. In fact, it looks like this will give us some definite deadlines.”
Leonard said that by early September, MPS will have a better idea of where it stands on the audit portion of the district’s finances, and in the fall, MPS will implement a new plan that will look more deeply into financial issues.
However, Leonard cautioned that the plan is just the first step.
“It’s not enough to just give us all the corrected data and put everything in place, but going forward, we have to have a real corrective action plan,” Leonard said. “We have to stick to this plan so this never happens again.”
The recently approved budget and CAP were received with a mix of hope and skepticism from MPS families. Students like Zoe Chambers, a junior at Golda Meir High School, shared concerns about the future.
“It’s a little bit of an uncertain feeling as we’re going into a new school year soon,” Chambers said.
As for the outrage expressed at Thursday night’s meeting, Leonard said he understands the frustration expressed by parents and students.
“When it comes to parents, students, staff, people who are upset, I really understand them,” he said. “I agree. I have neighbors who are upset. They are simply confused by what happened. We have lost a significant amount of trust in the community and the only way to rebuild that is to have control over these situations, both financially, operationally, educationally and, whether honest.”
Ultimately, this affects students. Chambers said he thinks more students need to be involved in school board meetings and hiring processes.
“Okay, you are laying off people, but that means it will be younger people. So, really having the youth voice in this hiring process in some way,” Chambers said. “Young people are the people inside schools… I am an MPS student. We are the ones inside the school, so we need to participate in the decision of ‘Who will be our new superintendent?’ ‘Who might be the potential board members?’”
Leonard agreed and said he hopes students can have more of a voice and input in board meetings to better address these situations.
“Explain to them how things work and involve them in the system, giving them not only a voice but also empowerment,” Leonard said. “What a difference this could make 10, 15, 20 years from now.”