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LARSON REPORT |
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WEEKLY NEWSLETTER |
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Click here to view this Email in your Web browser
September 20, 2012 |
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CONTACT ME
Mailing Address:
State Capitol
Web Site:
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COMMUNITY
EVENTS Supporting our neighbors and being involved in our community is of the utmost importance. Some community events that might be of interest to you and your family are listed below.
Location: Milwaukee
Description:
Come and enjoy the day in one of Milwaukee’s most charming and unique
neighborhoods by visiting Milwaukee Public Market's Outdoor Market
happening every Thursday and Saturday through October. In addition to
the fresh seasonal produce, the outdoor market experience is
complemented by some of the best artists in the region. The market will
be held on St. Paul Avenue.
CLICK HERE for more information and to view a map.
Oktoberfest
Location:
Milwaukee
Date: Now through Fri., October 19 at 7 p.m. Location: Milwaukee Description: Learn more about Medusa and other monsters in Greek mythology by stopping the the UW-Milwaukee Planetarium. General admission is $2. CLICK HERE or call (414) 229-4961 for more information.
Manfred Olson Planetarium in the Physics Building (MAP) 1900 E. Kenwood Blvd. Milwaukee, WI 53211
Tomato Romp! Description: Enjoy one of Milwaukee's messiest events of the year. Attend the annual Tomato Romp, which includes an old fashioned tomato fight and a Bloody Mary competition. Tomato Fighters must be at least 16 years old to participate. As in previous years, registration will begin at 10 a.m. in front of Beans and Barley at 1901 East North Avenue. Cost is $20 per person per Bloody Mary ballot and $10 for the Tomato Fight. Ballots for the Bloody Mary Contest will be limited so get there early early. The 2011 defending champions are Cans Bar and Canteen (Judges' Choice) and Hotch Spot (Fan Favorite). Serving ends at 3:00pm, and winners will be announced before the Tomato Fight. CLICK HERE for more information.
2012 Komen
Southeast WI Race for the Cure
Description:
Whether you run, walk or stroll, discover with every step your
power to change the world. Join the 14th Annual Susan G. Komen Southeast
Wisconsin Race for the Cure at Milwaukee's Lakefront on Sunday,
September 23 at 9:15 a.m. In conjunction with its sponsorship of the
Race, Kohl’s is continuing its sponsorship of Kids for the Cure, a
children’s area at the Race for children 12 and under.
CLICK HERE for more information about this event.
Milwaukee Film
Festival
Humboldt Park (MAP) 3000 S. Howell Avenue Milwaukee, WI 53207
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Dear Friend,
With the State of Education address being delivered today, this week's newsletter will focus on Agenda 2017, Milwaukee's upcoming head count, and visits to our neighborhood schools.
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State of Education Focuses on Investing in Real Reform |
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Tough Year for Students, Teachers, and Parents School budget cuts are real and have not gone unnoticed by communities, students, and parents. The claims that savings from Act 10 covered all cuts and put our neighborhood schools in a better position have proven false. To cope with the largest budget cuts in state history, school districts were forced to take away resources from some of our most valuable educational tools. The largest cuts were made to school libraries, special education, and reading specialists. Additionally, school districts cut nearly 2,400 staff last year, and nearly 75% of school districts cut teachers.
Wisconsin schools also had to make cuts to programs aimed at providing every Wisconsin child a pathway to a family-supporting career. Despite Wisconsin's employers struggling to find skilled workers, Governor Walker and Republican legislators cut funding for career and technical education classes. Our investment in career and technical education has decreased 40% in the past 20 years and since 2004, districts have cut 20% of our career and technical education workforce. Approximately 50% of these cuts occurred in the past two years alone. To make Wisconsin a pro-business state, we also have to make it a pro-education one.
Moving Forward with Agenda 2017 We should celebrate our accomplishments, such as our students scoring second in the country on the ACT and consistently leading the nation in high school graduation. However, we also should not cease striving to do better for Wisconsin's children. Despite nation-leading graduation rates, nearly 6,000 Wisconsin students drop out every year. We also need to work to decrease graduation gaps. Currently, Hispanic and American Indian students drop out at a rate of one in four, and African American students at a rate of one in three. Wide gaps persist for students with disabilities, English language learners, and students in poverty, as well. High school dropouts earn far less and are far more likely to be unemployed. For their futures and ours, we must fight to make every child a graduate.
To combat our persistent challenges, Superintendent Evers has launched Agenda 2017. This comprehensive agenda sets aggressive, but achievable, goals and lays out a plan to meet them by the year 2017. Through improved standards and instruction, revamped assessments and data systems, increased school and educator accountability, and school finance reform, we can work together to raise graduation rates, close gaps, and increase career and college readiness. Below are just some of the provisions of Agenda 2017 that have already been put into effect:
While our schools have already implemented a number of positive reforms, there are still others that need to be put into action or require legislative approval. Below is a listing of such provisions:
Bring Respect Back to Teachers Every Monday through Friday, from September through June, we entrust Wisconsin's teachers with those most valuable to us--our children. The men and women teaching our children play a fundamental role in their present and future success. Unfortunately, over the past year and a half, contentions surrounding Act 10 and the 2011-2012 Biennial Budget have unjustly placed targets on the backs of our teachers. Superintendent Evers shared plenty of stories today detailing how the lives of teachers have been negatively impacted by disparaging rhetoric. One teacher, for example, drives to a grocery store two towns away to ensure she can shop in peace. Another teacher broke down in tears when asked what advice she would give to aspiring educators. While a different teacher admitted she no longer tells people her profession because she is afraid where the conversation will go.
Teachers continue moving forward with their profession because they are devoted to our kids and love to teach. Wisconsin's teachers deserve to make enough to raise a family. Furthermore, it is unacceptable that many of our teachers today feel undervalued, underappreciated, and disrespected.
Changing How We View Education We must stop forcing schools to balance their budgets on the backs of kids and working families. It is time to change how we view education. Rather than treating education funding as something expendable, we instead need to invest in remodeling our current education system. While Governor Walker keeps trying to convince us that two plus two equals five, Tony Evers has proposed a plan that adds up. We cannot afford to keep following failed policies when we have common sense solutions right in front of us. I support Superintendent Evers' plan and look forward to supporting pending proposal provisions once session resumes in January 2013.
Click here to view a copy of State Superintendent Tony Evers' State of Education address.
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Legal Victory for Workers' Rights |
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This past Friday, a Dane County judge struck down 2011 Wisconsin Act 10, a law created by Governor Walker to repeal most collective bargaining for local and state employees. The law will remain largely in effect for state workers, while city, county, and school district employees will instead follow the state statutes in place prior to passage of Act 10 in March 2011.
According to the court ruling, Act 10 violated constitutional rights to free speech and free association, and also infringed on equal representation by capping union workers' raises but not those of their nonunion counterparts, and treating police and firefighters differently from other union employees. The ruling also stated that the law violated the "home rule" clause of the state constitution by setting the retirement contribution rate for City of Milwaukee employees rather than leaving it to the city and workers.
Click here to read the full court ruling on Act 10.
Democratic legislators raised concerns about the legality and constitutionality of Act 10 prior to its passage. Unfortunately, Governor Walker and his rubberstamp legislators ignored these warnings, instead opting to ram this legislation through as quickly as possible. Worries that the constitutional and legal rights of Wisconsinites were being violated prompted Madison teachers and City of Milwaukee workers to file the lawsuit that led to the ruling.
The ruling is a tremendous victory for Wisconsin, especially those that fought to ensure they had a seat at the discussion table and also increase accountability and transparency in the law-making process. With the support of Governor Walker, Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen has filed a brief to stay, or suspend, the ruling and proceed with the restrictions of Act 10 until legal challenges to the decision can be evaluated. It is unclear what will happen should this case reach the Court of Appeals or the Wisconsin Supreme Court. However, in the meantime, this ruling will help ensure that the views of workers are considered before a decision is made and that such employees receive some level of respect from Governor Walker and state legislators.
Click here for further analysis on this issue provided by WUWM-Milwaukee Public Radio.
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Visits to Our Neighborhood Schools |
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These visits make me even more appreciative of the hard work our teacher put in with our children each and every day. I look forward to visiting more schools and classes throughout the 2012-2013 school year and sharing the concerns raised by students, teachers, and parents.
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Schools Take Student Head Count Friday |
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This Friday, Milwaukee Public Schools
will complete their official head count. This is done each third Friday
in September. The figure calculated reflects the number of students
living in the district who are enrolled in public schools, and excludes
students who attend other school districts through open enrollment or
participate in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. The numbers also
might differ from other enrollment counts that factor in students that
are enrolled full-time or part-time.
Unfortunately, this day often reminds public school teachers, parents, and advocates of the loophole in state policies that allows voucher schools to keep receiving taxpayer money, even months after a voucher student leaves for another school. The amount of tax dollars given to voucher schools each year is also based off of the annual September headcount. Knowing this, voucher schools often try to retain their full student body until after the headcount. Once the headcount is complete they will continue to receive taxpayer funds on behalf of students that eventually leave during the school year.
While many Wisconsinites assume financial resources follow the child during their education, this is simply not always the case. In fact, when a student transfers from a private or religious voucher school to a public school, taxpayers could be paying to educate him or her twice--once in voucher payments to the private school and again in taxes to their public school district.
Clearly this flaw related to funding the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program based on Milwaukee's headcount needs to be remedied by improving accountability and transparency beyond just one day each year. As a member of the Committee on Education and Corrections, I look forward to addressing this issue in greater detail once the Legislature convenes for the 2013-2014 Legislative Session in January.
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Ask Chris |
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I often have neighbors contact me looking for my perspective on various local and state issues. I very much appreciate our neighbors' questions and want to dedicate a portion of my newsletter to common questions that I hear to maintain an open dialogue. Please continue reading for this week's question.
Q: Wisconsin has one of the highest rates of pertussis in the country, and measles has been recently making a come back. What is your opinion of changing the state's criteria for vaccine exemptions, in order to increase the number of children who are fully vaccinated for school?
A:
Wisconsin State Statute 252.04 establishes the immunization requirements
for each age/grade level that are to be implemented by every school
district in Wisconsin. While each school district must follow these
minimum standards, they also have the authority to create stricter
standards. Currently, all students attending public school are required
to be current on their shots to help fight against both measles (MMR)
and pertussis (DTaP). However, Wisconsin does let parents submit a
vaccination waiver if they oppose vaccines for their children because of
personal convictions, medical reasons, or religious beliefs.
While I am not opposed to changing the
process for applying for an immunization waiver to ensure that a greater
number of students are immunized, if we are to make changes to the
current process, we should first have community meetings that involve
parents, students, teachers, medical leaders, and other community
members. This will allow us to ensure that all of our neighbors’
perspectives are heard and that we come together to decide what is in
the best interest of our children and community.
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Did You Know...? |
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Thank You, Neighbors |
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Requirements for Voting This Fall |
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I have been getting a lot of questions about what the requirements are for voting this fall. Here is some information that should help.
Last session, the Legislature enacted 2011 Wisconsin Act 23. This changed many of Wisconsin's requirements for voters, including those related to photo identification, residency, and absentee voting. While the ID restriction was ruled unconstitutional and two separate Circuit Court judges ordered government officials to halt requiring voters to present a valid photo ID when casting their vote, all other provisions of this law remain in effect.
To clarify what is and is not required of voters, I have created a PDF detailing some of the most important aspects of this law that may affect you or your family.
Click here to view a copy of this PDF, which will also be available on my Web site next week.
More information about requirements for voters can also be found at the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board's Web site. This organization is tasked with ensuring Wisconsin's elections are administered through open, fair, and impartial procedures that guarantee that the vote of each individual counts, and the will of the electorate prevails. Their Web site contains a host of information for voters, including but not limited to how to register and where, the process for voting absentee, and procedures military and overseas personnel should follow.
Click here to visit the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board's Web site.
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Neighborhood Survey Available |
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Click here to save a stamp and take the survey online.
I look forward to hearing your views on these important issues!
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