State of Wisconsin
Department of Health and Social Services
Madison
January 3, 1995
To the Honorable the Assembly:
1993 Wisconsin Act 251, Section
19(2)(a)(1), requires the Department of Health and Social Services to submit to the chief clerk of each house of the Legislature a report that describes how emergency medical services can be organized on a regional basis. Attached is the Department's report.
Departmental staff are available if you have any questions or desire any additional information.
Sincerely,
Richard W. Lorang
Acting Secretary, DHSS
Referred to committee on Health.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Health and Social Services
Madison
January 5, 1995
To the Honorable the Assembly:
Section
46.03(26) of the statutes requires the Department of Health and Social Services to report annually on information system projects under development. The attached report is a summary of the departmental systems currently under development.
Sincerely,
Richard w. lorang
Acting Secretary, DHSS
Referred to Joint Committee on Information Policy.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Public Instruction
Madison
January 6, 1995
To the Honorable the Assembly:
As required by s.119.23, Wis. Stats. enclosed for distribution to the appropriate standing committees is the fourth-year report on the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. Authored by John Witte, professor with The Robert M. LaFollette Institute of Public Affairs and the Department of Political Science of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the report is comprehensive and balanced in its independent review of the program.
Among the findings of the report are the following:
* The vast majority of evidence presented in the report is consistent with and confirms the evidence contained in the three previous reports.
* The program accomplishes its intent of making alternative school choices available to low-income families in Milwaukee.
* The number of students participating has increased each year, from 341 in fall 1990, to 521 in fall 1991, to 608 in fall 1992, to 742 in fall 1993, to 830 in fall 1994. Eligible number of students is 1,450 in 1994-95, or 1.5 percent of the Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) enrollment.
* The number of participating schools was seven in 1990-91, six in 1991-92, 11 in 1992-93, and 12 in 1993-94 and in the current school year. Approximately 11 other nonsectarian schools in Milwaukee could participate in the choice program.
* The attrition rate, which was very high, is declining. Excluding graduates and non-alternative schools, the attrition rate from school choice schools was 44 percent between the first and second years, The second-year attrition rate was 32 percent; third year, 28 percent; and fourth year, 23 percent. Attrition rates are higher with alternative schools included: 46 percent in the first year, 35 percent in the second, 31 percent in the third, and 27 percent in the fourth year.
A161
* Pupil attendance in the choice schools is high but only slightly higher than MPS. Attendance by choice students in the non-alternative schools (thus excluding Exito and Learning Enterprises for 1993-94) averaged 94 percent in 1990-91, 92 percent in 1991-92, 92.5 percent in 1992-93 and 93 percent in 1993-94. Average attendance in MPS elementary schools in the last three years has been 92 percent each year.
* The researchers found no systematic evidence that choice students do either better or worse than MPS students on achievement tests, once test scores are controlled for gender, race, income, grade, and prior achievement. Choice students' reading scores increased the first year, fell substantially in the second year, and have remained approximately the same in the third and fourth years. In math, choice students were essentially the same in the first two years but recorded a significant increase in the third, followed by a significant decline this last year.
* Parental attitudes toward choice schools and the education of their children were much more positive than their evaluations of their prior public schools. Similarly, parental involvement, more frequent than for the average MPS parent in prior schools, was even greater for most activities in the choice schools.
* The choice students come from poor, often single-parent households. Similar to MPS parents, approximately 60 percent are receiving AFDC or public assistance. The parents also expressed considerable dissatisfaction with prior public schools, and based on prior test scores, there is clear evidence that their children were not doing well in those schools (both in relative and absolute terms).
* Parents reported high satisfaction with information and assistance received from choice schools and the Department of Public Instruction.
* Staff turnover was up slightly in 1994-95, from 18 percent to 24 percent. Four of 12 schools had new principals or head administrators.
* Teaching staff in Milwaukee choice schools are generally positive about the small class sizes, the autonomy in the classroom, the usually congenial atmosphere in the schools, and the administrative support they received in disciplinary matters. They expressed dissatisfaction with low pay and benefits. Sixty-four percent of the teachers were Wisconsin certified.
* Choice schools received an estimated $3,209 per pupil in 1994-95. When the choice program began in 1990, four of the original seven schools were in serious financial difficulty. With the exception of one school which closed, all are in better financial condition today, and their facilities have improved. A new facility for one of the schools opened in 1993.
* The recommendations in the report are similar to those in the first-, second-, and -third year reports and highlight needed changes in governance, financial reporting, program accountability, information and selection procedures, transportation, and the exclusion of children with exceptional education needs, among others. Most of the recommendations were included in both the governor's budget and the budget of the Department of Public Instruction in 1993 but were not acted upon by the Legislature.
I believe this report provides continuing evidence that while the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program provides an option for low-income parents who have been dissatisfied with the educational alternatives available for their children, it has not provided the dramatic academic improvements in students achievement that would label it a success. The experiment should continue only on a limited basis, but we must realize that it does not deal directly or substantially with the challenges the Milwaukee Public Schools face.
The Department of Public Instruction's biennial budget included a request to reallocate department funds to support recommendations from the Urban Initiative Task Force. Those recommendations, while offered to schools throughout the state with a high incidence of poverty, are targeted to assist 110 schools in Milwaukee. The Urban Initiative recommendations are founded on research that demonstrates improved academic achievement and call for an achievement guarantee contract that includes local solutions to address:
* smaller class sizes in the elementary grades and in academic subjects in the middle school so teachers and students can form more caring relationships;
* a rigorous curriculum that respects diversity;
* schools as centers for coordinated health, recreational, and social service programs; and
* a system of training and accountability for school staff members.
For additional information about Milwaukee Parental Choice Program, please contact Susan Freeze at (608) 266-1647.
Sincerely,
john t. Benson
State Superintendent, DPI
Referred to committee on Urban Education.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Public Instruction
Madison
January 20, 1995
To the Honorable the Legislature:
Section 9145. Non-statutory provisions; vocational, technical and adult education.
A162
(2) CERTIFICATION OF VOCATIONAL, TECHNICAL AND ADULT EDUCATION TEACHERS. By January 1, 1995, the state superintendent of public instruction shall submit a report to the governor, and to the legislature in the manner provided under section
13.172(2) of the statutes. The report shall include an evaluation of the effectiveness of the grants under section
115.366(1)(a)2 of the statutes, as created by this act, in certifying vocational, technical and adult education teachers.
Enclosed is a copy of this report for distribution. If you have questions, please contact Dean Gagnon, Department of Public Instruction, at 267-9244.
Sincerely,
john t. benson
State Superintendent, DPI
Referred to committee on Education.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Public Instruction
Madison
January 20, 1995
To the Honorable the Legislature:
(2t) Management Restructuring Program Study. The state superintendent of public instruction shall evaluate the management restructuring grant program under section
118.013 of the statutes, as affected by this act. By January 1, 1995, the state superintendent shall report his or her findings and recommendations to the governor, and to the legislature in the manner provided under section
13.172(2) of the statutes.
Enclosed is a copy of the required report for distribution. If you have questions, please contact Peter Burke, Department of Public Instruction, at 266-0986.
Sincerely,
john t. benson
State Superintendent, DPI
Referred to committee on Education.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources
Madison
January 23, 1995
To the Honorable the Legislature:
Enclosed is a study required in Section
9142(8) of
1993 Wisconsin Act 16. The section requires the Department of Natural Resources to submit recommendations regarding the appropriate allocation of support program funding within the conservation and environmental funds. The study is to be transmitted to you per section
13.172(2) of the statutes, which permits you to distribute the study to the Legislature. As required, the study is also being transmitted to the Governor.
If you have any questions about this transmittal, please contact Joy Stewart in DNR's Bureau of Management and Budget at 266-2159.
Sincerely,
george E. meyer
Secretary, DNR
Referred to committee on Natural Resources.
__________________
State of Wisconsin
State Historical Society of Wisconsin
Madison
January 30, 1995
To the Honorable the Assembly:
Please find enclosed a status report on submerged cultural resources management activities in Wisconsin for the period January 1993 through December 1994. This report is supplied to your office in compliance with Wisconsin statutes 44.47, for distribution to the appropriate standing committees.
If I can be of any other assistance, please do not hesitate to call me 608/264-6493.
Sincerely,
