Chapter 38

38.28(2)(d) (d) Notwithstanding pars. (b), (be), and (bm), the board may withhold, suspend or reduce in whole or in part payment of state aid under this subsection to any district board whose program or educational personnel does not meet minimum standards set by the board or which violates this chapter or any rule promulgated by the board under the authority of this chapter. The board shall discontinue aids to those programs which are no longer necessary to meet needs within the state.

38.28(2)(e) (e) Aids shall not be paid to a district board for any program unless the intended content of each course has been thoroughly described, and the program has been designated and approved by the state director and reviewed by the board. The board shall establish procedures to implement this subsection which shall enhance the district’s ability to respond rapidly to the needs of its citizens.

38.28(2)(f) (f) The board shall compile information on anticipated cost for each succeeding fiscal year by the preceding January 1.

38.28(4) (4) From the appropriation under s. 20.292 (1) (f), the board may pay to any district that does not have an institution or college campus located within the district an amount equal to that portion of the instructional costs of the district’s collegiate transfer program not supported by fees and tuition that is equal to the state support of similar programs in the University of Wisconsin System, as determined by the board. In this subsection, “institution” and “college campus” have the meanings specified under s. 36.05.

38.28(5) (5) State aid shall not be paid to a district for any year, unless every teacher, administrator, principal and supervisor employed by the district during that year is under a contract providing for leave of absence by reason of sickness of such person, without deduction from salary, for not less than 5 days per year and for accumulation of unused sick leave from year to year to a total of not less than 30 days. No allowance may be paid for such absences from teaching or other educational services rendered in evening school by any person employed at least 30 hours per week in day school. This subsection does not apply to a person employed by the district board for less than 30 hours per week.

38.28 History History: 1971 c. 154, 211; 1973 c. 90; 1975 c. 39, 224; 1977 c. 29, 418; 1979 c. 34, 221; 1981 c. 20, 269; 1983 a. 27; 1985 a. 29; 1985 a. 332 s. 251 (3); 1987 a. 27, 399; 1989 a. 31, 102, 336; 1991 a. 39, 322; 1993 a. 16, 377, 399, 437; 1995 a. 27 ss. 1812, 9145 (1); 1995 a. 225; 1997 a. 27, 237; 1999 a. 9, 185; 2001 a. 16, 109; 2003 a. 33; 2005 a. 25; 2013 a. 20; 2015 a. 55, 282; 2017 a. 59; 2023 a. 89.

38.28 Cross-reference Cross-reference: See also ch. TCS 10, Wis. adm. code.

38.29 38.29 Chauffeur training grants.

38.29(1) (1) The board may award grants to district boards under this section for the development of advanced chauffeur training facilities, the acquisition of instructional equipment for such facilities, operational costs associated with the maintenance of such facilities and equipment and costs incurred in the coordination of the training programs.

38.29(2) (2) 

38.29(2)(a) (a) Any district board receiving aid under s. 38.28 (2) (g) may apply to the board for a grant for the purposes described under sub. (1).

38.29 Note NOTE: Section 38.28 (2) (g) was repealed by 2013 Wis. Act 20.

38.29(2)(b) (b) The board shall review the application according to criteria and procedures established by the board. If an application submitted under par. (a) is approved, the board shall notify the district board of the amount and conditions of the grant to be awarded.

38.29(2)(c) (c) Amounts awarded shall be paid from the appropriation under s. 20.292 (1) (f).

38.29(3) (3) Each district board receiving a grant under this section shall, by September 1 of the fiscal year following receipt of the grant, file a report with the board. The report shall evaluate the district board’s performance in attaining the goals specified in the application submitted under sub. (2) (a).

38.29 History History: 1985 a. 29; 1997 a. 27; 2013 a. 20.

38.30 38.30 Special aid for veterans.

38.30(1) (1) 

38.30(1)(a) (a) District boards may receive payments from the U.S. department of veterans affairs for tuition to cover the cost of training for resident and nonresident students who are enrolled in district schools and are veterans eligible for benefits under federal law.

38.30(1)(b) (b) District boards may receive payments from the department of workforce development under s. 47.02 to cover the cost of training for resident and nonresident students who are enrolled in district schools and are veterans ineligible for benefits under par. (a).

38.30(1)(c) (c) District boards shall not receive payments under this subsection which, together with other receipts for the same purpose exclusive of the funds provided under s. 38.16, would exceed the full cost of training provided such veterans.

38.30(1)(d) (d) The amounts received for nonresidents under this subsection shall not be less than the amounts specified in s. 38.24 (3) but may exceed such amounts.

38.30(2) (2) Upon the authorization of a school board or district board, the board may enter into contracts with the U.S. department of veterans affairs for training in vocational agriculture to be provided by such school board or district board to veterans eligible for benefits under federal law. The board shall receive from the U.S. department of veterans affairs payments granted to cover the cost of administration by the board and, to be paid to the school board or district board, payments granted to cover the cost of such training.

38.30 History History: 1971 c. 154; 1973 c. 284 s. 32; 1977 c. 29; 1983 a. 435 s. 7; 1989 a. 56; 1995 a. 27 ss. 1813, 9130 (4); 1997 a. 3.

38.31 38.31 Veteran grant jobs pilot program.

38.31(1) (1) 

38.31(1)(a) (a) The board shall establish a veteran grant jobs pilot program. Under this program, the board shall, subject to par. (b), award grants to district boards that request funding to support programs or services for veterans. Grants awarded under this section shall be awarded through a competitive grant process and paid from the appropriation under s. 20.292 (1) (r). No grant may be awarded under this section after June 30, 2017.

38.31(1)(b) (b) Before awarding any grant under par. (a), the board shall secure additional funding commitments of at least $500,000 to match grant awards by the board under par. (a). No new state moneys may be contributed toward the matching funds required under this paragraph.

38.31(2) (2) Programs or services eligible for a grant under sub. (1) include programs or services related to any of the following:

38.31(2)(a) (a) Recruiting, training, or graduating veterans in high-demand fields, as identified by the department of workforce development.

38.31(2)(b) (b) Providing specialized support services for veterans, including career pathway planning, case management, advising by experts in military education related to obtaining credit for prior learning, early alert interventions, and referrals to or subcontracting with external organizations to provide specialized support services.

38.31(2)(c) (c) Collaborations with employers.

38.31(2)(d) (d) Work-based learning activities, such as internships, service learning, mentoring, job coaching, and job shadowing.

38.31(2)(e) (e) Specialized instructional methodologies that have been demonstrated to be helpful for veterans to enhance student retention and completion.

38.31(2)(f) (f) Creating, expanding, or implementing innovative methods that provide direct services to veterans, with a goal to support students through specific completion points such as completion of courses, semesters, programs, or certificates.

38.31(2)(g) (g) Counseling or career services, which may include personal, educational, and career development support as well as proactive behavior and crisis intervention services.

38.31(2)(h) (h) Targeted services based on student need such as financial literacy, career assessment and planning services, career workshops, computer skills and study skills workshops, veterans peer support groups, or tutoring or supplemental instruction.

38.31(2)(i) (i) Accommodation and transition services, including assistive technology such as adaptive equipment, instructional aids and devices, and related services for injured veterans.

38.31(2)(j) (j) Providing access or referrals to emergency dependent care and transportation assistance.

38.31(2)(k) (k) Any other program or service for veterans.

38.31(3) (3) Not later than September 1, 2017, the board shall submit a report to the joint committee on finance that includes all of the following information:

38.31(3)(a) (a) The technical colleges that received grant funding under this section and the amount of funding received by each.

38.31(3)(b) (b) The programs or services funded through the grant program under this section.

38.31(3)(c) (c) The total number of veterans supported through the grant program under this section.

38.31(3)(d) (d) The amount of unencumbered funds, if any, that lapsed to the veterans trust fund from the appropriation account under s. 20.292 (1) (r) at the end of the 2015-17 fiscal biennium.

38.31 History History: 2015 a. 55.

38.32 38.32 Technical college instructor occupational competency program.

38.32(1) (1) The board shall establish a technical college instructor occupational competency program. The program shall be designed to provide technical college instructors in district schools with temporary work experiences in business and industry in order to improve their knowledge and skills in the subjects they teach.

38.32(2) (2) The board shall review proposals submitted by district boards that are consistent with sub. (1). From the appropriation under s. 20.292 (1) (f), the board may award grants to district boards to partially pay the salaries of teachers participating in approved proposals. Any funds received by a district board under this subsection shall be equally matched by the district board.

38.32(3) (3) To the extent possible, grants awarded under sub. (2) shall be equally distributed on a statewide basis.

38.32 History History: 1983 a. 370; 1989 a. 56; 1991 a. 39; 1993 a. 399; 2013 a. 20; 2015 a. 329.

38.33 38.33 Professional development grants.

38.33(1) (1) From the appropriation under s. 20.292 (1) (f), the board may award grants to district boards to establish professional development programs. The programs shall promote all of the following:

38.33(1)(a) (a) Instructor awareness of and expertise in a wide variety of newly emerging technologies.

38.33(1)(b) (b) The integration of learning technologies in curriculum and instruction.

38.33(1)(c) (c) The use of instructional methods that involve emerging technologies.

38.33(1m) (1m) The board may not award a grant to a district board under this section unless there is a matching fund contribution from the district board equal to at least 50 percent of the grant amount.

38.33 History History: 1997 a. 27; 2013 a. 20; 2015 a. 329.

38.34 38.34 Funding to expand the oral health care workforce.

38.34(1) (1) In this section, “eligible expenditures” means any of the following:

38.34(1)(a) (a) Capital expenditures, such as expenditures for equipment or facility improvements or expansion.

38.34(1)(b) (b) Expenditures for instructional supplies, teaching materials and resources, consumables, or clinic fees.

38.34(1)(c) (c) Instructor bonuses if the requirements in sub. (3) are satisfied.

38.34(2) (2) 

38.34(2)(a) (a) In the 2023-25 fiscal biennium, the board, in coordination with district boards, may submit to the joint committee on finance a request for funding in the 2023-25 fiscal biennium, in a total amount not exceeding $20,000,000, for district board programs to expand the state’s oral health care workforce. Subject to par. (b) and sub. (5), the request for funding shall include a plan that identifies each district board that requests funding, the amount of funding the district board requests, and a detailed description of the eligible expenditures for which the requested funding would be used.

38.34(2)(b) (b) The plan under par. (a) shall include requests for all of the following:

38.34(2)(b)1. 1. For the district board of Northcentral Technical College, up to $2,000,000 to expand current dental hygienist and dental assistant programs and for development of a dental therapy program if dental therapy becomes an authorized dental practice.

38.34(2)(b)2. 2. For any district board that offers a dental hygienist program on February 2, 2024, other than the district board of Northcentral Technical College, up to $1,430,000.

38.34(2)(b)3. 3. For any district board that offers no dental program or only a dental assistant program on February 2, 2024, up to $1,000,000 to create a new program or expand the existing program.

38.34(2)(c) (c) The requirement under par. (b) does not preclude a request for funding in the plan of any additional amount for a district board for a purpose permissible under sub. (5).

38.34(3) (3) 

38.34(3)(a) (a) Funding provided by the board to a district board under this section may be used to pay newly hired instructors a hiring bonus not exceeding $5,000 per instructor if all of the following apply:

38.34(3)(a)1. 1. The instructor is hired into a position that is at least a 0.5 full-time equivalent position.

38.34(3)(a)2. 2. The instructor’s work responsibilities require the instructor to devote an amount of time at least equal to a 0.5 full-time equivalent position teaching courses in an oral health care program.

38.34(3)(a)3. 3. The district board provides matching funding for the bonus in an amount equal to or greater than the amount of the funds provided under this subsection.

38.34(3)(a)4. 4. The instructor agrees in writing to continue employment with the district board for at least 3 years in a position that satisfies the requirements in subds. 1. and 2.

38.34(3)(a)5. 5. The district board commits to pay the retention bonus under sub. (4), from funds other than the grant awarded under this section, if the conditions in sub. (4) are satisfied.

38.34(3)(a)6. 6. The instructor was not employed by the district board, or by any other district board, at any time in the 75-day period immediately preceding February 2, 2024.

38.34(3)(b) (b)

38.34(3)(b)1. 1. The agreement under par. (a) 4. shall specify that, except as provided in subds. 2. to 4., if the instructor discontinues employment with the district board less than 3 years after the instructor’s first day of employment, the instructor is required to repay the hiring bonus as follows:

38.34(3)(b)1.a. a. All of the bonus if the term of employment was less than one year.

38.34(3)(b)1.b. b. Two-thirds of the bonus if the term of employment was at least one year but less than 2 years.

38.34(3)(b)1.c. c. One-third of the bonus if the term of employment was at least 2 years but less than 3 years.

38.34(3)(b)2. 2. If the instructor discontinues employment with the district board to begin employment with a different district board, in a position that is at least a 0.5 full-time equivalent position, as an instructor in an oral health care program, the repayment requirement under subd. 1. does not apply and the 3-year period under par. (a) 4. continues in effect from the instructor’s first day of employment with the district board that paid the hiring bonus.

38.34(3)(b)3. 3. If a district board pays an instructor a hiring bonus under par. (a) and the instructor is terminated for cause less than 3 years after the instructor’s first day of employment, the instructor is required to repay all of the bonus.

38.34(3)(b)4. 4. If a district board pays an instructor a hiring bonus under par. (a) and the instructor is terminated for a reason other than cause, including as a result of budgetary constraints or program changes, the instructor is not required to repay the bonus.

38.34(3)(c) (c) An instructor who is simultaneously employed by 2 district boards may not receive more than one bonus under this subsection.

38.34(4) (4) The district board shall pay to an instructor who receives a hiring bonus under sub. (3) a retention bonus in the amount of $5,000 if, 5 years after the date the bonus under sub. (3) was paid, the instructor remains employed by the district board in a position that meets the requirements under sub. (3) (a) 1. and 2.

38.34(5) (5) The plan under sub. (2) shall include sufficient information for the joint committee on finance to determine that, for each district board program for which funding is requested, all of the following requirements are satisfied: