Life After Vouchers: Expansion, Accountability & Outcomes

Part I: Challenges Moving Forward

In General, Wisconsin Schools are High Performing… Nearly 9 out of 10 (86%) rated schools meet expectations or better.* Only 4% fail to meet expectations. Accountability Rating for Wisconsin Schools *Excludes schools that did not receive a rating.

Wisconsin Schools are High Performing Schools *Excludes schools that did not receive a rating. Nearly 9 out of 10 (88%) rated schools meet or exceed expectations.* Districts Almost all districts meet or exceed expectations.* District & School Report Cards

But Poverty is Growing in WI… Change in Free & Reduced Lunch ( ) Source: Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. School Finance Maps. In many rural districts, more than half the students are eligible for free-and- reduce lunch. Wisconsin FRL Rate Doubles 2001: 21% 2012: 43%

And is a Particular Challenge for Rural Districts Free & Reduced Price Lunch Declining Enrollment

Moreover, Poverty Impacts Student Performance There is a very strong correlation between poverty and school performance. Avg. FRL HIGH-poverty, LOW-performing schools LOW-poverty, HIGH-performing schools

Wisconsin is Increasingly Diverse… Source: Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction & University of Wisconsin –Madison, Applied Population Laboratory. Raw Data Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)

But Students of Color are More Likely to Attend a Low-Performing School

? ? ? So, What Should We Do? Vouchers for Private Schools More Money Less Money Charter Schools Virtual Schools Flexibility State Intervention Longer School Day Longer School Year

Bottom Line How do we equip our successful, schools to do even better in an increasingly competitive world? And how do we improve our struggling schools to ensure no child is left behind, particularly in rural areas?

Part II. The State Budget & Education Funding

School Funding – Simplified! Outside the Revenue Limit

Revenue Limits Have Been Cut…

Shrinking Share of the General Fund

Significant Staff Reductions Wisconsin schools cut more than 3,000 educators during the Great Recession.

And Categorical Aid Reimbursement Rates Have Fallen Reimbursement rates for special education (36% to 26%) and bilingual-bicultural (18% to 8%) services have dropped 10 percentage points since

In the Last Budget, Voucher Schools got the Biggest Increase… Public schools also get a $75 per student categorical aid for all kids. $1,414 Per-Pupil Revenue Increase by School Type

Although, Voucher Schools Get Less Than Public Schools (But Getting Closer) Total Per-Pupil Revenue by School Type

Bottom Line On Average, the State funds 61% of the cost for public school students. However, the State pays 100% of the cost of the statewide voucher and independent charter students.

Part III. Vouchers, Charters, and Virtual Schools, Oh My!

Most Kids Attend Public School Wisconsin enrolls about 5,000 students in Virtual Charter Schools (district and open enrollment) Total Enrollment ( ) Public Schools: 875,000 Private Schools: 120,000

But Voucher Enrollment Grows Over Time In 1998, the State Supreme Court ruled that religious schools could participate in the voucher program. In , the Voucher Program cost $733,800 In , the Voucher Program will cost:$208,656,000

Private School Choice Programs Estimates FTE Students Enrollment RestrictionCosts Milwaukee MPCP 25, % Federal Poverty ($70,947 family of four) No enrollment cap; Only students from Milwaukee 61.6% State funded; 38.4% Local funded $164.3 million Racine RPCP % Federal Poverty ($70,947 family of four) No enrollment cap; Only students from Racine 100% State funded $4.8 million Wisconsin WPCP % Federal Poverty ($43,752 family of four) Enrollment cap: 500 in ; 1,000 in No students from Milwaukee or Racine 100% State funded $3.2 million

Over Time, almost All the Students in a Voucher School are Publicly-Funded In , 78% of students enrolled in any given choice school participated in MPCP. 1/5 of choice schools were 100% choice students; 1/2 of choice schools were 95% or more choice students; 3/4 of choice schools were 68% or more choice students.

And Most Statewide Voucher Students Came From Private Schools Statewide Choice Program Enrollment: 3/4 th of the students were already enrolled in private schools

Overall, Students in Milwaukee Continue to Struggle Note: All students, rather than full academic year (FAY) students are shown for comparison purposes. While FAY data is usually used for accountability purposes, it is not available for choice schools.

Bottom Line For 20 years, the voucher program in Milwaukee has increased educational options, but not student achievement. How does further expanding this program statewide make sense, given the existing fiscal challenges?