As always, if you have any concerns or ideas on how to improve our great state, please do not hesitate to contact me by phone at 608-266-5830 or by email at Sen.Darling@legis.wisconsin.gov.

Governor Evers will soon have a choice: does he stand with students and parents or unions and bureaucrats? On Tuesday, the Wisconsin State Senate approved six bills that will shake up the status quo in education.

There is a crisis in our schools, especially in MPS. It is heart-wrenching to watch the governor and Democrats blocking reforms while there are MPS schools that are failing our kids. Unfortunately, they are giving up on another generation of children in Milwaukee.

Opponents of the bill say we need to throw more money at education. The truth is we are making historic investments in K-12 education. Schools received an increase of nearly $3,000 for every student in the state. Even with massive increases in spending, test scores in Milwaukee are going down.

The Senate approved six bills that are part of the Empowering Parents Agenda

Assembly Bill 963: Parental Bill of Rights - Establishes several parental rights relating to decisions regarding a child's religion, medical care, records, and education, and creates a cause of action for the violation of these rights. Allows a parent to bring a suit if those rights are violated.

Assembly Bill 965: School Accountability Reports – Establishes uniform standards for school accountability reports. Our state’s educational accountability system relies heavily on the state school and district report card. This bill improves the accountability reports to provide a clear assessment of student success. 

Assembly Bill 966: Milwaukee Public School Reform – Establishes by 2024, MPS will be divided into smaller community districts that are more manageable and accountable to parents and their communities. The new community district boundaries will be developed by a commission made up of elected officials with a vested interest in the community, including the Mayor of Milwaukee, the Governor, and the State Superintendent. 

Assembly Bill 967 & Assembly Bill 968 High-Performing Charter Replication and Creation of Statewide Charter Board – Charter schools are public schools that operate with less red tape. This bill will streamline replication for the highest performing charter schools in our state and will increase opportunities for more students and families statewide.

Assembly Bill 970: School Choice Expansion - Opens school choice to all Wisconsin families by removing state enrollment caps, family income limits, and grade entry points – marking the beginning of true school choice for all our students and families and ensuring money follows the student into the classroom.

Assembly Bill 975 Substitute Teacher Shortage - Like most states, Wisconsin is facing a shortage of substitute teachers. Unlike most states, it's very difficult to become a teacher of any kind in our state. AB 975 will help get more undergraduate students to get real teaching experience and make sure classes are staffed by professionals.

Assembly Bill 446 Reading Assessments - This bill will screen schoolchildren on their reading abilities earlier and more often, notify parents of concerns, and create a clear direction to get kids back on track to succeed. The bill is based on successful models in other states, including Mississippi, which dramatically increased reading levels after passing similar legislation. Spotting reading problems sooner dramatically increases the chance that a child will succeed in school and life. A previous version of this bill was vetoed by Governor Evers. This version is funded with federal dollars.

This week, I had the honor of meeting Ella O’Neill from Whitefish Bay High School. Ella served as a Senate Scholar during this week's session.

When the Senate is on the floor, Scholars staff the session under the direction of the Senate Sergeant at Arms office.

Thank you, Ella, for your hard work and good luck in school!

If you would like to find out more about the Senate Scholar program, click here.

This didn't happen by accident. Wisconsin is on solid economic ground because we lived within our means, cut taxes, and reformed government. We were careful with your money.

We stopped Governor Evers from hiking taxes by more than $1 billion during the pandemic and raising the gas tax permanently. Instead, we delivered the largest tax cut in state history. Even after tax cuts, we continue to fund our schools at historic levels, balance the budget, and grow our economy.

Click on the picture above to read more.