Superintendents Get Political at WAES Conference

“Beyond Bake Sales” panel discussion lead by Superintendents Jay Mitchell of Superior, Ken Bates of Columbus, and Louis Birchbauer of Greenfield

Rep. Sondy Pope-Roberts urged about 50 Wisconsin school superintendents to “get involved in politics” if they wanted to see a change in the way the state funds public schools.

And, judging from the subsequent discussion, district administrators agree that when it comes to school-funding reform for Wisconsin’s public schools, it really is all about getting political.

Pope-Roberts, a Verona Democrat, met with the superintendents at a meeting, Sept. 21, sponsored by the Wisconsin Alliance for Excellent Schools (WAES). The two-hour session was held in the On Wisconsin Room of the “Old Red” Gym on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus.

Although politics meant different things to different people, participants clearly recognized that they and their communities need to get involved if the school-funding system is going to be changed.

One job of the district administrator, many said, was to organize, train, and build capacity in their community. Much of the discussion was spent discussing what kind of political action might be acceptable, appropriate, or suitable for individual districts.

“Superintendents can be the driving force for systemic reform of the finance system,” one district administrator said. “Superintendents can lead the effort … can get the pot stirred up. If you say (as a superintendent) you aren’t willing to get out there and put on the pressure, it’s not going to happen.”

Jay Mitchell, superintendent of schools in Superior, hosted the conference for WAES. He reminded his fellow administrators how difficult their job is because of the state’s funding formula and that the only way to change the system is to change the law, which means getting involved in politics.

The bulk of the session featured three panels of school administrators, moderated by WAES research director Jack Norman, discussing aspects of building community support for school-finance reform.

Panelists Art Rainwater of Madison, George Karling of Three Lakes, and Richard Peters of Crandon

Jan Dooley of Florence, Tom Evert of Janesville, and Sam McGee of Cuba City talked about full disclosure. They dealt with questions of how superintendents can be honest about such divisive issues as service and program cuts caused by inadequate funding without alienating education stakeholders.

The second panel, “Beyond Bake Sales,” focused on how superintendents can build parental and community involvement and capacity for the long-term reform fight, as opposed to bringing them together only as needed for specific projects. Louis Birchbauer of Greenfield, Ken Bates of Columbus, and Mitchell were the panelists.

Finally, panelists dealt with the question of how to distinguish between goals of long-term reform of the funding system and short-term gains from the state’s biennial budget and the importance of not forgetting the former every two years. On the panel were Art Rainwater of Madison, George Karling of Three Lakes, and Richard Peters of Crandon.

Tom Beebe, WAES outreach specialist, wrapped up the event with a recap of the discussion and a question: “Where do we go from here?”

The one clear consensus expressed was on the importance of getting political. Superintendents from around the state listed several methods they had used in their own communities, including urging parents and communities members to contact legislators; training principals to talk with parents; educating teachers and support staff about fiscal challenges; mobilizing parents; and “working aggressively to elect people who are for public schools.”

One superintendent summed up the challenge for reforming the system. Referring to opponents, he said, “Vote’em out of office.”

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