Wisconsin Education NewsDecember 18, 2025A daily update of education news and events that are taking place around Wisconsin. When Property Tax Bills Arrive, It's Important To Tell The Whole Story On short notice, the Assembly Education Committee is holding a public hearing today on several bills, including Assembly Bill 391. This proposal would eliminate the $325 per-pupil adjustment in the school district revenue-limit formula beginning with the 2027–28 school year. Given the heightened attention on rising property-tax bills now reaching taxpayers across the state, this legislation is likely to receive significant media coverage. Appleton school board to weigh results of referendum survey APPLETON, Wis. (WBAY) - The results are in for a referendum survey, shared with Appleton families, as the school district aims to pay off a $13 million budget deficit. The survey results indicate good news for the Appleton Area School District. Data shared earlier Wednesday shows a significant amount of support to ask the community for more funding. Clinton announces superintendent choice CLINTON — Glenda Butterfield-Boldig, the current superintendent of the Bowler School District in north-central Wisconsin, will be the new superintendent of Clinton Community Schools. The Clinton district announced Tuesday morning that Butterfield-Boldig was chosen to succeed Jim Brewer as district administrator. She will take over officially on July 1, 2026. Forward Bank Donates $16,000 to Abbotsford School District for New Scoreboards Forward Bank is proud to announce a donation of $16,000 to the Abbotsford School District to fund two new scoreboards for the baseball and softball fields. This investment reflects Forward’s commitment to strengthening local communities by supporting programs that develop future leaders. Superintendent says listening sessions were valuable ANTIGO — During Monday night’s meeting, Antigo School District Superintendent Glenda Oginski updated the board of education with her monthly report. According to Oginski, listening sessions were held at all school buildings the week before and after Thanksgiving break to meet with staff in each building. Hustisford School District mulls referendum options HUSTISFORD — Nathan Dorn didn’t mince any words when he spoke spiritedly before the Hustisford School Board and district families who overflowed the high school library on Monday night. “We’re trying to improve our downtown in Hustisford and make it attractive for those who visit,” he said. “But driving along Highway 60 you can see the schools and they’re not that great to look at. Growth costs money. People who move here want to send their children to school here.” WUSD Board passes two resolutions for $4.5M referendum WATERTOWN — The Watertown Unified School District Board solidified its $4.5 million referendum with the passing of two resolutions during Monday night’s meeting. The first was a resolution to exceed revenue limits by $4.5 million per year for five years, and the second providing a referendum question on April’s ballot. Poynette Middle School students display scientific method in annual science fair The Poynette Middle School held their third annual History and Science Fair, where students and guests learned about those topics in their many facets, but also about the educational journey of each student. Art the Dec. 15 Poynette School Board meeting, Principal Jacob Hunter reported on the success of the Dec. 11 event. Hunter described it as an opportunity for showcasing the students’ creativity and design skills. Waunakee School District looks to reduce chronic absenteeism Being recognized as “significantly exceeding expectations” on its latest state report card is something the Waunakee School District takes pride in. There is, however, at least one area where school officials want to see better results — namely, chronic absenteeism. Lodi Schools Community Viability Team advances facility planning work The School District of Lodi recently held the fourth meeting of its Community Viability Team (CVT), continuing the collaborative facility planning process that will shape the future of the district’s learning environments, career education programs, arts, athletics, and outdoor spaces. The CVT—made up of community members, staff, and parents—remains focused on developing a shared vision for facilities that support student success and reflect community values. Construction manager approved for Gilmore Fine Arts updates project RACINE, WI – The construction manager for the Gilmore Fine Arts School update project was approved at Monday’s Racine Unified School Board meeting. Scherrer Construction Company, Inc. was the approved contractor for the $6,117,181 project. Bloom Companies is the architect, and construction is expected to begin in summer 2026 and be completed by summer 2027, according to the long-range facility master plan. The Raymond School Board is moving forward with plans to conduct a facilities feasibility study and recently heard presentations from three firms hoping to land the job. At a special meeting Dec. 15 before the board meeting, architecture and planning firms PRA, Bray Architects, and Nexus Solutions each outlined their qualifications and approach for helping the district assess its aging school building and plan for long-term facility needs. Technology director gives positive update in monthly report ANTIGO — In Antigo School District Technology Director Keshia Mashak monthly report, she wrote that all technology has been removed from East Elementary. According to Mashak’s report, “All instructional and office technology has been removed from East Elementary in preparation for the building’s next phase of work.” Wisconsin Rapids School District to review community input following survey about funding challenges WISCONSIN RAPIDS, Wis. (WSAW) - The Wisconsin Rapids School District is thanking the community for participating in a survey to provide feedback about the district’s future. The district said administration and Board of Education will review the feedback to create a plan that reflects the community’s voice. More details on the proposed solution will be shared in the coming months. The district created a survey during the fall, which asked community members to complete a survey as the district faces a $3.5 million deficit for the 2026-27 school year. Holiday spirit was in full swing as Neillsville’s Connections Club visited the Children’s Hospital of Marshfield to help set up the Holiday Shopping Area. This magical space gives families admitted between now and Christmas the chance to pick out gifts at no cost for their child in the hospital and their children at home. SUSSEX — District leaders chose not to address the Turning Point USA club situation during Monday night’s Sussex Hamilton School Board meeting, with only the club’s president speaking about the matter. “I just wanted to come up here and say thank you to the administration and my principal for taking time to listen, support students, and guide us through the process of creating a club,” Lucy, the club’s president, said. Two Rivers High School to Honor First 50 Donors to Athletic Facility Project Progress is being made on some new athletic facilities in Two Rivers. A group of volunteers has been meeting for almost a year to discuss how to improve and update the outdoor athletic facilities at Two Rivers High School. Students staying busy before winter break At the Monday, Dec. 15 Stoughton Area School District Board of Education meeting, student representative Mikayla Becker highlighted what the students of the district are doing leading up to winter break. The Interact club at the high school held a toy drive at the school, and they were able to receive over 150 items that will be distributed throughout Dane county. The students in the student council attended a leadership conference at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. Congressman Mark Pocan also spoke to government and AP History classes at the high school. La Crosse School District awards $32.7m bid for new elementary school construction LA CROSSE, Wis. (WKBT) -- The Board of Education for the La Crosse School District approved a $32.7 million construction bid to build a new elementary school at the Hogan Administrative site. Market & Johnson won the project, who have done work with the La Crosse School District in the past. ‘Everything Must Go’: The holiday store in an Eau Claire middle school Every December, Eau Claire DeLong Middle School’s special education department holds a holiday sale in the teacher’s lounge. This sale rivals Black Friday in hype — though not in quality. Staff members are encouraged to donate items they no longer want or need, and they eagerly load their minivans with boxes and bags full of odds and ends. Lincoln High students swap screen time for study time after phone ban MANITOWOC (NBC 26) — The district's phone ban requires all cell phones, smart glasses and smart watches to be kept in lockers during school hours. "It has gone very well, we've seen a reduction in referrals," said Micah Hoffman, Lincoln High School principal. Hoffman says they've also seen book checkouts increase by 25% and audiobook checkouts jump by 600%. It's reading and listening students are doing, often in study hall, instead of staring at a smartphone. Wisconsin gets 7.8% K-12 property tax increase due to referenda, partial veto (The Center Square) – The K-12 education portion of Wisconsin property tax bills rose 7.8% this year, the largest rise in more than three decades, according to a new report. That rise is due to a record number of school referenda approved along with actions in the past two state budgets, including Gov. Tony Evers’ partial veto of an education funding item in the state budget. That led to a $325 per student per year funding increase for the next 400 years instead of just the next budget, according to the Wisconsin Policy Forum report. Does your property tax bill seem high? It is. The highest since 2018. A report released Tuesday from the Wisconsin Policy Forum found gross K-12 school property taxes rose an average of 7.8 percent in December, the largest increase in three decades. That’s because of local referenda and increases to per-pupil revenue limits in the last two years, according to the report. County property taxes are set to rise 3.1 percent, an increase more in line with recent years. As a result, tax levies for all local governments are expected to see their largest increase since at least 2018. John Muir Middle School shows off 3 years of updates and construction WAUSAU, Wis. (WAOW) - John Muir Middle School in Wausau held an open house, Monday night, for the community to see the improvements made from the April 2022 referendum. Principal Angela Rodgers says she’s excited for construction to be complete and for students to fully enjoy the new learning spaces. Appleton school leaders to propose referendum but seek further input on amount APPLETON (NBC 26) — The Appleton Area School District is moving forward with plans for a referendum after a community survey showed majority support, though residents remain divided on how much they're willing to contribute to address the district's multi-million-dollar budget shortfall. A survey of more than 7,000 Appleton neighbors revealed that 68% would support a district referendum on the April ballot. Cottage Grove, Taylor Prairie schools consolidating in fall 2026 DANE COUNTY, Wis. — Taylor Prairie School and Cottage Grove School will consolidate into a 4K-2 school beginning in fall 2026, the Monona Grove School District announced. According to officials, this decision follows a comprehensive review of district facility capacity, operational costs, and long-term enrollment trends, which aims to eliminate duplicated operational costs, streamline staffing, and reinvest savings directly into student programming. MMSD releases data on use of seclusion, restraint during 2024-25 school year MADISON, Wis. -- The Madison Metropolitan School District recently released data on the use of seclusion and restraint from the 2024-2025 school year. Overall incidents have gone down. Last school year, MMSD reported 506 seclusion and restraint incidents. In 2023-2024, the district reported 510. However, a noticeable amount of incidents involved students with disabilities. Of the 506 incidents in 2024-2025, 156 of them involved students with disabilities. That is about 30% of reported incidents. Neenah comms director talks high school sports in Hallway Voices For the last Hallway Voices column of 2025, we learned about the importance of getting the names right for students playing any sport at any level. We talked to Jim Strick, communications director for the Neenah Joint School District. While he handles the district's news releases, internal staff memos and emails to school parents, he's also the voice of Neenah schools – in a literal way. Milwaukee Public Schools' high-risk buildings cleared of lead hazards MILWAUKEE — Milwaukee Public Schools has achieved a major milestone in its lead crisis response, with health officials giving the all-clear to 99 high-priority buildings. It was in January that the health department linked a lead-poisoned student's exposure to Golda Meir's Lower Campus. It uncovered years of deferred maintenance at several MPS buildings and set off an urgent response unlike anything Milwaukee had ever seen. Voters in the Trevor-Wilmot Consolidated Grade School District will see an operational referendum on the April 7, 2026 ballot after action by the School Board Tuesday. The board approved a resolutions seeking authority to exceed the state-imposed tax levy limit “by $1,100,000 for the 2026-2027 school year, and by $1,900,000 per year for three years, beginning with the 2027-2028 school year and ending with the 2029-2030 school year, for non-recurring purposes consisting of expenses related to maintaining educational programming, safety and facilities” and another to hold a referendum election. Hendricks Family Foundation wants to invest in Beloit school literacy program BELOIT — The Hendricks Family Foundation, the charitable arm of ABC Supply Co. co-founder Diane Hendricks and her family, presented a proposal Tuesday night to the School District of Beloit Board of Education for a literacy program. It said it wants to fund a $2.5 million pilot literacy program at a School District of Beloit elementary school. Lisa Furseth, executive director of the foundation, put forth the proposal, which is a $2.5 million pilot literacy program in one of the School District of Beloit’s elementary schools. RAYMOND, WI — The future of open enrollment in the Raymond School District remains under discussion after board members reviewed updated enrollment data and policy information during their Dec. 15 meeting. No changes were made, but the board will almost certainly revisit the topic at a Jan. 5 workshop and will vote Jan. 19 on how many open enrollment seats to offer for the 2026–27 school year. MPS outlines next steps after completing lead-paint stabilization in schools MILWAUKEE— Milwaukee Publics Schools says its lead-paint stabilization work across nearly 100 school buildings is complete, and district leaders say the focus is now on long-term monitoring and prevention. MPS Superintendent Dr. Brenda Cassellius said the district has changed how it will respond to potential lead concerns, making them a top priority moving forward. SASD Students, Lakeland University Join Forces for STEAM Collaboration Students in the Sheboygan Area School District and Lakeland University recently collaborated to explore STEAM, or Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math. Through this student-driven, collaborative effort, the Sheboygan South High School Art Department and SASD’s Instructional Technology Team presented Lakeland with a custom university logo. School District of Jefferson shares information about inclement weather protocols JEFFERSON — The School District of Jefferson is getting the word out about its procedures and communication plan for school delays, closures and early dismissals due to inclement weather. “Our top priority remains the safety of our students and staff,” a press release from the district states. According to the district, the decision to close, delay or dismiss school early is “complex,” and it “requires careful consideration of several critical factors.” Board OKs 10-year capital plan The Oregon School District Board of Education approved the latest 10-year capital plan at their regular board meeting on Monday, Dec. 8. The district established the Capital Projects Fund in 2020 and was not able to use it to fund projects for five years. It became accessible on July 1 and has $1.4 million within it, including a project to add solar panels to Oregon High School. Survey says Appleton residents support school referendum of up to $15M The Appleton School Board will consider moving forward with an operational referendum after the district shared survey results during a board work session Dec. 17. In November, the district sent out a survey to the community asking about their support for a potential referendum. The survey was conducted by School Perceptions and received nearly 7,500 responses, which School Perceptions President Bill Foster said was a "tremendous amount." The Neillsville School Board heard a building project update by Building and Grounds Director Mark Spencer. The Board also approved the 4K full-day schedule for 2026-2027 school year and the early graduation requests for seven students. The Board also approved the 2026 membership in the Neillsville Improvement Corporation. Barron School District shows improvement in test scores The Barron Area School District Board of Education discussed Monday, Dec. 15, the latest School Report Cards from the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. As a whole, Barron schools improved over last year, with a 1.3 point increase in its score of 61, good for a “Meets Expectations” designation from the DPI. Individual school scores were as follows: 89.1 for Woodland Elementary, 64.3 for Ridgeland-Dallas Elementary, 62.2 for the Middle School, and 53.6 for the High School—earning it a “Meets Few Expectations” distinction for a score below 60. The Montessori School in Almena does not receive a score due to having too small of a student sample size—it is evaluated by different criteria instead. Parents express ongoing concern; Waterford Graded says district realignment is here to stay WATERFORD — Some Waterford parents have lingering concerns as a districtwide realignment is now in place for area elementary schools. This is the first year the Waterford Graded School District has split grades across its three different elementary schools. Students in 4K through first grade attend Trailside Early Primary, second- and third-grade students go to Woodfield Primary, and fourth- and fifth-graders are at Evergreen Intermediate. The new structure means families with more than one child may have students attending different schools. KIEL (NBC 26) — A new wellness closet at Zielanis Elementary School in Kiel is providing students and their families with essential items they need for the school day, creating a judgment-free space where children can access help without having to ask. The grab-and-go space offers clothing, school supplies, hygiene items, and other necessities that students might need. The concept builds on the success of the district's first wellness closet, which opened at the high school more than 10 years ago. Wisconsin Libraries and Museums See Federal Grants Restored The federal agency that supports libraries and museums in Wisconsin and across the country has reinstated all grants previously terminated by the Trump administration after a court ruling earlier this month. “We’re happy — thrilled — that grants are reinstated. That’s good news,” said Tracy Vreeke, director of the Nicolet Federated Library System. “But there is a level of uncertainty that remains.”
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