For the past 25 years, the Public Policy Forum has compiled and analyzed data from southeast Wisconsin's public school districts to produce an annual report on trends in educational performance and demographics. This year's report, however, may take on greater importance than those of previous years in light of the monumental impacts of the new…

For the first time since its 1998 expansion to include religious schools, enrollment in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program (MPCP) did not grow in the 2010-2011 school year. Currently, 20,996 private school students receive taxpayer-funded tuition vouchers (of $6,442 per pupil), a decrease of 66 students over last year. Chart 1 shows program…

The recent appointment of a new superintendent, the need for priority-setting in the face of dramatic state budget cuts, and increased national attention on school reform have elevated the performance of the Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) to the forefront of local media and civic attention. Consequently, the need for an understandable and commonly…

In collaboration with the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association (WECA), the Public Policy Forum surveyed 1,425 child care center directors, center employees, and family child care providers statewide. The survey was designed to provide a picture of the status of Wisconsin's child care workforce in terms of educational attainment, experience,…