Madison has great public schools
We elect a school board to be responsible for our schools, but public schools are probably the most important single factor in the success of a city. So, the City needs to find a way to be appropriately involved.
We need to work closely with the schools to make sure that every school is safe. We have Educational Resource Officers in each of our high schools and we are lucky to be able to work with former Madison Assistant Chief Luis Yudice in his role as head of security for the schools.
 We also need to be dedicated participants in a strong, formal partnership among all of the institutions that have an interest in the quality of our schools. This could be done through a new partnership made up of community leaders such the School Superintendent, the School Board President, the Mayor, the City Council President, the County Executive, the County Board Chair, the head of the Chamber of Commerce, the head of the United Way, the UW Chancellor and the MATC President.
We should develop a joint legislative agenda so that we can work shoulder to shoulder with the schools reform the state revenue caps that are strangling public education not just in Madison but all over the state.
Finally, we need to make sure that all communities in Dane County have low-income housing opportunities. The research is clear that while a reasonable level of income diversity is good for our schools, excessive concentrations of poverty in individual schools have a negative impact on academic performance. Low-income housing is not just Madison’s responsibility but also the responsibility of the entire region. So, we should explore merging housing authorities with Dane County, making the resources of our $4.1 million Affordable Housing Trust Fund available for projects throughout the county, and finding a dedicate regional funding source for the Fund. |
