This year the Madison Metropolitan School District (MMSD) Board of Education is asking our community to support the public schools that our students and teachers deserve. The Board has made it an imperative to not harm any classroom resources despite a state education formula that does not keep pace with inflation. In doing so, we have stayed within the Board’s fund balance policy and maintained a perfect credit rating. Many in our community have voiced and demonstrated their support for Madison public schools, unfortunately, others have chosen cheap potshots and a shallow understanding of what it means to embrace diverse learning communities.
When I grew up in Madison, many people like me did not have it easy; acutely feeling the impact of being poor and African American in a city that was, at best, ignorant and, at its worst, hostile to families like ours. To uplift everyone in Madison, from those on the furthest margins to those well fortunate and all in between, we must see a change at the state level so our schools aren’t forced into a deficit minded approach toward children’s education, teacher’s livelihoods, and the wellbeing of our staff.
MMSD prioritizing a whole child approach to education, such as social emotional learning, culturally responsive teaching, early childhood education, and community schools is not only backed up by research, but also responsive to community needs. Programs like the village builders bring in community members with organic relationships to students to help build positive associations between their school and neighbors, while also giving those individuals an opportunity to become teachers themselves and diversify our workforce. Community schools, and the practice of culturally responsive teaching, understands that children’s environment outside of school impacts how they learn. Education is more than rote memorization for standardized tests, it’s a community endeavor that takes a village. The 2024 MMSD referenda will sustain and grow these investments and strategies.
The 2024 operating referendum will help MMSD continue to pay full cost of living increases to staff and invest in ‘grow your own’ programs for teachers. Teaching is not an easy profession right now and we need to make sure our community gives teachers and staff the wages they deserve going forward. MMSD has also ensured that benefits such as healthcare remain competitive compared to other districts and industries.
The 2024 facilities referenda will equip our oldest alternative high school, elementary, and middle schools to be energy efficient for the 21st century, and help the district meet the clean energy goals of being climate resilient and greenhouse gas emissions-free by 2045. Modernizing classrooms for students and teachers will help learning and critical safety measures. These buildings are over 60 years old and maintenance deferment has gone too long. It’s time the learning spaces reflect the value of learning and growing together.
MMSD has beaten enrollment projections for two years as we continue to recover from COVID-aftershocks and our teacher vacancy rate continues to decline. As I said earlier, we have held the line on impacting classroom resources until absolutely necessary while maintaining a perfect crediting rating. Doing so has helped stay within class size policy and lower ratios for our social workers and school psychologists district wide, putting more resources for schools and students who need it most. The 2024 operating and facilities referenda offer a vision for the future of our community. A vision that I urge folks can all say yes too with me.
