Brown Deer School District considers uniforms, tax increase

12:29 p.m. | Brown Deer — What officials call Brown Deer School District's "transformation" — the move from three buildings to two and campus renovations funded by a 2011 referendum — could have students in uniforms and an increased tax levy in the coming school year.

At a Teaching & Learning committee meeting, followed by a School Board meeting Tuesday, school staff campaigned for district-wide school uniforms and several budget requests which would raise the tax levy by a yet-to-be-determined amount. In both cases, the underlying theme of the the pitch was the same.

"This is a turning point year for us," Superintendent Deb Kerr said. She added the referendum-funded campus overhaul has built momentum for progress around the district, and that uniforms and additional taxpayer investment would "create a culture for learning and higher expectations."

"I can't think of a more important year than the one coming up, for the school district," board member Dennis Griffin said during the budget deliberations. "(No other time) compares to the extent of changes that are happening this year."

The School Board will have its first look at the school uniforms topic at its June 25 meeting, and will have more complete budget and tax levy figures in early July, after the state Legislature decides on a biennial budget and state aid amounts are calculated for each district.

Milwaukeeans Chill on the Hill with social media

8:07 a.m. | Bluegrass music filled Humboldt Park last night in Bay View's latest Chill on the Hill concert.

But photos, videos and tweets filled the social media sphere as musicgoers shared their experiences. Read our social media story of last night's Chill on the Hill, which featured Pay the Devil / The Best Westerns.

Mequon-Thiensville leaders dismayed by proposed voucher expansion

June 18, 2013 2:49 p.m. | Mequon — Considering it "an assault on public education," Mequon-Thiensville district officials on Monday had a spirited discussion about the proposed statewide expansion of the school voucher program.

While vouchers have long been offered in Milwaukee and Racine, the proposal broached earlier this month by the Joint Finance Committee in Madison would expand the program across Wisconsin if it is enacted.

The voucher program gives low-income students the opportunity to attend private and parochial schools without paying tuition. Advocates say the vouchers give students more choice in communities with under-performing districts.

But Mequon-Thiensville administrators and School Board members did not mince words as they expressed displeasure at their regular monthly meeting this week about the possible statewide expansion. The JFC has been reviewing Gov. Scott Walker's proposed 2013-15 biennium budget.

Superintendent Demond Means said he was particularly dismayed by the JFC's voting on the recommendation to expand the program about 2:30 a.m. June 5 at a time when public comment was neither taken nor practical because of the time of deliberations.

Dialogue on Mequon-Thiensville properties continues in July

June 17, 2013 5:02 p.m. | Mequon — Administrators and board members of the Mequon-Thiensville School District want public input as they continue to consider the potential reconfiguration and sale of district properties.

The next discussion is scheduled for a School Board meeting at 7 p.m. July 15 in the Range Line building at 11036 N. Range Line Road.

Last year the School Board commissioned a study of the district's properties, resulting in a number of alternatives like consolidating the district's middle schools, closing or selling Lake Shore Middle School and Range Line Elementary, building additions to various schools, moving middle school students to the high school, or closing all but one of the elementary and middle schools before building a new K-6 building — among other reconfigurations meant to save the district money in the long term.

When reviewing the alternatives last summer, Superintendent Demond Means and the School Board concluded that the up-front cost of the reconfigurations, which ranged from $6.3 million to nearly $40 million, far outweighed the savings. The board later opted to fund ongoing maintenance rather than any big ticket infrastructure overhauls.

"(The study) clearly showed that there were no savings," Means said.

Thiensville farmers market touches the senses

June 12, 2013 1:48 p.m. | Thiensville — Through the warm summer air of Thiensville Village Park on Tuesday morning, the sounds and smells of dozens of different vendors mingled with the strum of guitar and the laughter of children.

It all heralded the opening of Thiensville's Village Market, a farmers market which for years has been hosted at the Walgreens at Main Street and Freistadt Road.

More than 250 patrons had made their way through the market by 11 a.m., market volunteers reported.

"They're coming in droves," said Thiensville Business Association President Jesse Daily, grinning behind the bright green uniform and cashier's smock of the volunteers.

So far 41 total vendors have signed up. The market is open every Tuesday through Oct. 29, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.

NSFD's unfunded retirement liability looms

June 12, 2013 12:33 p.m. | A recent study by the actuarial firm Milliman Incorporated calculates the North Shore Fire Department's 30-year retirement liability at approximately $44 million, about $30 million of which is unfunded.

Retirement liability, commonly referred to as Other Post Employment Benefits, comprises health insurance which bridges retirement age and Medicare eligibility, as well as sick leave payouts, among other things, depending on the benefits an organization provides. While OPEB liabilities have existed as long as employers have offered the benefits, the precise long-term ramifications of those liabilities haven't been clear until legislation has required governmental bodies to commission actuarial studies every three years, beginning in 2009.

"It's only the second time we've seen this," NSFD Finance Director Lynn Burton said.

As the cost of health care has increased over the years, so, too, has the department's OPEB liability. NSFD's unfunded liability was approximately $21 million when the first actuarial study was done in 2009, and has since increased to the present value of approximately $30.4 million.

The amount NSFD would need to sock away each year to fully fund OPEB, referred to by actuaries as the Annual Required Contribution is approximately $2.7 million. Fire Chief Robert Whitaker said that the department typically spends about $900,000 annually on retirement, between the current out of pocket costs of retirees claiming their OPEB benefits, and the $400,000 the department began putting away annually last year to help cover the benefits over the long term.

First to reach mandated racial integration threshold, Brown Deer 'graduates' from Chapter 220 program

June 11, 2013 5:22 p.m. | Brown Deer — The stage at graduation represents change, bridging what was and what will be, showcasing young men and women as they walk from one life to the next.

When Michael Snowden walked the stage Friday at Brown Deer High School's graduation ceremony, with him crossed the legacy of almost 40 years of progress, racial integration and justice, signaling the end of one era and the beginning of another.

Unknown even to Snowden until recently, he is Brown Deer's very last student funded by the Milwaukee Voluntary Integration Program, commonly referred to as Chapter 220. Passed by the state Legislature in 1975, Chapter 220 provided an ostensibly simple mechanism to grease the wheels of racial integration in one of America's most segregated cities. Students in the Milwaukee Public Schools system could enroll in the outlying suburban districts, and likewise suburban students could enroll in Milwaukee schools. Wherever the students went, so did their their funding, and once each suburban district reaches 30 percent minority enrollment — a benchmark established to reflect Milwaukee's minority population in 1975 — funding ceases for additional Chapter 220 transfers.

While MPS, the participating 23 suburban school districts, and Chapter 220 itself have all weathered significant changes, challenges and criticisms since the program's inception in the 1976-77 school year, overall minority enrollment has crept upward year after year in the suburbs, with Brown Deer leading the pack.