WI Schools Plan Massive Layoffs After Walker Guts Funding

[dbackjon]

This week, Wisconsin kicked off a series of hearings on Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget, which would slash about $300 million from the University of Wisconsin system over two years, funnel hundreds of millions to build a pro-basketball stadium, and cut deeply from funds for health care, food stamps and public media.

College campuses across the state are already preparing for the worst.

Funding at UW-Rock County would be stripped back to levels not seen since 1998, and the school’s dean has said faculty layoffs are almost certain. The situation appears even more dire at UW-Eau Claire, where administrators have offered buyouts to a record 325 faculty and staff members — about a quarter of the campus’ employees. These so-called “go away packages” have been offered to nearly half of the school’s political science department. UW-Stevens Point reports they will eliminate several entire majors, even for students currently enrolled in them.





And it’s not just higher education feeling the pain.

Public primary schools across Wisconsin will lose about $127 million in education aid next year, largely by scrapping a special $150 per-student fund that Wisconsin school districts received over the past two years.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/0 ... tion-cuts/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[89Hen]

Who cares, it's Wisconsin.

[andy7171]

Teachers will get fucked over, while administrators get fat. There is a shit ton of waste in education budgets. If money were the solution, Baltimore City students would be tops in the state.

[ALPHAGRIZ1]

Good

[Ivytalk]

As long as they maintain UW-Whitewater's football budget, I don't give a hoot.

[SDHornet]

How many UW campuses are there? And how many students/WI population is currently served?

How will that look after the cuts?

[JohnStOnge]

funnel hundreds of millions to build a pro-basketball stadium

If that's true that's hard to justify in my opinion. It might not be much proportionately in the context of the overall budget but they shouldn't be talking about massive cuts to universities and school systems and at the same time talking about spending hundreds of millions of dollars for a pro basketball stadium.

You can google "economic impact of professional sports teams" or something like that and get lots of stuff. I tried informing myself with respect to the issue a few years back when the State of Louisiana was preparing to spend a bunch of money to keep the Saints. And my honest opinion is that spending a bunch of money on facilities for professional sports team is not a good investment. I think it's an ego thing rather than a true net economic benefit thing.

At the same time I think that there ought to be a national discussion about the cost of higher education and how much of what is spent is truly necessary. I think we've kind of allowed people in the higher education community to kind of get behind the Wizard of Oz's curtain. I think it is indeed bloated and that a lot of what is done in higher education is not necessary.

[YoUDeeMan]

This week, Wisconsin kicked off a series of hearings on Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget, which would slash about $300 million from the University of Wisconsin system over two years, funnel hundreds of millions to build a pro-basketball stadium, and cut deeply from funds for health care, food stamps and public media.

College campuses across the state are already preparing for the worst.

Funding at UW-Rock County would be stripped back to levels not seen since 1998, and the school’s dean has said faculty layoffs are almost certain. The situation appears even more dire at UW-Eau Claire, where administrators have offered buyouts to a record 325 faculty and staff members — about a quarter of the campus’ employees. These so-called “go away packages” have been offered to nearly half of the school’s political science department. UW-Stevens Point reports they will eliminate several entire majors, even for students currently enrolled in them.





And it’s not just higher education feeling the pain.

Public primary schools across Wisconsin will lose about $127 million in education aid next year, largely by scrapping a special $150 per-student fund that Wisconsin school districts received over the past two years.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/0 ... tion-cuts/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Face it...taking money way from most colleges is not something bad. Most schools are ripping off the average college student. Who needs to pay a boatload to take 100 and 200 level courses in most subjects?

What do you learn in History 101/102, Psych 101/102, Sociology 101/102, Econ 101/102 or any of the other soft sciences? Heck, the 200 level courses are also a bunch of nonsense. All of those classes could be scrapped for a low-fee, online test based upon a couple of Discovery Channel 4 hour mini-series. The kids would save money (about half their total tuition), the university wouldn't need as many teachers (saving the kids even more money), and we would not have as many tenured professors earning salaries for not teaching anything.

Win-win!

As far as the cuts in public schools, let's cut out the top heavy administration and allow schools to kick out disruptive kids so that the teachers can teach. Stop pandering to the 5% that cause trouble.

Too much money is going into public schools...spend money more wisely and there would not be a problem.

[kalm]

This week, Wisconsin kicked off a series of hearings on Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget, which would slash about $300 million from the University of Wisconsin system over two years, funnel hundreds of millions to build a pro-basketball stadium, and cut deeply from funds for health care, food stamps and public media.

College campuses across the state are already preparing for the worst.

Funding at UW-Rock County would be stripped back to levels not seen since 1998, and the school’s dean has said faculty layoffs are almost certain. The situation appears even more dire at UW-Eau Claire, where administrators have offered buyouts to a record 325 faculty and staff members — about a quarter of the campus’ employees. These so-called “go away packages” have been offered to nearly half of the school’s political science department. UW-Stevens Point reports they will eliminate several entire majors, even for students currently enrolled in them.





And it’s not just higher education feeling the pain.

Public primary schools across Wisconsin will lose about $127 million in education aid next year, largely by scrapping a special $150 per-student fund that Wisconsin school districts received over the past two years.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/0 ... tion-cuts/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Face it...taking money way from most colleges is not something bad. Most schools are ripping off the average college student. Who needs to pay a boatload to take 100 and 200 level courses in most subjects?

What do you learn in History 101/102, Psych 101/102, Sociology 101/102, Econ 101/102 or any of the other soft sciences? Heck, the 200 level courses are also a bunch of nonsense. All of those classes could be scrapped for a low-fee, online test based upon a couple of Discovery Channel 4 hour mini-series. The kids would save money (about half their total tuition), the university wouldn't need as many teachers (saving the kids even more money), and we would not have as many tenured professors earning salaries for not teaching anything.

Win-win!

As far as the cuts in public schools, let's cut out the top heavy administration and allow schools to kick out disruptive kids so that the teachers can teach. Stop pandering to the 5% that cause trouble.

Too much money is going into public schools...spend money more wisely and there would not be a problem.

No amount of wise spending can overcome socio economics and shitty parents.

[HI54UNI]

Face it...taking money way from most colleges is not something bad. Most schools are ripping off the average college student. Who needs to pay a boatload to take 100 and 200 level courses in most subjects?

What do you learn in History 101/102, Psych 101/102, Sociology 101/102, Econ 101/102 or any of the other soft sciences? Heck, the 200 level courses are also a bunch of nonsense. All of those classes could be scrapped for a low-fee, online test based upon a couple of Discovery Channel 4 hour mini-series. The kids would save money (about half their total tuition), the university wouldn't need as many teachers (saving the kids even more money), and we would not have as many tenured professors earning salaries for not teaching anything.

Win-win!

As far as the cuts in public schools, let's cut out the top heavy administration and allow schools to kick out disruptive kids so that the teachers can teach. Stop pandering to the 5% that cause trouble.

Too much money is going into public schools...spend money more wisely and there would not be a problem.

No amount of wise spending can overcome socio economics and shitty parents.

Actually there are some studies that show it can. And one of the studies is from an inner city school in Milwaukee IIRC. Dedicated teachers and administrators can make a difference. Although it would be nice if they didn't have to because the parents were doing their job.

[SDHornet]

Face it...taking money way from most colleges is not something bad. Most schools are ripping off the average college student. Who needs to pay a boatload to take 100 and 200 level courses in most subjects?

What do you learn in History 101/102, Psych 101/102, Sociology 101/102, Econ 101/102 or any of the other soft sciences? Heck, the 200 level courses are also a bunch of nonsense. All of those classes could be scrapped for a low-fee, online test based upon a couple of Discovery Channel 4 hour mini-series. The kids would save money (about half their total tuition), the university wouldn't need as many teachers (saving the kids even more money), and we would not have as many tenured professors earning salaries for not teaching anything.

Win-win!

As far as the cuts in public schools, let's cut out the top heavy administration and allow schools to kick out disruptive kids so that the teachers can teach. Stop pandering to the 5% that cause trouble.

Too much money is going into public schools...spend money more wisely and there would not be a problem.

No amount of wise spending can overcome socio economics and shitty parents.

This is the biggest impact IMO, of course I also saw it first hand in my life.

[YoUDeeMan]

No amount of wise spending can overcome socio economics and shitty parents.

People overcome shitty parents all of the time, and many people overcome their, "socio economics" situation as well.

So, besides the fact that HI5 completely discredited your pop psychology theory, what would you do to improve the situation...overspend non-wisely?

[Chizzang]

Teachers will get fucked over, while administrators get fat. There is a shit ton of waste in education budgets. If money were the solution, Baltimore City students would be tops in the state.

There's a ton of waste in everything huge and run by the government...

[D1B]

This week, Wisconsin kicked off a series of hearings on Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget, which would slash about $300 million from the University of Wisconsin system over two years, funnel hundreds of millions to build a pro-basketball stadium, and cut deeply from funds for health care, food stamps and public media.

College campuses across the state are already preparing for the worst.

Funding at UW-Rock County would be stripped back to levels not seen since 1998, and the school’s dean has said faculty layoffs are almost certain. The situation appears even more dire at UW-Eau Claire, where administrators have offered buyouts to a record 325 faculty and staff members — about a quarter of the campus’ employees. These so-called “go away packages” have been offered to nearly half of the school’s political science department. UW-Stevens Point reports they will eliminate several entire majors, even for students currently enrolled in them.





And it’s not just higher education feeling the pain.

Public primary schools across Wisconsin will lose about $127 million in education aid next year, largely by scrapping a special $150 per-student fund that Wisconsin school districts received over the past two years.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/0 ... tion-cuts/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Face it...taking money way from most colleges is not something bad. Most schools are ripping off the average college student. Who needs to pay a boatload to take 100 and 200 level courses in most subjects?

What do you learn in History 101/102, Psych 101/102, Sociology 101/102, Econ 101/102 or any of the other soft sciences? Heck, the 200 level courses are also a bunch of nonsense. All of those classes could be scrapped for a low-fee, online test based upon a couple of Discovery Channel 4 hour mini-series. The kids would save money (about half their total tuition), the university wouldn't need as many teachers (saving the kids even more money), and we would not have as many tenured professors earning salaries for not teaching anything.

Win-win!

As far as the cuts in public schools, let's cut out the top heavy administration and allow schools to kick out disruptive kids so that the teachers can teach. Stop pandering to the 5% that cause trouble.

Too much money is going into public schools...spend money more wisely and there would not be a problem.

Great post. Spot on. Walker is one of the few politicians with the balls to take on some huge issues.

Just wait till you see that fucker on the national stage. He's sharp and fearless, a great speaker who doesn't lie.

He's wrong about healthcare and excluding police and firefighters unions from collective bargaining restrictions. Other than that he's pretty much spot on.

He may be exactly what we need for the next 8 years.

[CID1990]

Is it just me, or was this latest Chicken Little thread a MAJOR BrokebackJon fail?

Or is Jon just the Secret Uniter?


BTW D, I agree with him on collective bargaining for fire and police. I've seen how those departments operate. There are abuses in non-mandatory arbitration shops too, but the lesser of two evils is going with the civil service model for police and fire, not with collective bargaining.

[DSUrocks07]

Its interesting that the same groups that believe that higher education should be "free" believe that those same higher educators should be paid a lot more than they already are.

Yet another case of a "let's throw more money at the problem" solution that is constantly championed by the left.

Scott Walker has my full support for a presidential run.

[CID1990]

I think the one thing this thread is good for is it highlights the fact that Think Progress believes Walker is a front runner. The article has Clinton stink all over it.

[houndawg]

This week, Wisconsin kicked off a series of hearings on Governor Scott Walker’s proposed budget, which would slash about $300 million from the University of Wisconsin system over two years, funnel hundreds of millions to build a pro-basketball stadium, and cut deeply from funds for health care, food stamps and public media.

College campuses across the state are already preparing for the worst.

Funding at UW-Rock County would be stripped back to levels not seen since 1998, and the school’s dean has said faculty layoffs are almost certain. The situation appears even more dire at UW-Eau Claire, where administrators have offered buyouts to a record 325 faculty and staff members — about a quarter of the campus’ employees. These so-called “go away packages” have been offered to nearly half of the school’s political science department. UW-Stevens Point reports they will eliminate several entire majors, even for students currently enrolled in them.





And it’s not just higher education feeling the pain.

Public primary schools across Wisconsin will lose about $127 million in education aid next year, largely by scrapping a special $150 per-student fund that Wisconsin school districts received over the past two years.
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/0 ... tion-cuts/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Face it...taking money way from most colleges is not something bad. Most schools are ripping off the average college student. Who needs to pay a boatload to take 100 and 200 level courses in most subjects?

What do you learn in History 101/102, Psych 101/102, Sociology 101/102, Econ 101/102 or any of the other soft sciences? Heck, the 200 level courses are also a bunch of nonsense. All of those classes could be scrapped for a low-fee, online test based upon a couple of Discovery Channel 4 hour mini-series. The kids would save money (about half their total tuition), the university wouldn't need as many teachers (saving the kids even more money), and we would not have as many tenured professors earning salaries for not teaching anything.

Win-win!

As far as the cuts in public schools, let's cut out the top heavy administration and allow schools to kick out disruptive kids so that the teachers can teach. Stop pandering to the 5% that cause trouble.

Too much money is going into public schools...spend money more wisely and there would not be a problem.

How about getting rid of lazy-ass union teachers, like your wife? If she was any good at her job she wouldn't need one, right?

Cuck U, the rugged individual hiding behind a union skirt...

[houndawg]

Its interesting that the same groups that believe that higher education should be "free" believe that those same higher educators should be paid a lot more than they already are.

Yet another case of a "let's throw more money at the problem" solution that is constantly championed by the left.

Scott Walker has my full support for a presidential run.

You and all democrats.

Elizabeth Warren will kick his ass with style.

[Baldy]

Its interesting that the same groups that believe that higher education should be "free" believe that those same higher educators should be paid a lot more than they already are.

Yet another case of a "let's throw more money at the problem" solution that is constantly championed by the left.

Scott Walker has my full support for a presidential run.

You and all democrats.

Elizabeth Warren will kick his ass with style.

Fauxcahontas will get her ass kicked like Mike Dukakis.

[houndawg]

You and all democrats.

Elizabeth Warren will kick his ass with style.

Fauxcahontas will get her ass kicked like Mike Dukakis.

[houndawg]

Good

Still bent about being 15 years old in the sixth grade I see....

[kalm]

Good

Still bent about being 15 years old in the sixth grade I see....

Hey now…5th grade was the hardest two years of his life.

[Gil Dobie]

Teachers will get **** over, while administrators get fat. There is a **** ton of waste in education budgets. If money were the solution, Baltimore City students would be tops in the state.

Too bad admins have taken over Big Education. I looked at the local school budget and about 27% goes to teachers. IMO, teachers should get more than the admin. My dad went to country school and it was managed by the school board, no other admin. His generation turned out just fine. That's not possible with today's schools, but they are over managed with admin layer on top of admin layer.

[kalm]

No amount of wise spending can overcome socio economics and shitty parents.

People overcome shitty parents all of the time, and many people overcome their, "socio economics" situation as well.

So, besides the fact that HI5 completely discredited your pop psychology theory, what would you do to improve the situation...overspend non-wisely?

There's very little wrong with the US education system if you live in the right district or have solid parents (preferably two of them).

If you try reading between the lines (they taught that at DU, right?) you'd see I'm recognizing that more spending isn't the answer. And yes, I'm sure there are exceptions like both you and HI5 point out.

It's a complex problem to solve but a few of the ideas I've mentioned before:

Move kids into a vocational or higher learning path at a relatively early age. Those who show academic interest continue toward college, those who do not end up graduating high school ready for decent paying job in the trades or service industries.

Mandatory after school activities. If not athletics, then extended learning opportunities or simply staying current with homework. Less latch-keyism and kids have all of their homework done by 5:00 instead of two hours of xbox. Learning moves on at a faster clip.

Mandatory masters degrees within 5 years of being hired for all teachers. Helps weed out the underachievers.