On Thursday, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction withheld $16,623,612 in June special education aid from Milwaukee Public Schools, saying the district had yet to turn in key financial data. Some of the missing reports are more than eight months overdue.Earlier this week, the district lost its superintendent and comptroller. Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley resigned this week, and the district’s comptroller, Alfredo Balmaseda, says he was fired.MPS had a plan to get back on track, but it wasn’t enough for the Department of Public Instruction. “It was almost laughable if it wasn’t so sad,” said state Sen. John Jagler (R, Watertown), who chairs the senate’s committee on education.Jagler, through a public records request, obtained a first and second draft of the plan MPS sent to DPI regarding fixing its finances. “It’s not a plan at all. It’s a plan in quotes for sure,” Jagler said.MPS put the proposal together after the state threatened to withhold the $16 million payment from the district. The plan draft promises a list of changes to how MPS keeps track of its finances, including reprogramming its financial software, hiring an outside consultant, and creating a “culture of cross-departmental communications.”The plan, dated June 5, also includes a so-called “24-hour rule” to get future reports turned in the day before they’re due.”It looked like something that an intern threw into ChatGPT saying, ‘Give me a plan to clear up our finances.’ There was nothing in there that gave me confidence that they were going to be able to turn the documents in on time,” Jagler said.Jagler posted screenshots of the plan on X Thursday, writing, “There’s no urgency in finding immediate solutions.”Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction agreed, replying to the post, “Senator Jagler is right. We made it clear we need a real plan.”
On Thursday, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction withheld $16,623,612 in June special education aid from Milwaukee Public Schools, saying the district had yet to turn in key financial data. Some of the missing reports are more than eight months overdue.
Earlier this week, the district lost its superintendent and comptroller. Superintendent Dr. Keith Posley resigned this week, and the district’s comptroller, Alfredo Balmaseda, says he was fired.
MPS had a plan to get back on track, but it wasn’t enough for the Department of Public Instruction.
“It was almost laughable if it wasn’t so sad,” said state Sen. John Jagler (R, Watertown), who chairs the senate’s committee on education.
Jagler, through a public records request, obtained a first and second draft of the plan MPS sent to DPI regarding fixing its finances.
“It’s not a plan at all. It’s a plan in quotes for sure,” Jagler said.
MPS put the proposal together after the state threatened to withhold the $16 million payment from the district.
The plan draft promises a list of changes to how MPS keeps track of its finances, including reprogramming its financial software, hiring an outside consultant, and creating a “culture of cross-departmental communications.”
The plan, dated June 5, also includes a so-called “24-hour rule” to get future reports turned in the day before they’re due.
“It looked like something that an intern threw into ChatGPT saying, ‘Give me a plan to clear up our finances.’ There was nothing in there that gave me confidence that they were going to be able to turn the documents in on time,” Jagler said.
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Jagler posted screenshots of the plan on X Thursday, writing, “There’s no urgency in finding immediate solutions.”
Wisconsin’s Department of Public Instruction agreed, replying to the post, “Senator Jagler is right. We made it clear we need a real plan.”
