Assembly Republicans Unveil 2017-18 Legislative Agenda

Assembly Republicans unveiled their legislative agenda for the 2017-18 session earlier today. It focuses on three key areas: improving the economy, expanding opportunities, and building strong families and safe communities.

The agenda lays out a broad framework for potential legislation next session, including a significant number of education initiatives. A copy of the full report can be viewed here, and highlights that may be of interest to WEMTA include the following:

1:1 Learning Initiative

Assembly Republicans will make sure every high school freshman is provided a computer or tablet so that every single student may connect to the outside world. Our future workforce needs to be tech savvy and ready to grow our economy. We understand technology is changing the way our schools operate; students use fewer textbooks and have more online assignments and readings. To make sure students are able to access the internet on their provided computer or tablet, we will also look to increase the ability of students to check-out mobile hotspots or begin providing Wi-Fi capabilities on school buses.

Elimination of the Position of State Treasurer

Assembly Republicans strive to make government as efficient as possible, always keeping in mind the importance of being good stewards of taxpayer dollars. Many

responsibilities of the Wisconsin State Treasurer have been relieved or transferred to other departments. The position’s remaining responsibilities could be fulfilled by other means. It’s time we eliminate this unnecessary office to save money and reduce the size of government. In order to accomplish this goal, we need to change the constitution. The legislature has already completed a successful first consideration of this change and we will look to take up a second consideration, then leaving voters with the final approval.

Broadband Access for all Students

In today’s world, access to high speed internet is essential for all students, but is significantly limited in many rural parts of the state. Assembly Republicans will explore unique ways to make the internet available; ideas include using school buses or providing funding to issue hotspots to students.

Meeting the Challenges of Teaching in an Urban Environment

The Task Force on Urban Education heard from many administrators and educators that special training is needed for anyone looking to teach in an urban environment. Every instructor should be trained in how to teach reading, regardless of their license category, and college programs should be specifically tailored for teachers looking to enter a more diverse environment.

STEM, Computer Science, and Robotics

Early exposure to math and science can set students up for a lifetime of success. Increasing access to computer science in our classrooms will be key to developing our 21st century workforce and offers great potential to work in STEM-related fields. Assembly Republicans will look to encourage greater access to computer science for students, including fun and engaging activities like robotics competitions. Increasing the number of students involved in STEM coursework and hands-on activities will help students develop valuable technical skills, confidence, and teamwork, and help our workforce meet the demands of a new economy.

Minimum Aid Payments for School Districts

There are significant flaws in our school funding formula that harm some rural school districts. We will explore options for providing financial assistance to the high property value districts, particularly rural, lake districts, that receive either “no-aid” or “primary aid only.” This could help make the funding formula fairer for certain northern districts.

Teach our Foundational Documents

To prepare students to be active, engaged and informed members of society, we should ensure that the texts that shaped our nation- the Federalist Papers, the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence - are taught in every Wisconsin classroom. Assembly

Republicans will also look to gradually increase the metric for what is considered a passing score on the required civics exam.

Zones of Innovation

The constraints, regulations, and red tape school districts face make it difficult to be innovative in the way they educate and prepare our students for life after graduation.

By supporting zones of innovation, we could allow a school district or a combination of school districts to ask for an exemption from statutes, except those relating to the health and safety of our students, in order to try out a new, innovative policy for a limited period of time. If these new ideas or innovations prove successful, they can be replicated in other districts. Assembly Republicans will explore what zones of innovation could look like in our state to give school districts additional options for giving students the tools they need to succeed.

Increase Cooperation Among School Districts

Assembly Republicans would like to create incentives for school districts to coordinate their administrative functions. Cooperation on administrative tasks would streamline operations and save districts money while also maintaining the identity, pride, and autonomy of individual districts.