WEAC organized local committees whose task was to create a vision of how their schools could best meet the needs of all children.

While re-establishing WEAC’s education agenda—including such critical issues as smaller class sizes, discipline, teacher preparation and qualifications, technical education classes and vocational training, and the need to provide students with access to computers and other emerging technologies—Great Schools stressed the idea of local input and decision-making to generate community involvement, as well as to ultimately eliminate the QEO and revenue caps. Those anti-education initiatives run contrary to both the spirit and potential of Great Schools, not only because they strip away local authority for and control over schools, but also because they represent significant barriers to the ability of school districts to provide the programs and tools they need to fulfill the promise of Great Schools.

Great Schools marked the beginning of an exciting new chapter in WEAC’s history, and the future looks to be filled with both significant challenges and tremendous opportunities. With a new president of the United States, a new governor, a new superintendent of public instruction, and a divided Legislature struggling with the questions and issues that will define education for a new generation of educators and students, the next several years represent a critical time not only for WEAC members but for the cause of education in Wisconsin, as well.

"Revenue caps, QEO Targeted" News and Views, February 1999 Praising it as a visionary plan that will bring schools and communities together for kids, the WEAC Board of Directors in January overwhelmingly approved what has come to be called the WEAC Great Schools Initiative. “This plan challenges all of our members to enter the struggle to maintain and promote quality public education,” said Bob Lehmann of Milwaukee. “Through this plan, beginning with our members, we can educate the entire public on the real state of public education and draw from the public a commitment to public education.” Guy Costello, of South Milwaukee, said the plan is designed to organize members and citizens to work together for public schools. “It starts with member involvement and a real member-to-member discussion about what are great schools,” Costello said. “It sees parents and communities as allies and stresses coalition building.” The initiative was developed over the last eight months by the UniServ Advisory Council. The council, made up primarily of UniServ presidents from throughout the state, was created by the WEAC Representative Assembly last April. The council was asked to develop an action plan to address issues related to the Qualified Economic Offer law and revenue controls on school districts. The Great Schools Initiative is a major undertaking that will require a new commitment from members and a major reshuffling of WEAC organizational priorities, said WEAC President Terry Craney. “If approved by the Representative Assembly in April, this plan will create a major change in how this organization operates,” he said.

The priority will be to address the existing threats to quality public schools. Private school vouchers must not be allowed to continue to siphon money away from the needs of public school students when public schools continue to educate the vast majority of the children in Wisconsin. However, as long as private school vouchers remain an element of our education culture, WEAC will work to ensure that public schools remain the schools of choice in Wisconsin.

At the same time, WEAC will continue to battle against the revenue caps and the QEO to restore the ability of local officials, educators, and parents to make critical education decisions for their children and their students. With public opinion slowly shifting on these issues—as more and more information emerges about the damage they do to education, schools, and students—prospects for overcoming these barriers are gradually improving.

New challenges and barriers will always be on the horizon, as education opponents continue their crusade to divert resources from education to their own priorities, and continue to attempt to undermine the credibility and respect the teaching profession has earned. However, despite the challenges and barriers, education continues to rank among the top priorities of the public and policy makers, and the future looks bright for WEAC and public schools. Even if some politicians continue to embrace education more at election time than they do when it comes time to make policy, rhetoric becomes reality when it is supported by union political advocacy.

There is a growing realization that education is the fundamental building block of our communities, our economy, and our democracy. The first—and most essential—step toward strengthening our communities, growing our economy, and re-invigorating our democracy is accomplished by providing our children with a quality education.

In the new millennium, WEAC is poised to remain a powerful, effective advocate for teachers and education support staff throughout Wisconsin, as well as a major force behind the preservation and improvement of Wisconsin’s excellent public schools.

Next>>