WISCONSIN PUBLIC EDUCATION NETWORK

Partner Event: WEAC-Retired Annual Meeting and Conference
2024-05-16 08:00 - 15:30 (America/Chicago) | Wilderness Resort, 511 E Adams St, Wisconsin Dells, WI, 53965, United States

Coming Together for Our Public Schools: School Board Advocacy Onboarding Workshop
2024-05-08 18:30 - 20:30 | Zoom
Connect with public school champions around the state to maximize your impact as a board member! This workshop is sponsored by WEAC and DPI and will feature special welcome introductions from Peggy Wirtz-Olsen, WEAC President; Dr. Jill Underly, State Superintendent; and a state-level policy share from Tom McCarthy, Deputy State Superintendent.
REGISTER HERE!
School finance basics! Advocacy pro-tips! Learn how to build trust as an education leader, engage your community productively, and work effectively with educators, administrators, labor and more! Free and open to all public school champions!
SEE DETAILED AGENDA HERE
*Note: The intended audience for this workshop is school board members. Network partners who are not school board members are welcome to attend with school board members they have recruited from their regions.

Partner Event: Wild Project Leadership Training
2024-04-25 - 2024-04-27 | Milwaukee, WI, United States
Wisconsin Public Education Network has trained hundreds of local leaders through the Wild Project – and we invite YOU to join us in April to take your local action to the next level!
LEARN MORE & REGISTER HERE
Wednesday, April 24th @ 5:00pm CT (welcome dinner & social) through Saturday, April 27th @ 5:00pm CT.
Milwaukee, WI (specific location TBD)
Cost: $500 (This fee is a half-off rate that includes hotel accommodations and most meals, and scholarships are available if cost is prohibitive.)
We highly recommend attending with at least one other member of your team or local organization. Be sure to identify WPEN as your “organization” to ensure you’re on a team with other public education champions! We’ll do our small group work together and customize the training components to meet the needs of our teams!
Want to learn more? Contact Heather at hdb@WisconsinNetwork.org or (608) 572-1696

Op-Ed Workshop with The Progressive
2024-04-18 18:30 - 20:30 | Zoom
Join us for a hands-on op-ed writing clinic with The Progressive!
Workshop participants will learn about the impact of op-eds, discuss successful op-eds, and engage in interactive writing exercises.
Participants will also have the opportunity to draft, share, and receive feedback on an op-ed or letter to the editor.
REGISTER HERE!

ELECTION DAY: Spring & Presidential Preference Election
2024-04-02

The (In)Adequacy of K-12 School Funding in Wisconsin: Presentation from Christopher Saldaña
2024-03-20 18:30 - 20:00 | UW-Madison Education Building, 1000 Bascom Mall, Madison, 53706, United States
Learn more about the current state of K-12 school finance in Wisconsin and some general policy trends, including declining enrollment, inflation, and faculty and staff shortages.
REGISTER HERE! In-person and virtual attendance options available.

Christopher Saldaña is an Assistant Professor of K-12 educational leadership and policy analysis in the School of Education at UW-Madison.

PARTNER EVENT: WI Faith Voices for Justice: Spring Elections: What I Should Know (Co-sponsored by Creating Beloved Community, WI Interfaith Voter Engagement Campaign, & Wisconsin Public Education Network)
2024-03-04 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
Please join us for a webinar featuring Dan Lenz, staff counsel at Law Forward, who will brief us on the constitutional amendments and their implications for our democracy. Also joining us will be Peggy West-Schroder of FREE Movement who will acquaint us with What’s On Your Ballot. Finally, we will get an update from the Wisconsin Public Education Network on school board races and school referenda to watch.
This webinar is jointly sponsored by the Creating Beloved Community team, the Wisconsin Interfaith Voter Engagement Campaign, and the Wisconsin Public Education Network.

REGISTER HERE!

WPEN 10th Anniversary Party!
2024-03-01 17:00 - 20:00 | Findorff, 300 S Bedford St, Madison, WI, 53703, United States
Celebrate 10 years of public education champions coming together statewide as Wisconsin Public Education Network Partners! Join us for a night of conversation and fun.
Whether you’ve been with us from the beginning or are just hearing about us now, please join us to hear about the important needs facing our public schools, the work our Network has done to address those needs, and connect with others who care about kids and understand that PUBLIC SCHOOLS UNITE US.
RSVP HERE!
Can’t join us in person, but want to support this event? Want to make an early contribution to ensure that the public school advocacy we’ve done over the past 10 years continues to grow? Your donation will make this party possible and sustain our ongoing advocacy for public schools. Thank you!
SUPPORT THIS EVENT HERE!

Public Schools Week Day of Action
2024-03-01 10:00 - 13:00 | Wisconsin State Capitol
Join Wisconsin Public Education Network partners in putting your #AppreciationInAction for public schools—and the educators, students, and communities that bring them to life—at the state capitol!
REGISTER HERE!
Tentative agenda:
10:00am: Open room (number to be announced soon) for information on finding your legislator, postcard writing, guidance on how to support your public schools at the legislative level. Wisconsin Public Education Network staff and volunteers will be available as you make visits to your lawmakers’ offices, deliver postcards and notes of support for public schools, and engage in conversation about what public schools mean to you.
12:00-12:30pm: Press conference in the CAPITOL ROTUNDA. Listen to a short lineup of speakers and applaud the value of our public schools.
1:00pm or earlier: Wrap-up.

Sticking around the area? Please also RSVP to join us from 5:00-8:00pm at our 10th Anniversary Party at Findorff in Madison! All are welcome, whether you’re a longtime partner of our Network or brand new to us. Cap off Public Schools Week and celebrate Wisconsin’s advocacy for kids and public schools with us!

Public Schools Week
2024-02-26 - 2024-03-01
Public Schools Week is an annual week-long celebration dedicated to honoring the invaluable contributions and achievements of educators and education advocates in our public schools and the communities they serve. Public Schools Week invites the education community, parents, lawmakers and others to join us in spotlighting our nation’s public schools and the dedicated individuals behind them.
LEARN MORE HERE!

Partner Event: $chool Voucher $cam - Virtual Townhall Meeting
2024-02-22 17:00 - 18:00 | Zoom
Join us to learn the facts about school vouchers and what you can do to combat them. As taxpayers, we should not be on the hook to fund two school systems.
REGISTER HERE!
DID YOU KNOW YOU PAY MORE FOR VOUCHER SCHOOLS THAN RUSD’S STRUCTURAL DEFICIT?
It’s true. RUSD’s structural deficit is approximately $34 million. In the last round of state budget school funding, choice private schools received a funding boost while public school funding remained flat. This year alone vouchers receive $39 million of RUSD funding. Without that loss, RUSD wouldn’t be facing the fiscal cliff it does next school year and would have money to invest in programs and supports for students.

ELECTION DAY: Spring Primary
2024-02-20

Partner Event: Referenda All Around: Understanding the Challenges Facing Public Education
2024-02-18 14:00 - 15:30 | Merrimac & Main Center, 115 W Merrimac St, Dodgeville, WI, 53533, United States
Have you wondered why it seems that school referenda are happening more often? This presentation will examine the basics of school finance and the varied challenges facing public education in Wisconsin’s communities.

Julie Fisher Mead is a professor in the Department of Educational Leadership & Policy Analysis at UW-Madison. She researches and writes about topics related to the legal aspects of education, including those related to school funding, special education and school choice.

Join us after the lecture for catered snacks and an activity — we will write thank-you cards to teachers at Dodgeville schools, in appreciation for their dedication, brilliance, and care.
This lecture is made possible by funding from the Community Foundation of South Central Wisconsin and generous community support. The lecture is free, but a donation of $5-$15 is appreciated and will go towards this and other programming at M+M.

REGISTER HERE!
Registration is OPTIONAL but will allow us to send you updates and reminders about this event. Please let us know on the registration page if you will need on-site child care or transportation in order to attend the lecture.

School Funding 101 for Public Education Champions and Candidates
2024-02-13 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
Get the facts on Wisconsin’s school finance landscape so you can speak with confidence when you talk to voters and center your message on the needs of local students.
REGISTER HERE!

Spring Election Organizing for Public Education Champions: How to Get Out the Vote for Public School Students!
2024-02-08 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
Everything you need to know about getting public school supporters to the ballot box, managing volunteers, making phone calls and knocking doors, and more!
REGISTER HERE!

It's About the Kids: How to Focus Your Message on What Really Matters to Develop a Winning Referendum Campaign
2024-02-01 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
This panel with professional referendum coordinators, local organizers and messaging experts will provide concrete tips for running a successful referendum campaign with a message that gets to the heart of why we need strong and thriving public schools – to meet the needs of the kids we love!
REGISTER HERE!

Winter Social - Go Public Happy Hour with Special Guest Dr. Jill Underly, Superintendent of Public Instruction
2024-01-18 16:30 - 18:30 | Hilton Milwaukee City Center, 509 W Wisconsin Ave, Milwaukee, WI, 53203, United States
Join us for our winter social with special guest Dr. Jill Underly, Superintendent of Public Instruction! Already going to the 2024 WASB State Education Convention from Jan. 17-19? Not going to the convention, but still want to come and mingle? All are welcome at our Go Public Happy Hour at the Mitchell Room in the Hilton Milwaukee City Center! Appetizers on us, door prizes, school board all-stars, and more!
Sponsored by Civic Media, Wisconsin Public Education Action, and the Painters & Allied Trades, District Council No. 7, an affiliate of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT), AFL-CIO.

Partner Event: Wauwatosa School District - Coming Together for Tosa Students: Community Engagement & Legislative Advocacy Workshop with Wisconsin Public Education Network
2024-01-17 18:00 - 20:00 | Underwood Elementary School, 11132 W Potter Rd, Wauwatosa, WI, 53226, United States

Partner Event: WASB/WASDA/WASDO Wisconsin State Education Convention 2024
2024-01-17 - 2024-01-19 | Baird Center, 400 W. Wisconsin Ave., Milwaukee, WI, 53203, United States
Wisconsin Public Education Network will be tabling at the convention — stop by booth 738!

Referenda Basics: Building a Winning Team to Support Local Schools
2024-01-11 18:30 - 20:00 | Zoom
Putting a referenda team together is the first step to finding education champions who share your values where you live! Get the basics on how to organize a winning campaign, and an overview of resources and supports available to you through Wisconsin Public Education Network and other organizations.
REGISTER HERE!

Partner Activity: GrassRoots School 2024 Informational Session
2023-12-07 18:30 - 19:30 | Zoom

Partner Activity: LWV of Wisconsin, LWV of Sheboygan County, & Sheboygan County Youth Voters Elect Her Workshop: A one-day nonpartisan training for women on how to run for political office
2023-12-02 10:00 - 13:30 | Jake’s, A Lakeland Community, 529 Ontario Avenue, Sheboygan, WI, 53081, United States

Partner Action: Wisconsin Fair Maps Coalition Rally at the Wisconsin Supreme Court
2023-11-21 09:00 | Wisconsin State Capitol

Hot Topics in Student Discrimination: Racial Harassment, Discipline Issues, and Gender Affirmation (Public School Law Series)
2023-10-18 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
Hot Topics in Student Discrimination: Racial Harassment, Discipline Issues, and Gender Affirmation with Elisabeth Lambert
REGISTER HERE
Part of Wisconsin Public Education Network’s Public School Law Series: Mark your calendars for this interactive, action-focused series of seminars with education lawyers to learn more about how school law works, how to maximize opportunities for connections, and how to best advocate for your child and the public schools all children deserve.
This three-part series will be held on Wednesdays in October from 7:00 to 8:30 pm. Free and open to all, but especially useful for Network partners, community members looking to navigate school engagement and understanding, board members, and administrators.

Recent Legal Developments Involving Voucher and Charter Schools (Public School Law Series)
2023-10-11 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
Recent Legal Developments Involving Voucher and Charter Schools with Suzanne Eckes
REGISTER HERE
Part of Wisconsin Public Education Network’s Public School Law Series: Mark your calendars for this interactive, action-focused series of seminars with education lawyers to learn more about how school law works, how to maximize opportunities for connections, and how to best advocate for your child and the public schools all children deserve.
This three-part series will be held on Wednesdays in October from 7:00 to 8:30 pm. Free and open to all, but especially useful for Network partners, community members looking to navigate school engagement and understanding, board members, and administrators.

Engagement Within the School Board Governance Structure (Public School Law Series)
2023-10-04 19:00 - 20:30 | Zoom
Engagement Within the School Board Governance Structure with Mike Julka
REGISTER HERE
Part of Wisconsin Public Education Network’s Public School Law Series: Mark your calendars for this interactive, action-focused series of seminars with education lawyers to learn more about how school law works, how to maximize opportunities for connections, and how to best advocate for your child and the public schools all children deserve.
This three-part series will be held on Wednesdays in October from 7:00 to 8:30 pm. Free and open to all, but especially useful for Network partners, community members looking to navigate school engagement and understanding, board members, and administrators.

9th Annual Summer Summit in South Milwaukee!
2023-08-10 08:00 - 18:00 | South Milwaukee High School, 801 15th Ave, South Milwaukee, WI, 53172, United States
REGISTER TODAY to reserve your ticket(s) and join us at our largest annual event!

WHAT'S BEST FOR KIDS Action at the Capitol
2023-06-27 | Wisconsin State Capitol
