The Gazette has more on the pending lawsuit against Whitewater Schools, about which I posted earlier, today. I noticed the Gazette story only this evening, and it describes uncertainty in the family about how to proceed. (A letter to the court filed last week suggests that the lawsuit would be withdrawn, based on the departure…
School District
City, School District
Most Plaintiffs Leave School District, Voluntarily Withdraw Civil Rights Lawsuit
by JOHN ADAMS •
Late last week, court filings indicate that most of plaintiffs in a civil rights lawsuit against the Whitewater School District and other named defendants had left the district, and consequently had sought voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit they had filed in early September. A letter from plaintiffs’ counsel filed with court contends that most, although…
City, Press, School District
Janesville Gazette: Whitewater High School Students Sue Over Racist Threats
by JOHN ADAMS •
City, School District
Does Anyone in Whitewater Ever Make Admit a Mistake?
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ll consider our municipal and school district budgets over the coming months. What does it say about us, though, that a quarter-million dollar shortfall is described as a “budget anomaly” occurring “for the first time in known history of the District as can best be remembered?” That’s the preface to the admission that there was…
City, School District
Poll Results: What’s the best, first option for budget cuts for a city or school district?
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here are the results from my highly unscientific, not-at-all professional poll on options for budget cuts for a city or school district. What’s the best, first option for a budget shortfall for a city or school district?(poll) Reduction in benefits came as the leading answer — far above employee layoffs, tax increases, salary reductions, or…
School District
Dr. Steinhaus vs. Student: Student Wins!
by JOHN ADAMS •
Despite her condescension toward a student’s message sent to this website about staff layoffs at our school district, a review of Whitewater District Administrator Steinhaus’s own compensation shows that the student — not Steinhaus — has the better argument. It’s quite a match-up — Fancy administrator and Doctor of Education, Leslie Steinhaus versus Decent, all-American,…
School District
Dr. Steinhaus’s Glass House
by JOHN ADAMS •
District Administrators in glass houses… On Monday, I posted a letter from a student who felt that staff cuts should not have been made without reductions in administrative compensation. Dr. Steinhaus now complains that the administration has not received a pay increase, as the student suggested. She’s foolish to highlight the issue. Too funny, really,…
City, School District
Poll: What’s the best, first option for budget cuts for a city or school district?
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s almost always resistance to reductions in the size of government — once having achieved a certain mark, government seldom recedes. In this deep recession, with a loss of state aid to cities and public school districts, reductions in local budgets are more likely. I’ve created a small poll, asking which first option to address…
City, Inbox Reader Mail, School District
Inbox: Reader Mail — Options for School District Budget Savings
by JOHN ADAMS •
Yesterday, I posted a reader note on an alternative response to budget cuts in our school district. Afterward, I received two notes from another, longtime reader, suggesting a second alternative. I’ve combined the two notes on the second alternative with an ellipsis. Mr. Adams, I hate to sound like a broken record about this, but…
City, Inbox Reader Mail, School District
Inbox: Reader Mail — Budget Cuts, General and Specific
by JOHN ADAMS •
School District
About that “Whippet”….
by JOHN ADAMS •
I’ve been writing at FREE WHITEWATER for nearly two years, and I’ve described all sorts of galling, shocking, or just plain ridiculous events. No need for thanks — it’s my pleasure, I’m sure. Yet, I’ve never encountered a fraud quite so disturbing as the one that dupes unsuspecting visitors to the website of Whitewater High…
School District
Judge: Wisconsin School District Violated Open Meetings Law
by JOHN ADAMS •
A rural Wisconsin school district has been found to have violated Wisconsin’s open meetings law. The law applies to public school districts, as it applies to cities and towns. (Information on our open meetings law is available through the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council link of the left sidebar of this website.) Link
School District
On the School Administrator Candidates: Websites, &c.
by JOHN ADAMS •
Here are a few additional links and comments on the search for a new WUSD Administrator. First, thanks very much to all those who’ve written, or spoken to me, about yesterday’s posts on the WUSD search, public forums, and candidate receptions. I get a good bit of mail, but I cannot often tell beforehand which…
Press, School District
On the School District Administrator Candidates: Press Coverage
by JOHN ADAMS •
There have been a few newspaper stories about the two final candidates for our next school district administrator. At both the Janesville Gazette and the Daily Union, there were mid-March announcements of the two finalists. See, in the Janesville Gazette, “Whitewater superintendent finalists announced,” and from the Daily Union, “Whitewater picks two superintendent finalists.” The…