On the Road

On December 4, State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster met with representatives of the Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters to discuss the Academy’s project on the future of farming and rural life in Wisconsin. The Academy held six forums throughout the state to gather information. Burmaster was the keynote speaker at an August forum focusing on education in rural Wisconsin. The Academy appointed several committees to draft recommendations based on the information gathered; this meeting, involving the Community Recommendation Committee, was a working session to develop draft policy recommendations related to issues such as rural education, health care, arts and culture, diversity, economic development, and economic stability.

Burmaster, who became President of the Council of Chief State School Officers (CCSSO) in November, and Gene Wilhoit, the new CCSSO Executive Director, held a press conference for national media in Washington, D.C. on December 5 to discuss the organization’s activities, communicate their vision for the future, and report on CCSSO's Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) reauthorization agenda.

“Innovation must be the hallmark of the reauthorized ESEA. CCSSO’s collective vision calls for flexibility in order to move beyond ‘no child left behind’ to ‘every child a graduate,’” said Burmaster. “We call on the federal government to continue to require high standards, but also to allow states and school districts to implement creative and innovative strategies for improving student achievement and closing achievement gaps. Local and state judgment must be allowed to determine what models are educationally sound, and how best measure student progress.”

Later that day, Burmaster and Wilhoit met with executive directors and senior staff members from national education organizations to discuss common agendas.

On December 6, Burmaster attended a meeting of the Milwaukee Partnership Academy (MPA). The MPA is a multilevel organization focused on education and alignment of resources and activities that promise to improve educational outcomes for children in the City of Milwaukee. The purpose is to bring every child to grade level in reading, writing, and math, and to promote public policies that attack underlying issues that influence negative education outcomes.

Later that day, the state superintendent attended the Community and Economic Development Summit, a meeting organized by Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett to explore economic development opportunities for the Milwaukee community. The summit focused on job creation, growing the Milwaukee economy, and housing and neighborhoods. A keynote address by former HUD Secretary Henry Cisneros was followed by presentations and workshops on local development strategies.

That afternoon, Burmaster attended a luncheon meeting of Wisconsin Women Forward for Environmental Education. The event, sponsored by the Wisconsin Environmental Education Foundation, was designed to explore how to move forward on environmental education. An informal review was conducted of the strategies proposed in the Wisconsin Environmental Education Board (WEEB) strategic plan, Environmental Education 2010: Plan for Advancing Environmental Education in Wisconsin. Participants were welcomed by Janet Brandt, executive director of the Energy Conservation Corps and a WEEB board member. Tia Nelson, daughter of Gaylord Nelson, addressed the group on the importance of environmental education and her father’s legacy. A brief background on environmental education in Wisconsin was presented by Randy Champeau, Associate Dean of the College of Natural Resources at UW-Stevens Point and Director of the Wisconsin Center for Environmental Education.

On December 7, the state superintendent welcomed prevention coordinators, pupil services staff, school counselors and psychologists, and community stakeholders to the Building the Heart of Successful Schools Conference in Wisconsin Dells. The conference is an annual event sponsored by the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction’s Student Services, Prevention, and Wellness team in cooperation with the CESAs, the Wisconsin Student Assistance Association, and the Wisconsin PTA.

“You are some of our state’s most dedicated educators,” said Burmaster. “You provide effective pupil services, special education, and prevention programs to support learning and development for all students. You are ready to listen, learn and share information about programs and initiatives that help prevent and reduce barriers that keep students from achieving at their optimum levels.

“Students with strong family and teacher support, and who feel connected to their schools, are less likely to skip school or to engage in risky behaviors — including physical fighting, carrying a weapon, using marijuana, drinking alcohol, and becoming sexually active. All of these behaviors and issues create significant barriers to learning. That’s why the work you do is so essential if we are to help all students succeed.”

Last updated on 12/11/2006