Gov. Evers defends leaving decision on in-person classes to Wisconsin’s local schools

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin’s governor says it’s not his job to decide which of the state’s schools open, or when.

Gov. Tony Evers said during an online question and answer session with WisPolitics on Tuesday that he doesn’t have the power to order local schools to return to in-person classes.

“I’ve let the locals take care of that,” Evers said. “It’s not the state’s position to determine whether something can be mitigated or not.”

The governor did give himself one exemption, however, by which he meant his statewide mask orders.

Evers defended how he’s handled this school year, and the slow return to in-person classes in many larger school districts this spring.

“[Republicans] didn’t criticize me when I let local school districts make decisions by themselves when they were making decisions that [Republicans] liked,” Evers said. “Now local districts are making decisions that they don’t like, so suddenly it’s my problem.”

Sen. Dale Kooyenga, R-Brookfield, said the governor got it wrong.

“That’s a flippant comment that overly generalizes a significant problem in our communities, that schools remain closed,” Kooyenga told The Center Square.

Kooyenga has been one of the loudest voices in Madison about reopening schools. He said kids are being “lost” and will never make-up for the year of education that some of them have missed.

“I understand local control, I support local control,” Kooyenga added. “But there is a balance between local control and state involvement. Where the state should be involved is where there is a clear injustice.”

Kooyenga said the continued closing of schools is an issue of justice, particularly for kids in low income schools in Milwaukee and Madison that remain closed.

“This is the injustice of the moment, that schools are closed. And the schools that are closed are mostly minority schools,” Kooyenga explained.

He did give the governor the opportunity to encourage local schools to make their own decisions about reopening for in-person classes.

“If you push, and you show the parents that you’re with them. That would make a difference,” Kooyenga said. “If a teachers’ union said tomorrow ‘Let’s reopen,’ I bet he’d change his position.”

This is the injustice of the moment, and those schools are mostly minority schools. I look at the states on inferior schools and social justice

Those schools are

I cannot tell you the darkness that is out there because these schools are closed.

That darkness is growing in part because we literally have missing children. They are not on zoom, they are not in class.

“I understand local control, I support local control,” Kooyenga said. “But there is a balance between local control and state involvement. Where the state should be involved is where there is a clear injustice.”

“It’s a flippant comment that overly generalizes that a significant source of problems in our community, that schools remain closed.”

It would put pressure on the teachers union. You’ve seen this with other mayors, you can see that when you push, you get some action.

Kooyenga said he pushed Tosa and they decided to move from April to March,

If you push, and you show the parents that you’re with them. If a teachers union said tomorrow. Let’s reopen, he’d change his position.

Disclaimer: This content is distributed by The Center Square