Wisconsin voters approved a record number of referenda in 2024 to increase property taxes to fund their local schools, and nearly set a record for the most referenda to fund municipalities or counties. However, the approval rate for school ballot questions continued a downward trend. These trends raise questions about both the adequacy of current…

On August 18, 2020, The United States will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the ratification of the 19th Amendment which gave women the vote. Belle La Follette played an important role in helping women gain the right to vote guaranteed in this amendment. She advocated for women in her home state of Wisconsin and across the country. This article…

As the 2012 presidential election approaches, controversy grows over recent statewide legislative initiatives that impose stricter identification requirements on voters. These new voter identification laws--especially those that require voters to produce a government-issued photo ID--are the subject of intense debates. During 2011, seven states…

It all started when the author's daughter, also a Madison teacher, called her. "We need to call people to the rally at the Capitol." That Sunday rally in Capitol Square was just the first step in the massive protests against Governor Scott Walker's infamous "budget repair bill." The Madison teachers' union declared a "work…

In a period such as this, marked by extreme political partisanship and apparent gridlock at the federal level, it would be tempting to throw up one's hands in frustration. But this is just the time that a foundation like Joyce can add the most value--because the Joyce team members are non-partisan, not subject to the pressures of political and…

In this article, the author details how she and another teacher developed a multicultural Wisconsin history curriculum for a fourth-grade classroom. Their focus in this article is a description of the main ideas students learned and the instructional strategies that supported their learning from the three-week unit on Wisconsin government. They…

This bulletin on the use of the schoolhouse as a polling place is divided into two sections. Part I, Use of Schoolhouse for Political Purposes, explains why this practice is beneficial to the schools (allows youth to witness and understand the civic process) and to the public (it is economical, worthy, appropriate, convenient, permanent,…