Brittany Kinser headshot. Photo: courtesy of campaign. State Superintendent Jill Underly speaking at a rally in the Capitol. Photo: Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

State superintendent candidates, incumbent Jill Underly and education consultant Brittany Kinser, answered questions about public school funding, the state’s voucher program and working with the Legislature during an online forum Wednesday evening.

The forum was hosted by the Wisconsin Public Education Network (WPEN), the NAACP, the League of Women’s Voters and Wisconsin Early Childhood Action Needed and moderated by Kevin Lawrence Henry, Jr., Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at UW-Madison.

The race for the nonpartisan office will appear on voters’ ballots April 1 alongside the high-profile state Supreme Court race. The state superintendent is responsible for overseeing Wisconsin’s 421 public school districts and leading the Department of Public Instruction (DPI), which administers state and federal funds, licenses teachers, develops educational curriculum and state assessments and advocates for public education.

Underly, who was elected to her first term in 2021, said she has the relationships, experiences and “deep knowledge of what it takes to lead Wisconsin’s public schools.” She said that she is “100% pro public school” and said that improvements have been made to Wisconsin’s education system, but there is more work to be done. 

Kinser said that her “vision for Wisconsin education is that 95% of children will be able to read well enough to go to college, have a career or a meaningful job or master of trade” and is running “to restore our high standards.” She referenced the recent changes approved by Underly in 2024 to state testing standards, but this was the only mention of what has become a major issue among the candidates and state lawmakers who have launched an audit into the changes and passed a bill to reverse them.

Both candidates said the state’s educational gaps must be addressed, but had varying answers on how to do that. According to the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), about three out of every 10 fourth graders and eighth graders were at or above proficient levels. 

“We have got to take accountability at the state level for how our children are learning or not learning… This is a crisis,” Kinser said. “That’s why I got into this race. We have got to hold ourselves accountable. We have got to make it transparent. We have to make sure that it’s easy for all of us to know the information right now.”

Kinser said she has been researching some of the best practices around the country and wants to bring “more transparency and predictability” to DPI. 

Underly said the gaps are “absolutely unacceptable.” She said they know how to solve the problem but that “it takes money and it takes effort.” 

Both candidates said they would want to look at the state’s funding formula for schools, though Underly said that the state’s school choice program, which allows students to attend private and independent charter schools using public dollars, is draining needed resources from public schools and making problems worse. 

“It goes back 30-plus years to [former Gov.] Tommy Thompson and his effort to defund public schools and send funding to unaccountable voucher schools, and this goes back to the refusal of the Legislature to fund public schools and the efforts that they make to defund public schools,” Underly said. “I say, give us the tools we need to do the work, and we can get it done.”

Underly added that she would have to sue if the Legislature continued not investing in schools, as required by the state constitution.

Kinser said that she would also want to look at the funding formula. She said that throughout her campaign she has learned that most people agree that the funding formula is “broken” and is in need of “an upgrade.” She also said that she would be interested in examining whether there is a better way to fund special education costs other than through the current reimbursement system. 

“Schools are operating with limited resources, are concerned and tired of actually paying the referendums,” Kinser said. “Wisconsin’s funding formula needs to be modernized, and I promise to be a leader in that… I have relationships on both sides of the aisle and rapport with the governor’s office. We have to make sure that it’s updated.” 

Underly said that she has worked to develop relationships with legislators, and has worked to “foster productive dialogue, even when we don’t agree.” She noted that collaboration between DPI and the Legislature helped get Act 20, a law that implemented new literacy requirements, passed.

Kinser took credit for helping get Act 11 passed in 2023. The bill provided a historic funding increase to independent charter schools and private schools participating in the Parental Choice Programs and raised the revenue ceiling for public schools to $11,000 for the 2023-24 school year.

“It was the Republicans plus five Democrats in Milwaukee,” Kinser said about the lawmakers who supported the bill. “The governor’s office signed that bill, so it was a group effort to get more funding for all the schools and then some other areas that the governor prioritized.”

Kinser, during her time at the City Forward Collective, a Milwaukee-based school choice advocacy group, lobbied for a bill that increased funding to Wisconsin voucher schools.

While most of the conversation throughout the forum was cordial, the candidates butted heads at the end over Kinser’s lack of a teacher’s license and her support of the state’s choice program. 

A report from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel in early February found that Kinser has never had a teacher’s license in Wisconsin and had let her administrator’s license lapse.  

“I don’t believe she fully understands how public schools work in Wisconsin,” Underly said. “She’s made this claim routinely, for example, that only three in 10, or 30 percent of kids, are able to read, or that they’re college ready, and that makes absolutely no sense. We’ve made incredible gains in Wisconsin — how can we be sixth in the nation? And I think my vision has had a lot to do with that.”

Underly also underscored Kinser’s background as a lobbyist advocating for school vouchers and independent charter schools. 

Kinser pushed back noting her varying experiences in the education field including a decade in Chicago Public Schools as a special education teacher and at the district level and about a decade as a principal and in leadership at a charter school in Milwaukee. She also clarified that she recently retained a license again.

“I paid the $185 to update my license… It was so difficult to move my license in from New York and Illinois to Wisconsin,” Kinser said. “I would hope Dr. Underly would understand this as she has said she understands that the teacher shortage is real.”

According to state records, DPI received Kinser’s application and payment on Feb. 25.

Kinser also said the claim that she is a school “privatizer” isn’t true, although she supports school choice. She said when it came to funding she was “lobbying for equal funding for all of our children.”

Brittany Kinser headshot. Photo: courtesy of campaign. State Superintendent Jill Underly speaking at a rally in the Capitol. Photo: Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

Incumbent State Superintendent Jill Underly and education consultant Brittany Kinser, who are competing in the April 1 election to lead  the Department of Public Instruction, will both participate in a virtual forum Wednesday evening. Kinser agreed to join the forum after initially declining, making a meeting of the two candidates appear unlikely ahead of the April 1 election. 

Underly is running for her second term in office on a platform of supporting and investing more funding in public schools. She has the backing of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Kinser, an advocate for the state’s school choice program, says she wants to work to improve reading and math education and raise state testing standards. She has the backing of the Wisconsin Republican Party and financial backing from prominent GOP billionaire megadonors. 

A direct conversation between the two candidates seemed unlikely as of last week as Underly declined three invitations and Kinser declined an invitation for a forum hosted by the Wisconsin Public Education Network (WPEN), the NAACP, the League of Women’s Voters and Wisconsin Early Childhood Action Needed. WPEN said in an email about the event that Kinser’s campaign changed its mind and confirmed her appearance “after clearing up some confusion and adjusting the timeline of the event.”

The event is being held online at 7 p.m. on Wednesday and will be moderated by Kevin Lawrence Henry, Jr., Associate Professor of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at UW-Madison.

An empty high school classroom. (Dan Forer | Getty Images)

It’s unlikely the candidates for state Superintendent will debate ahead of the April 1 election with incumbent Jill Underly turning down three opportunities and education consultant Brittany Kinser declining one. 

The race for the nonpartisan state superintendent will appear on voters’ ballots alongside the high-profile state Supreme Court race. While the race is not as high profile as the campaign for Supreme Court, the results will be consequential for education in Wisconsin. The winner will be responsible for overseeing Wisconsin’s 421 public school districts and leading the Department of Public Instruction (DPI) — an agency whose responsibilities include administering state and federal funds, licensing teachers, developing educational curriculum and state assessments and advocating for public education.

Underly, who is running for her second term in office, is running on a platform of advocating for the state’s public schools and has the support and financial backing of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Kinser, who is running on a platform of improving reading and math education, is a school choice advocate and has the backing of Republicans, with financial support from the Republican Party of Wisconsin and backing from billionaire Republican mega-donors.

Underly, after missing a Wispolitics forum ahead of the primary, told the Examiner that February was a busy month and she would be open to attending a forum in March before the primary. The day of the Wispolitics meeting Underly said that she had to attend a meeting of the UW Board of Regents and also attended a press conference about federal payments not going out to Head Start programs. 

“March is not as busy,” Underly said at the time. “I have other meetings and things that are standard, but like, February is just unreasonable… You’re traveling so much and you’ve got a lot of obligations, so it’s hard right now, so yes, you know, next month, if there are forums and I don’t have a standing conflict.”

Since the primary, Underly has declined three debate opportunities. 

The Milwaukee Press Club along with WisPolitics and the Rotary Club of Milwaukee will host an event March 25, and said it invited both candidates to participate but Underly’s campaign spokesperson said she was unavailable. 

Marquette Law School’s Lubar Center for Public Policy Research and Civic Education will host an event with Kinser on Thursday. Kevin Conway, Associate Director of University Communication, said the center extended invitations to both candidates for a general election debate ahead of the February primary. 

“While all candidates agreed in concept, the Lubar Center was subsequently unable to confirm a program time with the Underly campaign,” Conway said. “Given the circumstances, the Lubar Center pivoted to offering “Get to Know” programs to both candidates, and the Kinser campaign accepted.”

WISN-12 had invited both candidates a chance to debate on UpFront, the channel’s Sunday public affairs program. 

“So far, we cannot get both candidates to agree on a date,” WISN 12 News Director Matt Sinn said in an email.

Underly said in a statement to the Examiner that her job as superintendent “requires every minute I can give it, which means making choices which matter the most for our kids’ future, and advocating on their behalf every single day.” 

Underly has agreed to a forum being hosted by the Wisconsin Public Education Network, a nonpartisan public education advocacy group, and the NAACP. 

“Unfortunately the dates did not work for other debates, but we were able to agree to the Wisconsin Public Education Network forum, which is the forum for the education community,” she said. 

WPEN Executive Director Heather DuBois Bourenane said WPEN had communicated with all of the candidates about a general election forum before the primary and the NAACP followed up with Kinser after the primary. 

Kinser’s campaign ended up declining.

DuBois Bourenane told the Examiner that the group is hoping Kinser will reconsider, noting that they want to have a “fair and friendly” conversation with the candidates to talk about their “vision for Wisconsin kids.” She said the League of Women Voters was also supposed to cohost the event, but the group doesn’t sponsor events where only one candidate participates. 

“It’s unfortunate that voters aren’t going to have an opportunity to hear from the candidates directly,” DuBois Bourenane said. “We hope Ms. Kinser will reconsider… We would love to have her at the event, and as we said in our email, make every effort to make sure that it’s fair and that the questions reflect the concerns that are most pressing to Wisconsin kids.”

Underly said that Kinser’s decision to decline “speaks volumes that after working for years to defund public schools she doesn’t want to show up and answer questions from public school advocates.”

Kinser’s campaign noted Underly declined each forum being hosted by members of the press, and accused Underly of “hiding.” 

“Wisconsinites deserve to hear from the candidates who will be responsible for our children’s future. Brittany Kinser has, when possible, made herself available to any organization, group, or voter who wants to learn more about her plans to restore high standards so every student can read, write, and do math well,” the campaign stated, adding that Kinser would continue meeting with voters ahead of Election Day.

The rally in the rotunda of the Wisconsin State Capitol was a chance for speakers to share their experiences of going to referendum. Photo by Baylor Spears/Wisconsin Examiner.

Prentice School District, a rural district in the northern part of Wisconsin, will ask voters on April 1 to raise their property taxes and provide the district $3.5 million over the next four years for operational costs. It’s one of the smaller requests among the over 80 ballot measures — totaling $1.6 billion in requests — that will go before voters across the state next month.

Denae Walcisak, a member of a team campaigning to pass the referendum, drove three and a half hours from the Northwoods to attend a Friday rally at the Capitol organized by the Wisconsin Public Education Network (WPEN). She spoke about her district’s third time trying for a yes and described the lengths community members are going to for students in her district.

Her dad, who is a school board member, put off knee surgery for almost a year, Walcisak said, while he donated his time and money to fill in as a school bus driver in the rural district and to transport students to field trips and games. 

“Teacher organizes fundraisers for the art club to pay for basic supplies… Our band teacher also teaches sixth grade reading. We have a part-time elementary gym teacher who is 82 years young. Our tech ed teacher bought a welding machine for his students with his own money… My son needs speech therapy. The school has tried twice to hire this year, but who wants to take a job at a school whose future is uncertain?” Walcisak said. 

Even with the funding from the referendum, Walcisak said the district will continue to just scrape by. She called for more funding from the state. 

“The lack of funding is affecting our whole community and our way of life. I ask you from the people of Prentice, please don’t let us fade away,” she said. 

The rally marked the end of Public Schools Week, an annual recognition of Wisconsin’s public schools and a time advocates use to call for supporting and investing. Gov. Tony Evers issued a declaration on Monday reminding Wisconsinites that public education is a right and that public schools need support and investment from elected officials. 

The rally in the rotunda of the Wisconsin State Capitol was a chance for speakers to share their experiences of going to referendum — the stress of repeatedly asking for them and consequences of failure — and to call for the state to make greater investments in schools. 

WPEN Executive Director Heather DuBois Bourenane said the use of school referendums is an “overwhelming,” “expensive” and “incredibly disequalizing” way of funding schools. A scroll with the names of every school district that has gone to referendum since the last state budget was rolled out and suspended from the third floor of the building, reaching down to the ground floor.

“Not all of these referenda passed… Some of them had to go more than once, and still didn’t pass. Some of them had to go again and again and keep asking for less,” DuBois Bourenane said. “When we fund our schools like this, our gaps get wider and wider.” 

State Superintendent Jill Underly, who is running for a second term in office against school choice advocate Brittany Kinser, said the underfunding of Wisconsin’s schools has reached a “critical point.”

“With the next state biennial budget, we have a chance — a real chance — to finally catch your school districts up and to give them what they need to thrive,” Underly said. 

The pleas from rallygoers come as the budget writing process picks up in the state Capitol. Evers introduced a state budget proposal last month that would invest an additional $3 billion in K-12 education, and Republican lawmakers, who have said Evers’ proposal costs too much and therefore isn’t serious, are preparing to write their own version. 

Jeff Pressley and Joni Anderson, members of the Adams-Friendship School Board, and Tom Wermuth, the district’s school administrator, spoke to the repetitive and divisive nature of the school referendum process.

“We’re on the treadmill for referendum endlessly. We live literally paycheck to paycheck or referendum to referendum,” Pressley said, adding that the state’s funding formula is the problem with school funding.

The state’s complex school funding formula takes into account a combination of state, federal, and local aid. Of the funding, local property taxes and state aid are the two largest sources of revenue for schools, but school districts are restricted in how much they can bring in by state revenue limits. 

Revenue limits were adjusted for inflation until 2010 and since then, lawmakers have only sometimes provided increases. Currently, school districts receive a $325 increase annually in their per pupil revenue limits. 

Referendums are a way for districts to exceed their revenue limits, and schools have begun relying on them increasingly to meet costs. Last year, a record number of school districts went to referendum. 

“The funding formula in the state of Wisconsin worked significantly better from 1993 to 2010. During that time period, school districts were provided inflationary increases to the revenue limit…” Wermuth said. “Right now, we’re operating on a $3 million a year referendum. We’re in the second year of a four-year, non-recurring referendum… even with our referendum, we’re about $1.2 million dollars behind inflation. Like most districts, we can’t get off that treadmill.” 

Pressley said lawmakers have made school boards and districts the “villain” by forcing districts to have to go to voters to meet costs. 

“We have a lot of retired people on fixed incomes. Almost 50% of our funding for our schools comes from local property taxes. So, who’s the bad guy? It’s not the people in this building, it’s the people at the school district because you raised our taxes,” Pressley said. 

Wermuth said he practically isn’t an educational leader anymore. 

“I am a financial expert. I study spreadsheets and cannot get off selling referendums to the public,” Wermuth said. He added that the process is “incredibly divisive” and that “at some point in time, the tolerance is just not going to be. It’s not going to exist, regardless of what we try to do.” 

Freshman Rep. Angelina Cruz (D-Racine) said that the problems facing school districts aren’t “unsolvable.” She said the state’s estimated $4 billion budget surplus could be used to help fund school districts, that the state could tax its wealthier residents to help afford costs and stop funding private school vouchers at the expense of public schools. She said that the recent budget proposal from Gov. Tony Evers was a good starting point as it includes raising the special education reimbursement to 60%, increasing per-pupil revenue and investing in student mental health services, universal free school meals and literacy education. 

Cruz called on people to continue to speak up for better school investments — even as Republican lawmakers are likely to throw out all of Evers’ proposals. 

“There is an appetite to fully fund our schools, and when the proposal comes back to not do that, you need to continue to show up, and use your voices to advocate for our kids,” Cruz said.