Facts and Figures on Milwaukee Public Schools

In the game of “where does our money go,” I think these numbers are very important. I wonder if other school districts waste money as well as Milwaukee Public Schools?

For the 2007-2008 school year, MPS reports the following:

87,360 students

Budget = Almost $1.2 billion ($13,673 per child)

14,449 staff positions – 281 principals, 5,694 teachers, 503 teacher aides, 207 guidance/psychological, 415 service workers, 529 clerical/secretarial

207 schools – 124 elementary, 17 middle, 55 high school, 11 combined

87.7% attendance rate

68% graduation rate

24% suspension rate

2006 test results:
Grade 4 – 62% proficient in reading, 52% proficient in math
Grade 8 – 62% proficient in reading, 40% proficient in math
Grade 10 – 39% proficient in reading, 29% proficient in math

And what has the budget looked like over the years?

2002 – $1.026 billion
2003 – $1.145 billion (11.57% increase)
2004 – $1.172 billion (2.34% increase)
2005 – $1.139 billion (2.81% decrease)
2006 – $1.161 billion (1.92% increase)
2007 – $1.167 billion (0.47% increase)
2008 – $1.194 billion (2.38% increase)

Something tells me that with less than 1/2 of our 10th graders able to read and less than 1/3 of our 10th graders able to do math, we’re not getting our money’s worth.