The new tool, known as the Wisconsin School Finance Public Reports (WiSFPR) dashboard, combines data collected from districts and schools through the State Aid Financial Reporting (SAFR) system, WISEdata Finance, and the Wisconsin School Finance Portal (WiSFiP). It continues the Department’s work of transitioning to reports based on WISEdata Finance submissions.

“This new tool will increase fiscal transparency and help Wisconsinites understand how their districts and schools operate financially,” said State Superintendent of Public Instruction Dr. Jill Underly. “Building on our existing publicly available data systems, the WiSFPR dashboard will enhance the accessibility of our educational data to the public.”

Under 2021 Wisconsin Act 89, the DPI was tasked with developing a new online portal, using financial data collected from all school districts, county children with disabilities education boards (CCDEBs), and independent charter schools. Within the dashboard, visitors can access year-to-year and district-by-district data on:

school district referenda

tax levies by fund, equalized levy rates, and tax appointment

debt service payments and debt balances

shared cost comparisons

comparative revenue and cost reports

the status of required education agency reports

The new dashboard also converts reports into charts for visual representation of the data. In the future, the DPI will continue to build on this online public resource as funding permits. Members of the public are encouraged to visit the WiSFPR dashboard to learn more about how schools and districts serve students in their communities and across the state.

All schools and colleges must implement a 5 percent budget reduction in fiscal year 2026, while administrative and other departments must reduce their budgets by 7 percent, according to a letter sent to University of Wisconsin-Madison employees.

“Our expectation is that many of the necessary reductions can be borne by trimming non-personnel expenses, leaving some vacancies unfilled, and, in some instances, moving existing expenses to alternative funding sources,” Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin wrote. “Still, we recognize these cuts will not be painless and that a number of units will face difficult choices.”

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The university has paused most travel and nonessential expenses and is reviewing capital projects and hiring.

“We continue to face immense financial uncertainty and risks,” Mnookin wrote.

According to the letter, concerns include:

Potential changes to the federal indirect reimbursement rate, which is projected to cost the university between $65 million and $130 million.

The risk of additional grant terminations, freezes and stop-work orders. Since January, the university has seen more than 90 awards or subawards terminated or ordered to stop work, Mnookin wrote.

Questions about international students’ ability to study in the U.S., which might affect enrollment numbers, budgets and personnel.

Proposed changes to federal financial aid, including cuts to Pell Grants.

Uncertainty regarding potential tariffs, which could have “cascading impacts” on the university’s construction and operations costs, Mnookin wrote.

Uncertainty around funding in the state budget.

Last week, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said Republicans in his caucus support cutting the Universities of Wisconsin budget by $87 million.

Lawmakers are expected to unveil the details of their higher education budget this month. The remarks by Vos were a stark departure from the funding increase leaders of higher education had asked for.

The Universities of Wisconsin ranked 44th out of 50 states in public funding in 2024 — a drop of one spot from 2023.

“These considerable uncertainties and risks require us to take additional steps today to help protect our long-term financial viability,” Mnookin wrote.

In March, UW-Madison leaders asked all units to submit draft plans for a 5- to 10-percent budget reduction.

On Monday, Mnookin said she recognizes some departments will have to “supplement” the university-directed reduction with additional cuts.

University deans and vice chancellors will begin reviewing budget reduction plans soon. Mnookin said UW-Madison is prioritizing its core elements of teaching, research and outreach.

“We understand this budget news may be disappointing and concerning, even if it is likely not entirely unexpected or surprising,” Mnookin wrote. “Higher education is in the midst of tremendous upheaval. Like our peers, we are not insulated from the impacts.”

Editor’s note: WPR is a division of UW-Madison.

Education consultant Brittany Kinser calls herself a moderate. She is backed by Republicans.

The candidates face off in the April 1 election.

Voters will decide whether State Superintendent Jill Underly deserves a second term or political newcomer Brittany Kinser should be the next state schools chief.

The two candidates face off April 1. In-person absentee voting, also known as early voting, began March 18.

The state superintendent plays a pivotal role in advocating for K-12 education statewide as the head of the Department of Public Instruction. The next superintendent will lead throughout President Donald Trump’s second term as he seeks to dismantle the federal education department and send more power back to the states.

The office is officially nonpartisan, though partisan groups have poured money into the race. Underly is backed by the Democratic Party of Wisconsin. Kinser calls herself a moderate who is backed by conservatives.

Here’s what to know about the candidates:

What education experience do the DPI candidates have?

Underly, 47, began her career as an Indiana public high school social studies teacher. She helped first-generation students as an adviser at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, worked in the federal programs division at the DPI and served as superintendent of Pecatonica Area School District, a small rural district in southwestern Wisconsin. She was first elected to lead the DPI in 2021.

Kinser, 47, first worked as a special education teacher in Chicago Public Schools and moved up to a district-level instructional coaching job. After nearly a decade in CPS, she left for a job in a Chicago public charter school network. She was tapped to launch the first Wisconsin school for Rocketship, a chain of charter schools. She also led City Forward Collective, a Milwaukee nonprofit that advocates for and funds charter schools and vouchers. She currently works as an education consultant promoting literacy initiatives. She jumped into the race late last year with little political experience.

Who are the biggest donors supporting each candidate?

Kinser has netted at least $2.4 million so far this year, including at least $1.9 million from the state Republican Party. Other donors included $40,000 from billionaires Richard and Elizabeth Uihlein, $20,000 from Beloit billionaire Diane Hendricks, $20,000 from Milwaukee businessman Ted Kellner and $20,000 from J.C. Huizenga, who founded a national charter school network headquartered in Michigan.

Underly has raised at least $1.3 million, a million of which came from the state Democratic Party. She’s also received more than $50,000 from various teachers unions.

Outside group spending in the race backing Underly and opposing Kinser totals $1.7 million. This includes a $1.4 million by A Better Wisconsin, which has run TV ads accusing Kinser of cutting corners. The ad features the case of a teacher charged with sexually assaulting a child at a Milwaukee charter school Kinser ran.

Outside group spending supporting Kinser and opposing Underly is about $116,000.

With candidates’ fundraising included, spending for Underly totals about $3 million and spending for Kinser stands at about $2.5 million.

What have candidates said about the DPI’s handling of the financial reporting problems at Milwaukee Public Schools? Should this have been made public before MPS held a referendum last year?

Underly said she doesn’t regret anything because the DPI did nothing wrong. She said it wasn’t unusual for school districts to be late in submitting reports, but what made MPS stand out was the lack of progress, even after the DPI began meeting with MPS officials daily. She said the timing of the referendum was “perhaps unfortunate” but there was no benefit to the DPI getting involved. Regardless of whether MPS was late or on time in submitting its reports, she said the district still needed referendum money to pay its bills.

Kinser said the DPI fell short in ensuring MPS was complying with financial reporting deadlines, and the problems should have been made public before the referendum was held. She said she would work to restore public trust and demand accountability.

There’s been a lot of talk about ‘lowered standards.’ What should voters know about the changes in state test benchmarks, and where do candidates stand?

Underly overhauled the state’s proficiency benchmarks for standardized tests last year. Kinser and Republicans have said the changes “lowered standards” because the new scores students need to be considered proficient are lower than under the previous system.

Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has also criticized Underly, specifically for how the changes came about — without enough public input and because raw changes complicate comparing student achievement across years.

The GOP-controlled Legislature recently passed a bill to restore state testing to the previous system. Evers vetoed the bill last week because he believes the DPI should be an independent agency.

Underly said the changes came at the request of Wisconsin teachers and more accurately reflect student achievement. Her campaign questioned moving back to the previous system, which aligned with a national test, because the Trump administration has canceled one of those national exams and put the testing director on leave.

The DPI is aiming by the end of this school year to apply the new cut scores to the previous four school years, allowing districts to see a five-year trendline.

More: What to know about Wisconsin’s change in state test scores and the GOP push to restore previous benchmarks

Where do Underly and Kinser stand on school choice and vouchers?

Nowhere do the candidates clash more than on school choice.

Underly believes public dollars should fund public schools, and creating another system that can pick and choose its students hurts schools that must serve everyone. She said private school vouchers do not increase student performance and she would ultimately like to see Wisconsin’s 35-year school choice program eliminated.

Kinser supports school choice, and said she has talked to families who say they wants options when their public schools are underperforming. However, Kinser has deflected in several interviews when asked if wealthy families should get a taxpayer-funded voucher to send their children to private school, or if she supports income limits.

Underly’s campaign has repeatedly called Kinser a “voucher lobbyist,” a label Kinser disputed.

Underly pointed to a bill Kinser lobbied for last budget session that Evers signed into law as part of a broader funding package. The bill increased state payments to independent charter schools and for voucher payments that cover the cost of tuition for students from lower-income families to attend private schools. The bill also boosted funding for about half of public school districts that historically had received low funding.

What have Jill Underly and Brittany Kinser said about the dismantling of the federal education department?

Underly has become a fierce defender of public schools as Trump hobbles the department by gutting half of its staff and ordering millions in cuts to education research and teacher training programs.

“My job has just become all the more important because we have to defend public education,” Underly told Madison high school students at a March 12 forum.

Kinser said she is confident Wisconsin can weather federal changes as long as schools continue to receive their current level of federal funding. She has called Underly’s politicization of the situation unhelpful and unprofessional. She sidestepped a question about whether she supports Gov. Tony Evers joining a multistate lawsuit over the department’s massive cuts, saying the state needs someone who can talk to U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon as changes occur.

What are Jill Underly and Brittany Kinser’s views on school funding and the increasing number of districts going to referendum?

Underly said school districts have “no other option” but to ask voters to raise taxes when state funding isn’t enough. This creates inequalities between districts, a problem she experienced firsthand while leading Pecatonica. She requested $4 billion for schools in the next budget to make up for a lack of funding increases from the state and account for inflation.

Kinser said Wisconsin needs to “reimagine the way that we distribute funding for our schools,” shifting more of the burden to the state rather than local taxpayers.

Both candidates support increasing the rate at which the state reimburses school districts for special education expenses, which is about a third. The reimbursement rate has remained relatively flat while special education costs have risen, and districts have to pull from their general fund. Many districts cite those costs as part of their decision to go to referendum.

How do candidates suggest closing Wisconsin’s racial achievement gap?

The latest national testing data again showed Wisconsin posting the widest score gaps between Black and white students of any state.

Kinser said the state has to hold itself accountable in closing gaps by setting clear goals. She suggested focusing on the science of reading.

Underly said the solution is more money for public schools. She said she would sue the Legislature if it didn’t adequately fund public schools.

Do candidates need a teacher’s license?

State superintendents are not required to hold an educator’s license, though Underly’s campaign has criticized Kinser for lacking one.

Kinser had an administrator’s license when she led a Milwaukee charter school. The license expired last summer while she worked as a consultant. Kinser has never had a Wisconsin teacher’s license, though she held teaching licenses in other states where she taught.

Kinser said the DPI licensing process is difficult and vowed to streamline the process. She applied late last month to renew her expired license, according to DPI records.

(This story was updated to add new information.)

Journal Sentinel reporter Hope Karnopp contributed to this story.

Kelly Meyerhofer covers higher education in Wisconsin. Contact her at kmeyerhofer@gannett.com or 414-223-5168. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @KellyMeyerhofer.

This story was updated to add a video.

Update: 2025 Wisconsin Report Card Standard Setting

This summer, the 2025 Wisconsin Report Card Standard Setting panel will review and recommend updates to the thresholds used for school and district report card rating categories. These recommendations will align the rating system with current performance measures, be submitted to the state superintendent for adoption, and be incorporated into 2024-25 report cards, which will be published this fall.

Since report cards launched nearly 15 years ago, both state law and performance measures have evolved significantly. As a result, this standard setting process is a necessary and routine step to keep the report card system accurate and meaningful.

To support your communication with staff and communities, the Department of Public Instruction has created this informational resource. A continuously-updated FAQ is also available on the DPI’s Office of Educational Accountability webpage.

Thanks to broad statewide interest, we’ve convened a diverse panel of over two dozen education leaders from public, private Choice, and charter schools. Guided by Wisconsin’s Technical Advisory Committee and facilitated by the nationally recognized Center for Assessment, the panel will recommend updated thresholds for the five overall report card rating categories.

Key dates for the panel:

Virtual meeting: June 10, 2025

June 10, 2025 In-person meeting: August 12-14, 2025

These sessions will help ensure that Wisconsin’s report card system remains fair, transparent, and aligned with how performance is measured today.

If you have questions, please reach out to ReportCardHelp@dpi.wi.gov.

But high-profile controversies including vaccine mandates, LGBTQ+ rights and teaching about race and American history have led to big gains for Republicans on Wisconsin’s school boards.

National political groups have taken notice – and don’t want to lose that momentum.

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The New York-based 1776 Project PAC has spent more than $40,000 into 26 local school board races in Wisconsin this spring, according to recent campaign finance reports.

In 2024, the PAC endorsed 24 candidates for Wisconsin school boards, spending about $60,000. The year before, the group backed about 50 candidates.

Stefano Forte, executive director of the 1776 Project PAC, said his group wants to ensure candidates talking about “kitchen table” issues are getting elected so Wisconsin’s high standards and educational rankings stay high.

“What we’re trying to do is make sure we keep Wisconsin schools some of the best in the nation by getting quality school board candidates elected to their local school boards,” Forte said.

For the April 1 race, candidates from across Wisconsin, including 13 contenders from Waukesha County, have received $41,134 in donations.

Forte said the candidates are either recommended by local groups or ask for the endorsement. He said the 1776 Project PAC has a 61 percent success rate in getting people elected.

Evan Vorpahl is a senior researcher for True North Research, a watchdog group that focuses on fair courts and voting rights. He said when national groups pump so much money into low-turnout, low-information elections, there is no way to counter their messaging.

“They’re not spending this much money for nothing,” Vorpahl said. “For these school board elections, part of this is building up a bench for these candidates to be a launching point for political careers.”

According to campaign finance reports filed by the 1776 Project PAC, the Logan Circle Group, a PR firm based in Washington, D.C., paid for the production and postage of candidates’ mailings.

In 2021, Logan Circle Group threatened to sue journalists on behalf of then-U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz after they reported that President Donald Trump was distancing himself from the Republican lawmaker in the aftermath of the federal probe looking into whether Gaetz had sex with a 17 year old and paid her for it.

The 1776 Project PAC was launched in 2021 with financial backing from GOP mega donor and Illinois billionaire Richard Uihlein, owner of Pleasant Prairie-based Uline, to support school board candidates who said they would overturn the teaching of “critical race theory.”

The term critical race theory has become a catch-all phrase among conservatives critical of how race and social issues are being taught in the K-12 education system. Most public school officials across the country say they do not teach the theory.

Other priorities of the PAC include improving reading scores, banning transgender students from girls locker rooms, civics education and parental rights, according to the organization’s website.

Forte said those are just a few of the group’s interests.

“There are a ton of issues that we advocate for,” Forte said. “Budget transparency, making sure we are working with teachers to get what they need, keeping test scores high and making sure that we keep merit in schools.”

Alyssa Bowen, deputy director of True North, said the language of parental rights is not new, but efforts have focused increasingly on politically divisive cultural issues.

“It’s not really obviously about all parents’ rights, it is about the rights of a few individuals who are hyper focused on the culture wars,” Bowen said.

Bowen said when unelected billionaires come into a community to influence local elections, it is “fundamentally undemocratic.”

Michael Ford, who leads the Wisconsin Institute for Citizenship and Civic Dialogue and has long studied school boards, said there has not been much organized interest group spending from national left-leaning groups.

“There seems to be more of a fragmented group of national groups involved here and there, based on specific issues, but nothing like the Moms for Liberty-level for organization,” Ford said.

The 1776 Project PAC isn’t the only national interest group to take notice of Wisconsin.

The national conservative group Americans for Prosperity, funded by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch, got involved in the Kenosha School Board race in 2014 after the board approved new union contracts.

Americans for Prosperity is not supporting any specific local school board races this year, but it is still very involved in education, including parental choice and educational freedom.

The Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, funded by the Bradley Foundation, has also taken an interest in local school boards.

The firm’s Restoring American Education project provides resources on legal and policy issues.

WILL has said it provides local school boards with information members can’t get elsewhere.

WILL did not want to comment for this story.