This has been a challenging year for schools in Wisconsin.
Colleges and universities have made cuts, laid off staff, and one shut down entirely. K-12 schools were disappointed by the funding they received in the latest state budget.
Cardinal Stritch closes
One of the biggest stories this year was the closure of Milwaukee’s Cardinal Stritch University.
The private, Catholic school had been in business for 86 years. But with enrollment down to about 1,000 students, President Dan Scholz said it couldn’t afford to continue.
"It comes down to finances," Scholz told WUWM. "And if you’re not bringing in enough money to operate and pay all your bills, and operate a university, at some point you just have to make a decision that on the business side of it, it’s just sustainable anymore."
Stritch students and employees were devastated and left scrambling to figure out their next steps. In May, its final graduating class crossed the commencement stage.
"While the doors of Cardinal Stritch University will not be open going forward, the values live within each of us," said student speaker Samantha Erschen Thurner. "They will give us strength as we grieve the loss of the university and empower us to allow Stritch to live through us."
Other Wisconsin universities set up special transfer options for Stritch students, which enabled many of them to continue their education.
The Stritch campus was sold to the Ramirez Family Foundation, which plans to build a private Christian voucher school there.
Closures, layoffs in UW System
Declining enrollment hit Cardinal Stritch especially hard. But it’s an issue affecting higher education throughout Wisconsin.
The UW System is closing two more of its branch campuses, in Washington County and Fond Du Lac, due to enrollment and funding challenges.
UW System President Jay Rothman said fewer students are seeking associate degrees at the two-year colleges.
"The market is telling us that the mission of the two-year branch campuses is not as attractive to prospective students as it once was," Rothman said.
Most UW schools have structural deficits they’re trying to close by making cuts. UW-Oshkosh and UW-Parkside, for example, have both announced major layoffs.
DEI struggle at UW System
The UW System has also been embroiled in a struggle over diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI. Republican Assembly Speaker Robin Vos blocked pay raises for UW employees as he pushed for cuts to DEI, which he calls left-wing indoctrination.
A deal to restructure a third of DEI positions in exchange for funding was initially rejected by the UW Board of Regents, but later approved.
"I feel it’s my fiduciary duty to put the needs of the system in front of any personal opinion I may hold," said Regent Ashok Rai, who reluctantly voted in favor of the deal.
It remains to be seen how students will be affected by the changes to DEI on UW campuses.
K-12 schools disappointed by state budget
K-12 schools have been struggling financially too.
In negotiations with Republicans over the state budget, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers approved a major funding increase for voucher and charter schools – but traditional public schools got much less.
It was disappointing for school district leaders, like Wauwatosa Superintendent Demond Means.
"They’re squeezing the local school systems where we are the ones who are forced to make the tough decisions," Means said.
Because state funding hasn’t kept up with rising costs, Wauwatosa is projecting a $9 million deficit.
The options for school districts to balance their budgets are limited. They could make painful cuts — laying off staff, closing schools. Or, they could go to voters to ask for more property tax funding.
That means in 2024, Wisconsinites may see more school referendums on their ballots.
Bright spots in college access
We also want to look back on some of the good education news of 2023.
Higher education has been expanding in Wisconsin prisons, with the goal of giving incarcerated men and women better opportunities once they are released.
Colleges are looking to expand behind bars even more in 2024 and beyond, due to the restoration of the federal Pell grant to incarcerated students.
College classes have also been growing in high schools, through dual enrollment. The classes are meant to encourage more students to attend college, and to save them money if they do enroll.
And, starting in 2024, the UW System will start a direct admissions program, where it admits high school seniors to its universities based on GPA and course completion, without the need for a college application.
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