Where others see problems, MPS Superintendent Darienne Driver sees opportunities



MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The superintendent of Milwaukee Public Schools is eager -- and where others see problems, Darienne Driver sees opportunities.

"Education really is the liberating force in our country. It's something I'm so proud of," said Driver.

Driver made a guest appearance on "On the issues with Mike Gousha" at Marquette University on Wednesday, January 28th.

"And so that's what motivates me everyday. 'Cause I say the same experience that I had as a young person, I want that for all of the students here," said Driver.

It was an opportunity for the audience to get to know the latest superintendent at MPS -- only four months on the job. Driver says MPS is in transition now -- that it is a financially solvent organization.

"We have a number of partners, foundations, businesses, faith-based who are wrapping their arms around us," said Driver. "So I think that's really a positive. But we're in a really unique place now where all of these resources are there. We have to start producing the achievement results. We have to start seeing this in our classrooms."

On Wednesday, St. Sen. Alberta Darling (R) and St. Rep. Dale Kooyenga (R) released their "New Opportunities for Milwaukee" plan which includes the turnaround school model. It would create a board to oversee the initiative for schools that fail to meet expectations in a targeted zone -- and reopen them with a charter school operator.

"If a school closes and reopens as a charter, you have the teachers in that building who have to find new work. You have families who many times will just leave and go to either another city or another district. And think of the economic impact that could have," said Driver.

Other pieces of legislation deal with school accountability -- giving schools letter grades and sanctions to failing schools.

Driver says schools should be accountable. But she adds that sanctions can create hysteria and dismantle the mission of public education -- to educate students at all levels.

Milwaukee Alderman Bob Donovan has issued this statement on the "New Opportunities for Milwaukee" proposal:

"A proposal announced (Wednesday) by Senator Alberta Darling and Rep. Dale Kooyenga entitled “New Opportunities for Milwaukee”  holds promise and I am appreciative of their work to help improve the quality of life in our city.

Many aspects of their proposal are of merit and deserve serious consideration. Included in “New Opportunities for Milwaukee” materials yesterday are potential education reforms and possible tax incentives for economic development, as well as removing barriers to work through licensing flexibility and easing the ability to operate a business out of a residence.

For years I have reached out to state legislators on several fronts to nurture possible state-city partnerships and packages to help move Milwaukee forward. I am especially grateful to Senator Darling and Representative Kooyenga for their willingness to think outside the box (and to reach out to Milwaukee citizens and neighborhoods) in an effort to improve the lives of individuals and families in our city.

I intend on giving their proposal a full and honest examination, and I hope my colleagues and others are willing to do the same."


The Milwaukee Democratic Legislative Caucus has issued this statement:

"(Wednesday), Senator Alberta Darling (R-River Hills) and Rep. Dale Kooyenga (R-Brookfield) released
their “New Opportunities for Milwaukee” legislative agenda.

Citing the “failed” War on Poverty that began in 1964, the proposal’s authors begin by declaring victory on behalf of the conservative factions that have been working tirelessly to undermine its cause at every opportunity. And rather than offer ideas that engage with the true magnitude of Milwaukee’s challenges, the “New Opportunities for Milwaukee” agenda calls for a grab bag of small-bore ideas like charter school replication, occupational deregulation, block granting of Chapter 220 funds, tax incentives, and right-to-work zones.

We are appalled that two suburban legislators came up with this plan without consulting the Milwaukee legislators who have spent thousands of hours in these neighborhoods. Furthermore, these legislators didn’t bother to consult with other major stakeholders like the City of Milwaukee, County Government, or Milwaukee Public Schools.

Nowhere in their proposal is there mention of issues like living wages, access to public transit, affordable healthcare and childcare, underfunded public schools, or mass incarceration of non-violent offenders—the obstacles to upward mobility that we, as representatives of over 688,000 citizens in Milwaukee County, hear about on a daily basis.

The authors state that they hope to spark a community-wide conversation about poverty and its causes, and although their actions make it seem disingenuous, we, the people who actually represent Milwaukee would welcome that opportunity. We do not agree with much that is contained in the “New Opportunities for Milwaukee” agenda, but we do agree with Rep. Kooyenga and Sen. Darling that “when Milwaukee succeeds, Wisconsin succeeds,” so we take them at their word, and look forward to the upcoming debate around the most effective ways to alleviate suffering in our communities’ most troubled neighborhoods.

To that end, an anti-poverty Milwaukee agenda should include policies that Democratic legislators have been championing over the last several years, including:

• Raise the minimum wage and index it to inflation. Raising the minimum wage rewards the working. It is a
policy that Republicans in the past have supported. It would benefit Milwaukee’s many low-income workers but also workers across the state of Wisconsin.
• Cut taxes for low-income working people by changing Wisconsin’s existing Earned Income Tax Credit or
establishing a new tax credit that targets people who are working but not making enough to work and earn their way into the middle class. This is also a policy supported by Republican Presidents in the past.
• Open up more positions for Wisconsin’s successful Transitional Jobs program, which connects unemployed workers to short-term employment, mostly in the private sector. This program has garnered support from many Republican legislators throughout the last few sessions.
• For those that are truly too elderly, disabled, or ill (but not simply unwilling) to work, establish a Senior and Disability Tax Credit to supplement Social Security or Supplemental Security Income (SSI).
• Evidence from a study conducted in 2012 demonstrated that these four changes to Wisconsin law could
reduce poverty in Wisconsin by more than half and by as much as 80%."