Free Exchange

The Milwaukee Police Department responded to more than 1,300 calls for service at 34 Milwaukee Public Schools high schools in the 2021-’22 school year, an average of 7.2 calls every school day. Many were for serious crimes including “battery,” “reckless vehicle,” “sexual assault,” “subject with gun” and “shots fired.”

Yet the Milwaukee Public Schools Board of Directors refuses to put resource officers back into the schools. In this episode of Free Exchange, Badger Institute President Mike Nichols and Managing Editor Mark Lisheron discuss the disturbing numbers and how MPS is failing to protect kids and provide a safe place for them to learn.

Read the full report here: https://www.badgerinstitute.org/why-milwaukee-needs-to-get-cops-back-in-schools/

Thanks to advances in technology and changes in the marketplace, interstate mobility is easier today than it ever has been. So how is Wisconsin doing in its effort to attract and retain citizens in search of fruitful opportunity?

In this episode of Free Exchange, economist Andrew Hanson discusses his findings published in our Mandate for Madison. From GDP to population growth and income migration, hear how Wisconsin compares to its closest Midwest neighbors — and don’t miss Andrew’s recommendations to set the state on a path for growth.

Read Andrew Hanson’s complete report: https://www.badgerinstitute.org/wisconsins-economy-a-comparative-study/

Following November’s gubernatorial election, the tone and tenor of discourse in Madison is markedly different than it was four years ago.

The Badger State is looking at a budget surplus of billions of dollars, and both the Legislature and governor’s office have great incentive to improve the lives of Wisconsin families by working together for meaningful solutions.

School choice guru Jim Bender joins Badger Institute President Mike Nichols to discuss these post-election dynamics in the Capitol, including opportunities to invest in student success through accessible and equitable school choice funding in the next state budget cycle.

Read Mike Nichol’s Viewpoint, “This is not four years ago”: https://www.badgerinstitute.org/this-is-not-four-years-ago/

“I do think people vastly underestimate just how large and robust the safety net is.”

For decades, the federal government has assumed a larger role in funding and running safety net programs, leaving states with little ability to address flaws such as employment and marriage disincentives or make other changes.

Poverty scholar Angela Rachidi — an American Enterprise Institute senior fellow, Badger Institute visiting fellow and Wisconsin resident who once led policy research at the New York City Department of Social Services — joins us to discuss why Wisconsin should demand more authority over federal safety net programs, including a willingness to take a larger funding role while assuming more responsibility.

Read more of Rachidi’s work at https://www.badgerinstitute.org/ensuring-opportunity-altering-wisconsins-safety-net-to-encourage-upward-mobility/.

America is a leader in healthcare quality, though its healthcare delivery leaves much to be desired. Insurance costs are increasing, transparency is lacking and third parties control too much of the decision making.

In part two of a conversation with the Badger Institute’s Michael Jahr, professor and entrepreneur Daniel Sem discusses a wide range of healthcare topics, including the ACA, innovation, prescription drug prices, telehealth and more.

Read the full report authored with colleague Scott Niederjohn as part of our Mandate for Madison: https://www.badgerinstitute.org/common-sense-healthcare-reforms-for-wisconsin/

America is a leader in healthcare quality, though its healthcare delivery leaves much to be desired. Insurance costs are increasing, transparency is lacking and third parties control too much of the decision making.

In part one of a conversation with the Badger Institute’s Michael Jahr, professor and entrepreneur Daniel Sem outlines common-sense reforms to improve the delivery of quality healthcare, particularly the practice of direct primary care (DPC) in the state of Wisconsin.

Read the full report authored with colleague Scott Niederjohn as part of our Mandate for Madison: https://www.badgerinstitute.org/common-sense-healthcare-reforms-for-wisconsin/

The Milwaukee Police Department is facing an attrition crisis, undermining the frontline administration of justice in Wisconsin’s largest city.

In part two of a conversation with Badger Institute president Mike Nichols, researcher Sean Kennedy discusses the current state of MPD and how to reverse the alarming trend of unfilled positions across all levels of law enforcement ranks.

Click below to read the full text of Sean’s research.

The Thinning Blue Line: Milwaukee Police Department’s Attrition Crisis

A Tale of Two States: Wisconsin Crime Trends, 2017-2022

Visit www.badgerinstitute.org for more content from the Mandate for Madison — our policy roadmap for a more prosperous Wisconsin.

Wisconsin’s crime trends in essence reveal two different states: the city of Milwaukee and the “Rest of Wisconsin.” While most of the state is relatively safe in comparison to five years ago, troubling trends in Milwaukee — one of the primary economic engines of the Badger State and home to 10% of its citizens — are undermining the health and safety of the state in general.

In part one of a conversation with Badger Institute president Mike Nichols, researcher Sean Kennedy analyzes the last five years of corrections data and offers insight into the current state of crime and justice in Wisconsin.

Click below to read the full text of Sean’s research.

A Tale of Two States: Wisconsin Crime Trends, 2017-2022

The Thinning Blue Line: Milwaukee Police Department’s Attrition Crisis

Visit www.badgerinstitute.org for more content from the Mandate for Madison — our policy roadmap for a more prosperous Wisconsin.

Transportation projects in Wisconsin are primarily funded by per-gallon fuel taxes that are declining as fuel economy improves and more drivers opt for electric and hybrid vehicles. Transportation funding gurus Robert W. Poole Jr. and Benita Cotton-Orr, both Badger Institute visiting fellows, join us to discuss how Badger State roads should be funded in the future.

Earlier research already showed that children who went to schools in Milwaukee’s Parental Choice Program were less likely to get in trouble as young adults. Marilyn Anderson Rhames, an education scholar, found that these happier life outcomes were specifically linked to the religious content so prevalent in Milwaukee’s choice schools. Rhames, who spent 14 years as a teacher in Chicago’s public schools before studying for her doctorate, talks about how schools form character and how school choice helps them do it.