The Referenda

By Derek Gottlieb

For the second time in six years, an upscale suburban school district in Wisconsin is asking residents for millions of dollars to keep the lights on. This is the story of how we got here, and what we ... more

· Government

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FAQs about The Referenda:

How many episodes does The Referenda have?

The podcast currently has 45 episodes available.

The Referenda episodes:

February 13, 2025 24. Chris Merker candidate interview [TOSA]
My interview questions
Chris's links:
Hiswebsite
HisFacebook page
Hiscampaign email address
Findings fromhis survey of the community
...more
28min
January 30, 2025 23. Troy Woodard candidate interview [TOSA]
My interview questions
Troy's links:
His campaign phone number
His email address
His facebook page
His website
...more
20min
January 30, 2025 22. Chris Bauer candidate interview [TOSA]
My interview questions
Chris's links:
His bio
His facebook page
His website
His email address
...more
22min
January 27, 2025 21. A Citizen's Guide to Your District's Finances [STATEWIDE]
How are voters supposed to know whether a school district has been spending tax dollars responsibly? How are community members supposed to evaluate a district's claim that it needs a referendum?
This episode gives you some public resources to start with -- what's driving cost increases and where are they occurring? How have revenue sources changed in response? What has the district already done to limit costs?
LINKS:
1.) "Multiyear Comparative Cost Detail" spreadsheet (explanation of formulas etc is here)
2.) "Multiyear Comparative Revenue Detail" spreadsheet (explanation of formulas etc is here)
3.) WI Dept of Public Instruction's "All Staff Report" page.
...more
34min
January 21, 2025 20. Why Shiny Reforms Often Fail
In this episode, I'm basically giving an academic paper on how our default approach to improving schools gets something wrong about how we inherit values and practices from the past and how we project them into the future.
Is it nerdy? Extremely. Enjoy!
...more
33min
January 09, 2025 19. BONUS: What We Can and Should Expect from School Boards, with Rachel White
School Board elections are coming up in April, and so I invited a national expert on district leadership to talk about what boards do, how they do and should work with district administrators, and how boards respond to community members, parents, and teachers.
LINKS:
My contact info, again
...more
58min
November 26, 202418. State Report Cards and Thoughtful Accountability
In this episode:
What data (from which years) goes into state report cards

How "achievement," "growth," "target groups," "on-track-to-graduation," "chronic absenteeism," etc. are technically defined

How different stakeholders can/should interpret state reports

Just to keep it interesting, does WSTEM have "incubator" value? Why or why not?
LINKS:
Wauwatosa's report cards (district and individual schools)

DPI's "report card resources" page

DPI's report card "technical guide" for all my stats/measurement nerds out there

"target group outcomes" explainer

"growth model" explainer
...more
43min
November 08, 202417. So What's Next?
In this episode:
What the passage of the referenda means for us

What the district is doing and can do more of in building trust

What makes participation in local school gov't difficult and what we can do about it.

A surprising amount of Hannah Arendt.
LINKS:
My contact info

The district's long-range facilities plan

WSD facilities referendum project list

WSD Financial transparency plan

Manny Teodoro's The Profits of Distrust

Linda Zerilli's incredible A Democratic Theory of Judgment, which has really informed my reading of Arendt.
...more
34min
November 02, 202416. BONUS: Why Local School Accountability Matters, with Jack Schneider
University of Massachusetts professor Jack Schneider joins us to talk about what local school governance does for us as citizens, how to do it well, and what stands in the way.
LINKS to stuff we've written together:
"Putting the Public Back Into Public Accountability" (Kappan)

"In Praise of Ordinary Measures" (Educational Theory)

Educational Accountability 3.0: Beyond ESSA (NEPC report)
LINKS to Jack's stuff:
The Education Wars (2024)

A Wolf at the Schoolhouse Door (2021)

Off the Mark: How Grades, Ratings, and Rankings Undermine Learning (But Don't Have To) (2023)

Have You Heard (Podcast)
...more
46min
October 30, 2024 15. BONUS: How to Change State Policy, with Heather DuBois Bourenane and Jenni Hofschulte
Okay, if every local district is in the same bind, and taxpayers and schoolkids everywhere are being pitted against each other, then how do we get together and apply pressure on the state?
I'm joined by two folks who've been organizing pressure campaigns and harnessing the kind of anger we're seeing in our community for a long time: the Wisconsin Public Education Network's Heather DuBois Bourenane and Jenni Hofschulte.
Check out the network itself here.
Here is the link to register for their 11/7 post-election debrief.
And here is the link to register for their 12/14 Budget Action Planning event.
...more
39min

FAQs about The Referenda:

How many episodes does The Referenda have?

The podcast currently has 45 episodes available.