Small Business Ideas

Milwaukee Public School District board members said on Thursday that the district does not have a timeline for when police officers will be back in school despite missing the state-mandated deadline in January. The district stopped police officers patrolling Milwaukee Public Schools after protests in 2020. However, Wisconsin’s shared revenue bill passed last year, also known as Act 12, required Milwaukee Public Schools to have 25 police officers back in schools by January 2024, nearly nine months ago.A state senator, earlier this week, accused MPS of breaking the law.At a school board meeting Thursday Interim Superintendent Eduardo Galvan gave an update to the board. He said there is a rough draft of an agreement between MPS and the Milwaukee Police Department, called an Memorandum of Understanding, to add police officers back in MPS buildings.Board members told WISN 12 News they had seen the rough draft agreement and were able to provide feedback, but board Director Henry Leonard said he was not satisfied with the update Thursday. “You were looking for some more clarification tonight. Do you feel like you got it?” WISN 12 News reporter Emily Pofahl asked.”No, we did not,” Leonard said. Galvan said the rough draft outlines responsibilities for cops in schools, but does not include any mention of what it will cost.”Any financial responsibilities will be negotiated separately,” Galvan said.State and city leaders want to know why the district missed the January deadline in the first place.”They’re clearly ignoring what the law says,” said Milwaukee Alderman Scott Spiker. “And I’m an old-fashioned guy. I think when somebody writes a law, whether you like it or not, you should follow it.”Spiker is also the chair of Milwaukee’s public safety committee. He attended the meeting Thursday and said the district is dragging its feet. “Any sort of slow-walking that has been happening, and I would agree with that assessment, has not been on the city’s part,” Spiker said.Board director Marcela Garcia said the delay may be because some don’t want police officers to go back in schools, calling some of her constituents “resistant” to the idea.”Moving slowly on this, I think, is an indication of the thoughtfulness going into this, but mostly the resistance that, you know, we are being forced to do this,” Garcia said.Leonard asked Galvan for clarification on when the board could see the rough draft agreement finalized, but Galvan did not commit to a firm timeline Thursday.He said the district handed the rough draft over to the city attorney’s office to review last week and said he has meetings with the city and the police department coming up in the next several weeks to finalize the agreement.City Attorney Evan Goyke confirmed to WISN 12 News his office is working on the agreement as required under 2023 Wisconsin Act 12.