Contact: Austin Altenburg
media@scottwalker.com
Governor joins teachers, school board member and student to highlight investments in rural skills training through Fab Labs
[Madison, Wis.] – The Walker campaign on Tuesday launched the first 60-second statewide TV ad of the 2018 governor’s race. Set in northern Wisconsin’s Three Lakes, the ad features members of the small town in a Fab Lab, and a library with stocked bookshelves, as they discuss how the governor’s bold reforms have helped communities like theirs rise up and keep moving forward.
To ensure student success across the state, Gov. Walker has made historic actual-dollar investments into K-12 education of $200 more per student this past year and $204 more per student in the fall. In addition, and in keeping with his commitment to ensure every student receives access to a quality education regardless of zip code, Gov. Walker increased the per-pupil Sparsity Aid amount from $300 per student to $400 per student to help with the specific issues facing our rural communities.
On top of that, to turn the brain-drain in Wisconsin into brain-gain, the governor is investing in Fab Labs to help students apply their educations toward careers close to home. Gov. Walker understands that schools in small towns, such as Three Lakes, face a unique set of challenges – but with continued investments, the governor knows our smaller communities can win the 21st century.
You can watch the ad, entitled “Teach Our Kids,” here. The ad begins:
Governor Walker: Three Lakes is a small town doing some pretty big things.
Terry (school board member): Well, we’ve been re-thinking how we teach our kids. We’ve started the first K-12 Fab Lab in the state of Wisconsin, and Governor Walker has been very helpful to us with state funding.
Wendy (special ed. teacher): The extra $200 a year per student, means a lot for small districts like ours.
Al (Fab Lab teacher): In our Fab Lab we’re teaching our students how to think critically and solve problems using hands-on experiences instead of lectures and tests.
Chase (student): I was a student here when the Fab Lab opened, and so I learned the kinds of skills that employers are looking for.
Terry (school board member): Now we’re training other school districts to start their own Fab Labs.
Wendy (special ed. teacher): Our district is over 300 square miles, and the governor’s funding for rural schools has really helped with transportation costs.
Governor Walker: Wisconsin is a national leader in bringing Fab Labs to public schools, so small towns like Three Lakes can keep more of their graduates close to home.
Al (Fab Lab teacher): The governor’s commitment to funding education has made Three Lakes a stronger community.
Governor Walker: How’s your arm? I’ll go long…
The spot will run on television as well as on a range of online and social media platforms. It’s the ninth in a series of TV ads the Walker campaign is running on the governor’s strong record of getting positive things done and his plans for more bold reform to help Wisconsin win the 21st century.
Previous Walker campaign ads include:
- “Helping People Like Me” is about building a high-skilled workforce.
- “To Save Lives” highlights Gov. Walker’s bipartisan efforts fighting the opioid crisis and tackling serious problems for hard-working families.
- “Providing a Leg Up” spotlights the good jobs and workforce training the governor has supported as part of Wisconsin’s comeback.
- “To Help People” discusses the governor’s support for initiatives to help students with disabilities enter the workforce.
- “Lower Premiums for Wisconsin Families” addresses the governor’s efforts to lower health care premiums after Washington failed to get the job done of repealing Obamacare.
- “Students First” highlights the governor’s commitment to ensuring student success across the state.
- “The Wisconsin Comeback” spotlights how the governor’s bold reforms have jumpstarted Wisconsin’s economy.
- “More Resources in the Classroom” is about the governor’s additional funding for schools in rural areas, through investments such as Sparsity Aid.
Education Reform Fact Sheet
Educational leaders from all corners of Wisconsin support Governor Walker’s most recent budget:
- John Ashley of the Wisconsin Association of School Boards: “This is great news for Wisconsin’s 422 public school districts and the students they serve…The WASB thanks Governor Walker and pledges to work with him to secure support for these investments.”
- State Schools Superintendent Tony Evers: Evers praised Walker’s proposal, describing the plan as a “pro-kid budget” and “an important step forward.” “Overall, his definition of ‘significant’ and mine are really close,” said Evers, who added that Walker’s proposals hit upon the same priorities his budget request sought.
- Justin Moralez of the American Federation for Children, School Choice Wisconsin: “We are pleased with Governor Walker’s major investment in education in his proposed budget…”
- John Forester, School Administrators Alliance: “Budgets are about choices and priorities … we are very pleased that Governor Walker, in his state budget plan, has placed a high priority on the educational needs of Wisconsin’s public school children.”
See below for more information on Gov. Walker’s bold reforms to direct more money into our classrooms, make historic investments in education, freeze UW tuition for 6 years in a row, and increase funding for technical college programs:
- With Governor Walker leading the way, Wisconsin has been a top 10 state for high school graduation rates, and in ACT scores for states where all graduates are tested.
- The governor’s Act 10 collective bargaining reforms put taxpayers and local school districts in charge – giving them more freedom and enabling Wisconsin to balance its budget without raising taxes.
- After Scott Walker balanced the budget and sparked Wisconsin’s comeback, we’ve made historic actual-dollar investments in our classrooms – $200 more per student this past school year, and $204 more per student in the fall.
- Under Gov. Walker, the first K-12 Fab Lab was opened in Wisconsin – and in the most recent budget, Governor Walker increased funding for Fab Labs by doubling the investment in these high-technology workshops.
- To keep more of our graduates here at home by equipping them with the skills needed to succeed, Gov. Walker has positioned Wisconsin as a national leader in bringing Fab Labs to public schools.
- To help address the unique challenges faced by low-population school districts, including transportation costs, Gov. Walker has increased the per-pupil Sparsity Aid amount from $300 to $400 – this is on top of his $11.5 billion investment in K-12 education included in his most recent budget.
- Since Governor Walker took office, the number of youth apprenticeship students has more than doubled.
- Governor Walker created the Early College Credit Program to simplify how high school students can earn college credits.
- To help schools increase and improve technology in their classrooms, the governor increased Technology for Educational Achievement (TEACH) Information Technology Infrastructure grants by $22.5 million in his most recent budget.
- To give more students and their parents the freedom to choose which school best suits their needs, Governor Walker expanded school choice programs throughout the state – building on previous school choice expansions.