For More Information Contact:
Rep. Kurtz (608) 266-8531
Rep. Oldenburg (608) 266-3534
Madison, WI – Representatives Tony Kurtz (R-Wonewoc), Loren Oldenburg (R-Viroqua),
along with Representatives Travis Tranel (R-Cuba City) and Todd Novak (R-Dodgeville) have
submitted a letter to the Wisconsin State Superintendent of Public Instruction Carolyn Stanford Taylor asking for responses to school districts who request waivers on their instructional hours.
Many of the school districts in these areas were affected by the extreme flooding at the beginning of the school year and had to delay the start of the academic year. Recently, these school districts have lost additional hours of instruction due to the massive snowfalls and extreme cold. These school districts are in areas that have had a state of emergency declared, not once but, twice by two different administrations: August 28, 2018 by Governor Walker and January 29, 2019 by Governor Evers.
Current law contains a waiver process that provides school districts with the ability to petition the Department of Public Instruction and request a waiver from certain state requirements, including those that mandate required instructional hours. While a number of the school districts have made, or are in the final stages of preparing these requests, in the interest of providing certainty for those effected and their schedules, the area legislators are respectfully asking that responses to the waivers be provided by no later than Friday, March 15, 2019.
The extenuating circumstances experienced by these districts represent a unique challenge that requires immediate action.