Madison – State Representative Warren Petryk (R-Town of Washington) is disappointed that the governor vetoed legislation to enhance programming for gifted and talented pupils in Wisconsin.
“We know from national testing that many students in our state can work up to four grades beyond their current placement level. This makes it so important that we provide the tools teachers and parents need to help their kids reach their maximum potential,” said Representative Petryk. “This lack of support by the governor and by some Western Wisconsin legislators to help our students defies simple logic.”
The governor in April vetoed Assembly Bill 903, which was the next step following the increased investments in the gifted and talented program that passed in the biennial budget because of the leadership of Representative Petryk and Senator Bernier. AB 903 would have gathered important data for parents on pupil identification, participation in gifted and advanced programs, the types of services schools provide, and how much time a school district dedicates to this important issue. This data would also help further understand the current state of gifted education in Wisconsin to better inform future policy, investment, and the adoption of best practices.
“In addition to helping parents access the information they need to help their students, this bill would have provided the resources needed to address the teacher shortage for these students. Every student should have the chance to maximize their talents in this state, but now they will need to wait until our next legislative session for an opportunity to get this needed bill signed into law,” concluded Petryk.
