Education Funding News in Brief

State Forces Milwaukee to Sell Vacant Schools

By Corey Mitchell — August 25, 2015 1 min read
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The Milwaukee school system will put all its vacant and surplus buildings on the market this fall, and only charter and private school operators will be allowed to submit bids for them, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Historically, the district has been reluctant to sell the facilities to potential competitors that could siphon off its students—and state funding. But a new Wisconsin law is forcing the district’s hand.

A report from the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty said the state needed to intervene because Milwaukee’s empty schools have sat unused for an average of seven years.

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A version of this article appeared in the August 26, 2015 edition of Education Week as State Forces Milwaukee to Sell Vacant Schools

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