Milwaukee Public Schools

Since 2001, the Milwaukee Public School board has authorized instrumentality chartered schools that it knows will be run by teacher cooperatives. Much of the autonomy for the teacher cooperatives is arranged via the charter contract between the school board and the school. Before the end of collective bargaining in Wisconsin in 2011, teachers in these cooperatives remained employees of the district and members of the union. Schools also had a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the district and union local that provided waivers from aspects of the collective bargaining agreement. However, with the end of collective bargaining in the state, these MOUs are no longer necessary.

The charter contracts recognize that schools are run by teacher cooperatives and require that all cooperatives meet a few specific requirements in their administration of the schools and management of the learning programs. Importantly, they also allow for flexibility in the methods the cooperatives use to meet most of the requirements. Teacher cooperatives decide, for example, all curriculum and budget decisions (after the district takes out what it needs for salaries and services). The district hires and fires; the cooperative, selects and (if necessary) de-selects. Teachers who are deselected by the cooperative go back into the district hiring pool. Learn more about the Milwaukee Teacher Cooperatives in Inventory of Teacher Professional Partnerships (p.20), Education Evolving’s 2006 Profile of Milwaukee Teacher Cooperatives.

Individual schools in this group include:

NOVA

Our Mission Our mission is to graduate proficient, confident, and respectful young scholars with the educational and social skills necessary to compete in our ever-changing world. Our Goals Grow into […]

Shalom High School

The mission of Shalom High School is to allow at-risk students an opportunity to earn high school diplomas and to prepare students to be productive, successful adults, good citizens, and […]

Alliance School Milwaukee

The Alliance School was the first school in the nation started with the mission of addressing bullying and helping others to do the same. Founded in 2005, Alliance continues to […]

John Greenleaf Whittier Elementary School

Whittier educators use a variety of instructional strategies to teach their students. Our computer technology is kept updated to reflect current trends within society. In addition, each classroom has full […]

Academia de Lenguaje y Bellas Artes (ALBA)

The ALBA curriculum integrates fine arts and creative writing with emphasis on the Latino contribution and cultural arts. Bilingual school, with Spanish taught first (beginning literacy). In second grade, formal […]