Wisconsin school board elections, 2024

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Elections

The table below contains links to all school board elections covered by Ballotpedia in 2024 in this state. This list may not include all school districts that held elections in 2024. Ballotpedia's coverage included all school districts in the 100 largest cities by population and the 200 largest school districts by student enrollment.

Editor's note: Some school districts choose to cancel the primary election, or both the primary and general election, if the number of candidates who filed does not meet a certain threshold. The table below does not reflect which primary or general elections were canceled. Please click through to each school district's page for more information.

2024 Wisconsin School Board Elections
District Primary General Election General Runoff Election Regular term length Seats up for election Total board seats 2022-2023 enrollment
DeForest Area School District 2/20/2024 4/2/2024 N/A 3 3 9 4,147
Madison Metropolitan School District 2/20/2024 4/2/2024 N/A 3 2 7 25,237
McFarland School District 2/20/2024 4/2/2024 N/A 3 2 5 5,484
Middleton-Cross Plains School District 2/20/2024 4/2/2024 N/A 3 3 9 7,263
Milwaukee Public Schools 8/13/2024 11/5/2024 N/A 4 1 9 67,500
Sun Prairie Area School District 2/20/2024 4/2/2024 N/A 3 2 7 8,350
Verona Area School District 2/20/2024 4/2/2024 N/A 3 3 7 5,827


Ballotpedia covered all other school board elections in Wisconsin, including those outside of our regular coverage scope. Use the links below to view all covered elections in Wisconsin.



Academic performance

See also: Public education in Wisconsin

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Education terms
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Glossary of education terms
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Education on the ballot

NAEP scores

See also: NAEP scores by state

The National Center for Education Statistics provides state-by-state data on student achievement levels in mathematics and reading in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). The table below presents the percentage of fourth and eighth grade students that scored at or above proficient in reading and math during school year 2012-2013. Wisconsin had a higher percentage of students score at or above proficient in all categories than students in Illinois and Michigan. However, students in Wisconsin fell below those in Minnesota.[1]

Percent of students scoring at or above proficient, 2012-2013
Math - Grade 4 Math - Grade 8 Reading - Grade 4 Reading - Grade 8
Wisconsin 47% 40% 35% 36%
Illinois 39% 36% 34% 36%
Michigan 37% 30% 31% 33%
Minnesota 59% 47% 41% 41%
United States 41% 34% 34% 34%
Source: United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables"

Graduation, ACT and SAT scores

See also: Graduation rates by groups in state and ACT and SAT scores in the United States

The following table shows the graduation rates and average composite ACT and SAT scores for Wisconsin and surrounding states during the 2012-2013 school year. All statements made in this section refer to that school year.[1][2][3]

In the United States, public schools reported graduation rates that averaged to about 81.4 percent. About 54 percent of all students in the country took the ACT, while 50 percent reported taking the SAT. The average national composite scores for those tests were 20.9 out of a possible 36 for the ACT, and 1498 out of a possible 2400 for the SAT.[4]

Wisconsin schools reported a graduation rate of 88 percent during the 2012-2013 school year, highest among neighboring states.

In Wisconsin, more students took the ACT than the SAT in 2013, earning an average ACT score of 22.1.

Comparison table for graduation rates and test scores, 2012-2013
State Graduation rate, 2013 Average ACT composite, 2013 Average SAT composite, 2013
Percent Quintile ranking** Score Participation rate Score Participation rate
Wisconsin 88% First 22.1 71% 1771 4%
Illinois 83.2% Third 20.6 100% 1807 5%
Michigan 77% Fourth 19.9 100% 1782 4%
Minnesota 79.8% Fourth 23 74% 1780 6%
United States 81.4% 20.9 54% 1498 50%
**Graduation rates for states in the first quintile ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. Similarly, graduation rates for states in the fifth quintile ranked in the bottom 20 percent nationally.
Sources: United States Department of Education, "ED Data Express"
ACT.org, "2013 ACT National and State Scores"
The Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT scores by state, 2013"

Dropout rate

See also: Public high school dropout rates by state for a full comparison of dropout rates by group in all states

The high school event dropout rate indicates the proportion of students who were enrolled at some time during the school year and were expected to be enrolled in grades nine through 12 in the following school year but were not enrolled by October 1 of the following school year. Students who have graduated, transferred to another school, died, moved to another country, or who are out of school due to illness are not considered dropouts. The average public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both school year 2010–2011 and school year 2011–2012. The event dropout rate for Wisconsin was lower than the national average at 2 percent in the 2010-2011 school year, and 1.9 percent in the 2011-2012 school year.[5]

State profile

State profile

Demographic data for Wisconsin
 WisconsinU.S.
Total population:5,767,891316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):54,1583,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:86.5%73.6%
Black/African American:6.3%12.6%
Asian:2.5%5.1%
Native American:0.9%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0%0.2%
Two or more:2.1%3%
Hispanic/Latino:6.3%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:91%86.7%
College graduation rate:27.8%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$53,357$53,889
Persons below poverty level:15%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Wisconsin.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Wisconsin

Wisconsin voted for the Democratic candidate in five out of the six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, 23 are located in Wisconsin, accounting for 11.17 percent of the total pivot counties.[6]

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Wisconsin had 21 Retained Pivot Counties and two Boomerang Pivot Counties, accounting for 11.60 and 8.00 percent of all Retained and Boomerang Pivot Counties, respectively.

More Wisconsin coverage on Ballotpedia

Pivot Counties

Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Twenty-three of 72 Wisconsin counties—32 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
Adams County, Wisconsin 21.92% 8.73% 18.35%
Buffalo County, Wisconsin 21.82% 2.93% 14.66%
Columbia County, Wisconsin 2.14% 13.58% 15.26%
Crawford County, Wisconsin 5.40% 19.98% 27.03%
Door County, Wisconsin 3.22% 6.99% 17.33%
Dunn County, Wisconsin 11.09% 4.97% 14.95%
Forest County, Wisconsin 26.58% 5.44% 15.16%
Grant County, Wisconsin 9.43% 13.77% 23.88%
Jackson County, Wisconsin 11.74% 15.01% 21.84%
Juneau County, Wisconsin 26.05% 7.03% 9.00%
Kenosha County, Wisconsin 0.31% 12.23% 18.06%
Lafayette County, Wisconsin 8.99% 15.37% 22.32%
Lincoln County, Wisconsin 20.60% 0.71% 12.48%
Marquette County, Wisconsin 24.09% 0.27% 5.28%
Pepin County, Wisconsin 23.08% 2.22% 12.89%
Price County, Wisconsin 25.00% 0.04% 13.40%
Racine County, Wisconsin 4.28% 3.54% 7.41%
Richland County, Wisconsin 5.50% 16.13% 20.63%
Sauk County, Wisconsin 0.35% 18.47% 23.04%
Sawyer County, Wisconsin 18.41% 0.49% 6.23%
Trempealeau County, Wisconsin 12.64% 14.08% 26.39%
Vernon County, Wisconsin 4.43% 14.73% 22.00%
Winnebago County, Wisconsin 7.34% 3.73% 11.66%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Wisconsin with 47.2 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 46.5 percent. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Wisconsin cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 76.7 percent of the time. In that same time frame, Wisconsin supported Republicans slightly more than Democratic candidates, 50.0 to 46.7 percent. The state, however, favored Democrats in every presidential election from 2000 to 2012 before voting for Trump in 2016.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state Assembly districts in Wisconsin. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[7][8]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 43 out of 99 state Assembly districts in Wisconsin with an average margin of victory of 34.1 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 36 out of 99 state Assembly districts in Wisconsin with an average margin of victory of 34.6 points. Clinton won three districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 56 out of 99 state Assembly districts in Wisconsin with an average margin of victory of 12.1 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 63 out of 99 state Assembly districts in Wisconsin with an average margin of victory of 19.4 points. Trump won two districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.

Additional elections

See also: Wisconsin elections, 2024

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Battleground election

Green Bay Area Public School District

See also: Green Bay Area Public School District, Wisconsin, elections (2024)

Ballotpedia identified the April 2 election as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.


Incumbent Andrew M. Becker and Kou Lee defeated Paul Boucher and Alex Mineau in the general election for two at-large seats on the Green Bay Area Public School District Board of Education on April 2, 2024. Incumbent Nancy Welch did not run for re-election, leaving one at-large seat open. As of April 3, 2024, Becker had 35.0% of the vote, followed by Lee with 27.7%, Mineau with 25.9% and Boucher with 11.0%.

Both the Democratic and Republican parties of Brown County endorsed candidates. County Democrats endorsed Lee, while county Republicans endorsed Mineau. Both parties endorsed Becker.

The election followed the resignation of Superintendent Dr. Claude Tiller, who resigned on February 17, 2024, after he appeared on an Atlanta-area radio show. According to the Associated Press, Tiller "made blunt comments about race relations, criticized the community and derided one of the district’s principals."[9] Tiller's comments criticized both Green Bay at large and individual staff members for what he described as outdated and inappropriate attitudes towards race relations. Although the school board did not specify why it had accepted Tiller's resignation, Tiller's supporters said he had been pushed to resign for his comments criticizing the community at large and that he had been held to a higher standard than a white superintendent: "They’re sending the message that if you’re BIPOC (black, indigenous, person of color) you can’t make any mistake."[10]

After Tiller's resignation, resource centers for the city's Hispanic, Black, and Somali populations founded a group called United Front for Social Change. The group called for the board to appoint a minority member to replace school board member Laura Laitinen-Warren, who resigned on February 24, 2024.[11] Green Bay's population is 72% white. The enrollment at public schools is 61% nonwhite.[12]

Becker was, at the time of the election, an IT technician who had served on the board since 1998. Becker said it was "critical to make sure that we give all of our community a voice and that the Board and the Administration find ways to reach out to hear from everyone and respond to your concerns." Becker said his priorities were selecting a new superintendent and cutting spending.[13] The Wisconsin AFL-CIO, the Green Bay Education Association, and both the Democratic and Republican parties of Brown County endorsed Becker.

Boucher was a Green Bay resident and former Georgetown University employee.[14] Boucher said he was running "with the hope of returning the knowledge and bringing the community to a higher intellectual ground." Boucher said his priorities were encouraging community attendance at school athletic events and encouraging families to move to Green Bay to increase enrollment.[13]

Lee was, at the time of the election, a business owner.[15] Lee said he supported "a vision for a school board that values diversity, champions education for all and is committed to making a real difference in our community." Lee said his priorities were increasing enrollment and proficiency rates, raising standards for staff and students, and creating "an environment of trust and growth where everyone is accountable to each other."[13] The Wisconsin AFL-CIO, the Green Bay Education Association, and the Democratic Party of Brown County endorsed Lee.

Mineau was, at the time of the election, a teacher who earlier worked in the district. Mineau said he knew "from personal experience our district’s weaknesses and strengths and some things we can do to address the weaknesses and capitalize on our strengths." Mineau said his priorities were reallocating enrollment boundaries for individual district schools, improving student behavior, and changing policies related to staff hiring and retention.[13] The Republican Party of Brown County endorsed Mineau.

There were, at the time of the election, seven seats on the Green Bay Area Public School District Board of Education. Board members serve three-year terms.

Neenah Joint School District

See also: Neenah Joint School District, Wisconsin, elections (2024)

Ballotpedia identified the April 2 election as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election, found here.


Incumbent Brian Epley, Alex Corrigan, and Susan Garcia Franz defeated Chari Long, Jeb Pfeifle, and Roxanne Schwandt-Knutson in the nonpartisan general election for three at-large seats on the Neenah Joint School District Board of Education on April 2, 2024. Incumbent David Williams did not seek re-election and incumbent Kristian Sahr was defeated in the primary, leaving two seats open. As of April 3, 2024, Epley had 18.9% of the vote, followed by Corrigan and Garcia Franz with 16.9% of the vote each. Schwandt-Knutson had 16.0% of the vote, Long had 15.6%, and Pfeifle had 15.5%.

The Wisconsin Education Association Council and the Democratic and Republican parties of Winnebago County supported different sets of candidates. Winning candidates Epley, Corrigan, and Garcia Franz ran with support from the Wisconsin Education Association Council and the Democratic Party of Winnebago County. Long, Pfeifle, and Schwandt-Knutson ran with support from the Republican Party of Winnebago County.[16][17][18][19]

Epley was a parent who was first elected to the board in 2018.[20] Epley said he was running to provide "thoughtful, compassionate, and responsible leadership for our schools...through our District’s transition to a new Superintendent."[20] As of March 27, 2024, neither Corrigan nor Garcia Franz had publicly-available campaign materials. The Wisconsin Education Association endorsed all three candidates.[17] The Democratic Party of Winnebago County did not issue endorsements but did encourage members to vote for all three and provided volunteers to conduct outreach on Corrigan's behalf.[19][16] The Wisconsin branch of the AFL-CIO endorsed Corrigan and Garcia Franz.[21]

Long was, as of the election, a parent, project coordinator, and yoga instructor. Long said her priorities were allowing easier public access to information on spending, improving standardized test scores, and creating a panel to review books in school libraries for vulgar content.[22] Pfeifle was a parent. Pfeifle said his priorities were improving standardized test scores and ensuring public access to board decision-making, curricula, and budget information.[23] Schwandt-Knutson was, at the time of the election, a parent and realtor. Schwandt-Knutson said her priorities were ensuring each individual student's needs were met, "emphasizing the need for fiscally responsible decision-making", and promoting partnerships with local business owners, nonprofits, and technical schools.[24] The Republican Party of Winnebago County and 1776 PAC endorsed all three.[18][25] The county Republican Party funded mailers in support of all three.[16]

In the February 20, 2024, nonpartisan primary, the three Democratic-supported candidates received a combined 47.4% of the vote and the three Republican-supported candidates received a combined 33.2%.[26] In the general election, the Democratic-support candidates received a combined 52.7% to the Republican-supported candidates' 47.1%. There were seven seats on the Neenah Joint School District Board of Education. Candidates were elected to three-year terms.

See also

Wisconsin School Boards News and Analysis
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Footnotes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 United States Department of Education, ED Data Express, "State Tables," accessed May 13, 2014
  2. ↑ ACT, "2012 ACT National and State Scores," accessed May 13, 2014
  3. ↑ Commonwealth Foundation, "SAT Scores by State 2013," October 10, 2013
  4. ↑ StudyPoints, "What's a good SAT score or ACT score?" accessed June 7, 2015
  5. ↑ United States Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, "Common Core of Data (CCD), State Dropout and Graduation Rate Data File, School Year 2010-11, Provision Version 1a and School Year 2011-12, Preliminary Version 1a," accessed May 13, 2014
  6. ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.
  7. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  8. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
  9. ↑ Associated Press, "Wisconsin school district releases tape of Black superintendent’s comments that led to resignation," February 21, 2024
  10. ↑ We Are Green Bay, "Tiller Jr. supporters show up to GBAPS special board meeting," February 16, 2024
  11. ↑ Green Bay Press-Gazette, "Green Bay School Board member Laura Laitinen-Warren resigns amid Claude Tiller controversy," February 26, 2024
  12. ↑ WTAQ, "Minorities Running For More Representation On Green Bay School Board," March 22, 2024
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 13.3 Press Times, "Four In Bid For Two Seats On GBAPS Board Of Education," March 5, 2024
  14. ↑ Green Bay Press Gazette, "Meet the candidates: Paul Boucher for Green Bay school board," March 14, 2018
  15. ↑ Kou Lee campaign website, "Home page," accessed March 26, 2024
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Appleton Post-Crescent, "Here's who's behind latest mailers, attack ads in the Neenah school board election," March 27, 2024
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 Wisconsin Education Association Council, "Union-Recommended Candidates," accessed March 27, 2024
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 Winnebago County Republican Party, "April 2, 2024, Recommendations," accessed March 27, 2024
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 Facebook, "Winnebago County (WI) Democratic Party on March 20, 2024," accessed March 27, 2024
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Facebook, "Brian Epley for Neenah School Board on March 19, 2024," accessed March 27, 2024
  21. ↑ Wisconsin AFL-CIO, "2024 Spring Election - Endorsed Candidates," accessed March 27, 2024
  22. ↑ Chari Long campaign website, "Home page," accessed March 27, 2024
  23. ↑ Jeb Pfeifle campaign website, "Home page," accessed March 27, 2024
  24. ↑ Roxanne Schwandt-Knutson campaign website, "Home page," accessed March 27, 2024
  25. ↑ 1776 Project PAC, "Our Endorsed Candidates," accessed March 27, 2024
  26. ↑ City of Neenah, "February 20, 2024, Spring Primary Official Canvassed Election Results by Polling Location," accessed March 27, 2024
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