One in Four Wisconsin Students Exercise School Choice
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October 8, 2013
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by Christian D'Andrea
MacIver Institute Education Policy Analyst
The data are in for the latest version of the MacIver Institute's Student Census, and the number of pupils that exercise school choice in Wisconsin has grown for the second straight year. More than one in four (27 percent) Wisconsin students exercised their right to choose the school that fits them the best in the 2012-2013 school year. In Milwaukee, that number grew to four out of five students thanks to the state's largest voucher program and a strong system of charter schools.
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As a whole, Wisconsin saw growth in its charter school and open enrollment populations, each of which added more than 4,000 students to its ranks in the past year. This included significant growth from the state's virtual charter schools, where enrollment increased by more than 38 percent according to Department of Public Instruction (DPI) records. These increases were enough to counteract a small decline in students' families choosing both private schools and the homeschooling sector.
In Milwaukee, overall school choice participation decreased slightly, but still remained above 80 percent for the second straight school year. The city's traditional neighborhood public schools saw their enrollment increase by over 300 students while charter school enrollment and Chapter 220 transfers decreased during the same year. This led to a drop of 0.26% of the overall choice population. However, the city's private schools still were responsible for educating the greatest percentage of students utilizing school choice, enrolling nearly 28 percent of the district's pupils, or 30,656 students.
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