By Shereen Siewert | Wausau Pilot & Review
Wausau School Board members will review two sharply different visions for the district’s future during a meeting Monday that will be televised.
Wausau School District Communications Coordinator Diana White confirmed that the meeting at 5 p.m. Monday, at the new Wausau School Forest-Environmental Learning Center, 218735 Hwy. KK, Mosinee, will be broadcast as usual and available on the district’s YouTube channel.
At issue is whether the current administration’s robust plan to merge two high schools, close five elementary schools, create a middle school and junior high school structure and launch daycare services will continue. School Board member Pat McKee will ask his colleagues to approve an alternate plan to keep current high schools open while considering a defined strategic advancement plan for the district.
McKee released his plan last week after conversations with staff, students and parents who are frustrated with the changes planned. More than 2,000 people have signed a petition asking to hold a referendum on the matter rather than forging ahead. Many residents have expressed alarm over a perceived lack of transparency and the numerous obstacles that have emerged as Superintendent Keith Hilts moves forward with restructuring.
District administration officials, who have been criticized over their failure to foresee key details of their plan including the need for a roughly $6 million science wing to satisfy high school curriculum requirements, released a 42-page rebuttal to McKee’s proposal. In the “Restructuring Update” document, found at this link, the administration points to surveys from 2019 and 2021 that show community and staff interest in eliminating one high school and support for the plan they are working toward.
But critics say those surveys contain vaguely-worded questions and were taken years before the true challenges of the restructuring plan emerged.
Click here to read Wausau Pilot & Review’s previous coverage of McKee, which includes details about the proposal. McKee is asking for board action Monday approving his plan.
Click here to view meeting agendas and materials. This link will take you directly to the Board of Education channel on Wausau Area Access Media’s YouTube channel.
