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Nation's Report Card Wisconsin results show little growth made

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Nation's Report Card Wisconsin results show little growth made


The nation just dropped its newest report card for schools. It’s getting everything from compliments to concern when it comes to kids’ skill levels.

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National Report Card

What we know:

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), often called The Nation’s Report Card, came out Wednesday, Jan. 29. It’s given every two years, measuring the academic performance of students throughout the country.

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The results show Wisconsin fourth and eighth grade students are above the national average in reading, math, writing and science.

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But those scores are still below proficient as a whole.

The results show as a whole, Wisconsin students are nowhere near advanced in those four subjects and some are just barely inching above basic level.

Expert weighs in

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What they’re saying:

Quinton Klabon is Senior Research Director at the Institute for Reforming Government.

“Things are not getting better, in some facets they’re actually getting worse,” he said. “Scores across Wisconsin are the lowest they’ve been in the last two decades.”

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However, he pointed to some discrepancies with the Nation’s Report Card and Wisconsin Forward Exam.

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“The NAEP test says that only 31% of 4th graders in Wisconsin are proficient in reading, the Forward Exam said 52%.”

State response

Big picture view:

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State Superintendent Dr. Jill Underly addressed the report on Wednesday.

“While the NAEP results highlight some successes, today’s release serves as an urgent wake-up call for our state – one that demands we act with greater urgency to support our children, educators, and schools,” Dr. Underly said. “We have the power to achieve lasting change, but it starts with a fundamental commitment to properly investing in our public schools, rather than continuing the cycle of underfunding them, as our legislature has chosen to do for far too long.”

What’s next:

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Underly also called for additional investment in K-12 public schools after looking at the new data. She said that would help bring change.

The Source: The National Assessment of Educational Progress and the Institute for Reforming Government contributed to this report.

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Wisconsin

Amid political gridlock, $50M for reading legislation will return to Wisconsin's surplus

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Amid political gridlock, M for reading legislation will return to Wisconsin's surplus


In 2023, when Gov. Tony Evers signed into law a sweeping legislative overhaul to how Wisconsin children learn to read, $50 million was allocated to fund the mandated changes. 

But the $50 million has never been released, and Republicans and Democrats have spent the last year pointing fingers at each other over who is to blame.

In 2024, the Legislature sued Evers over changes he made to the bill through a partial veto. The money is tied up as the Legislature awaits oral arguments and a decision by the state Supreme Court over whether the governor had the authority to strike funding for school boards and charter school compliance from the law. 

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And because that ruling won’t come by the end of the fiscal year, the funds will go back into the state’s massive surplus, state Rep. Joel Kitchens, R-Sturgeon Bay, confirmed to WPR. 

Kitchens, who co-authored the reading law known as Act 20, had hoped to introduce a bill that would release the money for reading before June 30.

“While our lawyers said that the bill would not compromise the lawsuit that is pending, there are others who are concerned that it would,” Kitchens said. “For that reason, it does not look like a bill will be introduced. With the timeline that the Supreme Court has put out for hearing the case, there are serious concerns that they will not rule before the funding lapses.”

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Act 20 was a bipartisan bill, proposed by Republicans who worked with the state Department of Public Instruction on the details. 

When it passed, the Legislature created a separate, nearly $50 million appropriations bill for implementation. 

Then, disagreements began over how that money would be used and who would decide how to use it.

Wisconsin allows its governors to use partial vetoes on appropriations bills. Evers’ use of that power in February 2024 prompted a lawsuit in April from legislative Republicans asking the $50 million be withheld from DPI. 

Evers and DPI filed a counterclaim saying without the money, implementing the new law in time for the 2024-25 school year would be impossible.

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In July, the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled 6-1 that the GOP overstepped its constitutional authority by blocking Evers’ actions related to the state Department of Natural Resources. But the court did not rule on the $50 million for DPI. 

Attorney General Josh Kaul has asked the high court to bypass the appellate court and rule on the matter. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear the Act 20 case but has not yet scheduled oral arguments.

State Superintendent Jill Underly said school districts committed to transforming how students learn to read with the understanding that the state Legislature would contribute $50 million to support those efforts.

“This delay is an outright betrayal of our students and a failure of leadership,” Underly said. “Legislative leaders have let down both our children and our schools. I don’t want to hear another elected official complaining about literacy outcomes — they have no one to blame but themselves.”

During a recent Assembly committee hearing, Kitchens addressed Act 20 funding.

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“We negotiated this deal for months and months, and then he [Evers] went back on his word, saying that DPI should get the money and spend it how they want without any oversight,” Kitchens said. “It’s very unfortunate that the funding for Act 20 has not been released, but it certainly is not our fault.”

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Playing PG for the First Time, Jack Janicki Was the Lift Wisconsin Needed

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Playing PG for the First Time, Jack Janicki Was the Lift Wisconsin Needed


WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Every game this season is a learning moment for Jack Janicki.

Earning a spot at the back end of the University of Wisconsin’s rotation, the redshirt freshman guard has needed to adjust to the speed and physicality of the college game without losing confidence in shooting his perimeter shot.

So, being thrust into playing point guard for the first time in college against the No.7 team in the country at Mackey Arena, being guarded by the league leader in steals, was simply viewed by him as the next step in his maturation.

Running the point for most of the 17 minutes he logged after the ejection of reserve Kamari McGee, Janicki looked and played like a seasoned pro in No.16 Wisconsin’s 94-84 victory. He posted a career-high 11 points, and went 3-for-4 from 3-point range. Most importantly, he has two assists and no turnovers against Purdue guard Braden Smith’s pressure.

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“It was something to be thrown into that,” Janicki said. “Just building on to teammates and guys we have here, I feel completely comfortable running the offense because I know I got guys I can turn to.”

Janicki had plenty of quality options on Saturday afternoon. John Tonje scored a game-high 32 points, Max Klesmit added 17 points and six assists, while Nolan Winter (12) and John Blackwell (11) also reached double figures.

But winning at Mackey Arena takes special moments, especially for a Wisconsin program that had beaten Purdue there just four times since 1972.

In Wisconsin’s last win in the building three years ago, Johnny Davis had a double-double with career highs in points (37) and rebounds (14), not to mention three assists, two blocks, and two steals. UW also fouled out its three centers – Steven Crowl, Tyler Wahl, and Chris Vogt – while defending a young Zach Edey and preventing the Boilermakers from having a sizeable advantage in offensive rebounds and points in the paint.

Janicki nearly doubling his 9.9-minute average would qualify as a moment.

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“As a freshman, he comes in and does that,” head coach Greg Gard said. “It’s his first time here on the court. He responded in a way and had production and impact on the game. What we seen him do in practice, it just hasn’t come out because he hasn’t been in that situation.”

Wisconsin’s issues at point guard started to creep up when Blackwell picked up his second foul with 6:46 remaining and went to the bench. Things worsened 26 seconds later when reserve point guard Kamari McGee was given a flagrant-2 and subsequent ejection after hitting forward Trey Kaufman-Renn’s groin while fighting through a screen.

Janicki had worked at the point guard in practice, so it wasn’t a completely foreign position to him, but he’d never done it in a game, let alone on the road in front of over 14,000 screaming fans.

“I’ve been here last year, on the bench sitting around, so I knew what to expect in terms of volume and energy,” Janicki said. “They do a great job here of making you feel a little bit uncomfortable. Once you’re in the game and get a feel for the first possession, we were just focused on what we had to do.”

His first basket at the 12:18 mark was an example. He executed a back-cut layup that Wisconsin saw could be open during film study and practiced against all week. Janicki said that gave him some rhythm.

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He said his three-point miss with 12:33 remaining was the best the ball felt coming off his hand all afternoon. It gave him confidence when he hit three-pointers with 9:31 and 7:59 remaining, the latter giving Wisconsin its then-biggest lead at 71-60.

“It’s a blessing to watch, all his hard work paying off,” guard John Blackwell said. “It feels even better just because I know what he’s gone through, redshirting, and just learning throughout the season what he can get better at.”

Blackwell knows Janicki’s struggles better than anyone. They have been roommates and close friends since arriving together on campus before last season. Blackwell immediately earned playing time with his high basketball IQ, steadiness, and playmaking ability. Coming in as a walk-on, Janicki needed time to develop.

Blackwell said Janicki would ask for pointers and discuss game strategy. It was the missing piece to Janicki’s game since he already was comfortable with playing defense, being aggressive, and valuing the ball, things Gard demands from his guards.

“He’s going to be a really good player,” Blackwell said. “He’s a guy who just puts his head down, gets in the gym, always shooting shots. He does all the right things to play, doesn’t ever complain about anything, just comes in every day and works.”

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Janicki showed his value when he scored nine points in Wisconsin’s 15-point win over No.9 Arizona but admittedly struggled to find “his feel” as Big Ten play started. Entering Saturday, Janicki hadn’t scored in 12 of Wisconsin’s past 20 games and had one basket in five others.

But his minutes stayed consistent because he did the hustle plays that made a difference, like outjumping Smith and guard Myles Colvin to redirect an offensive rebound with 10:18 remaining. The possession ended with a Klesmit three-point play and a 65-56 UW lead.

Blackwell got the credit in the scorebook for the offensive rebound, but Janicki is used to doing the unheralded dirty work. The role he thrived in for his team, not to mention his wide smile outside the visiting locker room, made it impossible for him to hide this time.

“I think I did some decent things at the one,” Janicki said. “I still think I can get a lot better, but it was nice to be able to roll with the punches and stay on top.

“This isn’t the last time there’s going to be issues this year or throughout my career. As I long I have that support staff, I feel confident to be able to figure it out.”

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Wisconsin

Kamari McGee’s ejection fuels No. 16 Wisconsin basketball’s win at seventh-ranked Purdue

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Kamari McGee’s ejection fuels No. 16 Wisconsin basketball’s win at seventh-ranked Purdue


WEST LAFAYTETTE, IND. – The picture said it all.

Inside the Wisconsin locker room at Mackey Arena on Saturday the members of Badgers men’s basketball team stood around by Kamari McGee. Some had their arms folded. Others flashed the Wisconsin “W” with their fingers.

So often this season McGee has sparked the team though either his play or his attitude.

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Saturday his teammates picked him up after he was hit with a Flagrant 2 foul and ejected in the first half of the Badgers’ 94-84 victory over Purdue.

MORE: Box score | UW schedule | Standings

“We were like ‘Hey bro, we’ll get this game for you’, when we saw him in the locker room,” graduate guard John Tonje said. “He was obviously having a tough time. Obviously he wants to be out here with his family.”

McGee’s ejection came at a critical point in the first half. Sophomore guard John Blackwell had picked up his second foul at the 6-minute 46-secon mark and spent the rest of the half on the bench. Graduate center Steven Crowl got his second foul 25 seconds later.

Immediately after that McGee was ejected.

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The senior guard drew the foul with 6:20 left in the first half as he was chasing Purdue point guard Braden Smith. Smith came off a screen and took a handoff from 6-9 forward Trey Kaufman-Renn.

During the exchange, McGee collided with the 6-9 forward, his right arm catching Kaufman-Renn in the midsection/groin area. The foul was immediately reviewed and ruled a Flagrant 2, which according to the NCAA rule book means the contact was deemed “not only excessive, but also severe (brutal, harsh, cruel) or extreme (dangerous, punishing), while the ball is live.

There was plenty of disagreement over the call on social media, but that didn’t help McGee, who had to follow the rest of the game from the locker room.

“I haven’t seen the video,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said. “I didn’t look at it at halftime. I didn’t look at the board or anything, I was having more conversations about what had happened the previous possession on the other end when I felt like our guys were like bowling pins, falling down and getting knocked around.

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“It’s within the rules (to make that call). This is a really hard game for any (officiating) crew. That is why we had a really strong crew on this game. It’s a hard job to do. But when they gave me the explanation that’s the letter of the law. Its not up for debate. We needed to move on.”

Wisconsin did.

In McGee’s absence redshirt freshman Jack Janicki received extra minutes. He played a career-high 17 minutes and scored a career-high 11 points while getting his most extensive in-game experience as a point guard.

After McGee’s ejection the Badgers closed the first half with a 14-6 run, cutting a nine-point deficit to one at halftime by scoring on seven of nine possessions.

The run set the stage for an explosive second half that featured 72% shooting and 58 points.

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Perhaps it’s coincidence that the Badgers outscored Purdue by 17 points after McGee’s ejection. Maybe it’s not.

“Actually McGee getting ejected threw more gas on our fire and really united us,” Gard said. “I probably talked less in these huddles today than I have all year because they were so engaged and so instrumental and instructive with what they wanted to do and what they thought was working on both ends of the floor. I’m just happy for them because they bonded together.”



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