It should come as no surprise to anyone who has been following recent events in our district that there are numerous vacancies to fill. We in the Alliance are all parents in this district. We all want our kids to receive a high quality education. And we know that first and foremost, that means supporting our teachers and staff. We want prospective teachers to know that they can count on the support of the Alliance if they choose to come here.
In the third edition of Three Things, we’re covering Parent Satisfaction Surveys, a summary of the 7/19/23 Board Meeting, and Teacher Wish Lists.
In the second edition of Three Things, we’re covering the July 19 School Board Meeting, the Summer School Musical at Waukesha West, and an update on the contract termination of Melissa Tempel.
The Waukesha School District terminated a teacher yesterday because the Board and Superintendent brought negative attention to the community.
The Alliance is concerned about the District’s ongoing misuse of policy as a shield for its pattern of harmful decisions negatively impacting the students and school community and the potential impact of her termination on First Amendment rights, teacher retention, and the promise for more transparent communication with parents.
Another highly qualified teacher has publicly resigned from the Waukesha School District:
“SDW could turn its focus to a lot of real problems, among which include making sure every student has their needs met: a safe place to learn, a meal in their belly, and academic support to help them grow and thrive. Instead, the school district has a policy to steer this ship backwards, and it’s headed for a rocky coast.”
The School District of Waukesha is again experiencing a significant departure of high-quality educators. When high quality, experienced teachers leave the district, it is student learning that suffers most.
The Alliance is disappointed to learn that on May 15, 2023, after being on administrative leave for more than a month, Heyer Elementary School First Grade Teacher Melissa Tempel was notified that the Superintendent of the School District of Waukesha was recommending her termination.
This Teacher Appreciation Week, there is one partner missing from our first-grade classroom at Heyer: Maestra Melissa. Her class has been without her, or any permanent teacher, for 25 school days and counting.
The Alliance for Education in Waukesha (AEW) would like to commend Dr. Underly for her letter and her involvement. At the same time, AEW would like to respond to comments made by Dr. Sebert and local legislative leaders in their answers to Dr. Underly’s letter.