An audit ordered by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers released on Thursday found that the Milwaukee Public School District (MPS) struggles with a “culture resistant to change” that has undermined its ability to function properly, disproportionately harming its most vulnerable students, according to the Associated Press.
Evers, who served as Wisconsin’s superintendent of schools before becoming governor, ordered the independent audit last year after it became known that the district failed to submit financial reports to the state, leading to the resignation of the district’s superintendent and the withholding of funding by state officials.
The audit found that the district, the state’s largest, with more than 66,000 students, must make sweeping, high-level changes to be more transparent with parents and taxpayers. Auditors identified “critical issues stemming from leadership and staff turnover, fragmented planning, outdated systems, and unproductive reporting protocols, which have led to siloed operations and inefficient practices.”
Evers, in a statement, urged the district to quickly accept the audit’s 29 recommendations. The school district said that the audit will serve as a guide for improvements.
