MPS Central Office, superintendent announces new structure
MPS Central Office changes, new structure
MPS superintendent Brenda Cassellius laid out her vision to restructure the district's central office – which includes more job cuts.
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee Public Schools superintendent Brenda Cassellius on Tuesday laid out her vision to restructure the district's central office – which includes new cabinet positions and more job cuts.
What they're saying:
According to MPS, the new administrative structure includes new cabinet positions – including two deputy superintendents and a chief of "Family, Community, and Partnerships."
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Eduardo Galvan, who served as the interim superintendent before Cassellius' arrival, will fill one of the deputy superintendent roles until his retirement later this year.
Cassellius said the changes reflect staff and community feedback.
Superintendent addresses central office changes
Superintendent Brenda Cassellius addressed her announced organizational changes to the MPS Central Office on Tuesday.
‘Excessed’ positions
The backstory:
A week after last week's announcement that 181 MPS Central Office jobs would be "excessed," Cassellius announced 31 position cuts at the central office on Tuesday. Twelve of those will be repurposed, meaning 19 will be totally eliminated.
Of the 181 positions to be excessed, the school district said 40 are certified teachers who will move back to classrooms. Many of them are classified as academic coaches and literacy specialists.
MPS 'excesses' 181 academic office positions, teacher's union opposed
It's an attack on teachers; that's what the Milwaukee Teacher's Education Association is calling the new superintendent's most recent decision to restructure positions at the central office.
"We need a caring and competent teacher – permanent teachers, in the classroom, and these folks are some of our best," said Cassellius.
Cassellius said the changes address vacancies due to teacher shortages, retirements and normal staff departures.
The school district said the rest of the impacted positions will be reposed, and impacted employees can reapply.
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The other side:
Some teachers showed up to Tuesday night's special board meeting to voice frustration with the changes. Seats were filled with anger, disappointment and turmoil about the excessed positions.
"I think this will cause more vacancies and loss of staff overtime as people leave the district," said teacher Laurel Heebsch.
"It’s a short-term fix, not a sustainable solution. This is about throwing all of us out, and starting over," said coach Steve Vande Zand.
Teachers voice frustration over "excessed" positions at MPS board meeting
Those who oppose the changes say they violate teachers' seniority rights, and they weren't given any time to apply elsewhere.
"Mass excessing is telling teachers who are veterans in their field that their work that they are doing is not valued, or that they are exchangeable," said Nick Ornorato, a special education teacher.
What's next:
Cassellius said the administration cuts and restructuring will go into effect on July 1.
The Source: Information in this report is from Milwaukee Public Schools. FOX6 News attended Tuesday night's meeting for additional information.