SAVE Commission's findings - La Follette School of Public Affairs ...

cates of transportation convenience” to help
state and local government makes cost effective
decisions.
GOAL #9: THE KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY
9.1
Sell intellectual capital in the knowledge
economy. To capitalize on the next wave of
economic growth that will turn businesses into
educators and states into global profit centers,
sell Wisconsin’s intellectual capital in partnerships
involving businesses, public colleges and
the UW’s international alumni.
9.2
Aggressively tap Wisconsin’s knowledge capacity
for state use. To fully use public and
private sector potential, implement past state
and Carnegie Commission recommendations
to aggressively tap knowledge in areas such as
technological sciences, micro-machinery, composites,
medicine and environment.
CHAPTER 3: LIFELONG LEARNING IN A
HIGH-TECH AGE
GOAL #10: LIFELONG LEARNING
10.1
Create a Department for Education, headed
by a cabinet secretary. To provide new leadership
for education that begins in early childhood
and lasts throughout life, create a department
that recognizes and works with all
educational activities, including formal K-12
public schooling, as well as learning in the
home, workplace and community. The Secretary
should be appointed by the Governor and
the new state Board of Education, subject to
Senate confirmation. The decision also includes:
a. Create a citizen K-12 Board for Education.
To provide continuing attention to
educational issues, create a governor appointed,
staggered six-year term board of
seven persons representing educational,
business, parental, technical college and
university interests.
b. Plan for long term inter-educational system
coordination. To address the continuing
educational turf issues while recognizing
the need for seamless, lifelong learning,
the long term objective of the state
should be to create an effective mechanism
that will result in one, results-driven system.
c. Eliminate the Constitutional Office of Su-
10.2
10.3
perintendent of Public Instruction. This
office is replaced by the new Secretary for
Education.
Prepare educational boards for greater effectiveness
and accountability. To provide for
greater taxpayer accountability and effectiveness
on the part of local educational boards:
a. Require that technical college district
boards be elected. To provide greater accountability
to taxpayers and eliminate the
unrealistic mix of detailed requirements for
technical school board members, elect the
boards to govern the state’s 16 technical college
districts, with some seats designated
for certain constituencies and diversity.
b. Train all local educational board members
to enhance their effectiveness. To encourage
board member development in technical
college and K-12 districts, provide intensive
technical and leadership training.
c. Relieve local school boards of low priority
mandates and reporting. To achieve local
control and reduce paperwork, eliminate
state mandates and reporting requirements
that inhibit site-based management and
result in unnecessary paperwork and costs
at all levels.
Study administrative efficiencies. The new
Secretary for Education and state Board for
Education should study ways to improve efficiency
and effectiveness while reducing duplicative
staffing. Among these services are:
a. The transfer of aid distribution, including
transportation aids;
b. The transfer of health, nutrition and social
services programs;
c. The transfer of telecommunications operation
and library services;
d. The transfer of teacher licensing and revocation;
e. The transfer of tech-prep administration;
and
f. The transfer of job training functions.
CITIZEN • COMMUNITY • GOVERNMENT — WISCONSIN: THE 21 ST CENTURY 63