Milwaukee schools

The history of American public education has been arduous and exciting, controversial and celebrated, and perhaps nowhere more so than in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. From segregation and school choice to debates over funding and curriculum guidelines, Milwaukee has been a national epicenter for educational changes and choices. In his new Wisconsin Historical Society Press book, Educating Milwaukee: How One City’s History of Segregation and Struggle Shaped Its Schools, Dr. James K. Nelsen chronicles Milwaukee’s unique struggle for integration and quality education and traces the origins of the modern school choice movement, which has been growing in strength throughout the United States.

Nelsen follows Milwaukee’s tumultuous education history through three eras: “no choice,” “forced choice,” and “school choice.” He details the story of Milwaukee’s choice movement through to modern times. Today, Milwaukee families have more schooling options than ever — with charter schools, open enrollment, state-funded vouchers, and neighborhood schools — and yet Milwaukee’s impoverished African American students still struggle to succeed and stay in school.

“Educating Milwaukee” also shares how competing visions of equity and excellence have played out in one city’s schools in the modern era, offering both a cautionary tale and a “choice” example. The book will be available in bookstores everywhere and online retailers later this month. An e-book edition will also be available.

James K. Nelsen has a PhD in urban history from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and teaches high school social studies at Golda Meir School in Milwaukee, a public magnet school for college-bound students in grades 3 through 12. As a lifelong resident of Milwaukee, he finds the history of the city fascinating, from its early days in the mid-nineteenth century to the modern challenges of urban life today. As a teacher, he enjoys researching the history of education from colonial times to the present. When not teaching or researching, he enjoys volunteering with youth groups, exploring his city, and following his beloved Milwaukee Brewers baseball team.