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Meet Deb Kerr, Candidate for Wisconsin Schools Superintendent

Deb Kerr Facebook

The election to decide Wisconsin’s next top education official is just a week away.

Two candidates are vying for the position – former Brown Deer Superintendent Deb Kerr and Pecatonica Superintendent Jill Underly.

Kerr makes the case her experience in education has prepared her for the job.

Deb Kerr has served as a superintendent for more than 20 years, most recently as superintendent of Brown Deer Schools in a suburb outside of Milwaukee.

She said she hopes to bring this experience to the position of state superintendent.

If elected, she said the first thing she’ll do is ensure all children are back in school.

“We need to get all of our kids across the great state of Wisconsin back into school,” she said. “Unfortunately, some of our urban centers such as Milwaukee, Madison and Beloit, who have our most marginal and vulnerable learners, are not back yet in face-to-face instruction when schools around here and other places have been back face-to-face since Sept. 1.”

Part of the reason schools in Northern Wisconsin returned to in-person learning so soon is because not every student has internet access.

Kerr said she has ideas to address that.

“Some ideas I have are to partner with local municipalities, universities, businesses to make sure we can get that fiber connected and make sure that we have not only access, but that families can afford it,” she said.

She said she’s already working with the national e-rate commissioner to make sure schools can be reimbursed for resources like internet hotspots.

On the issue of school funding, Kerr said she’d like to revamp the current formula.

“The school funding formula has been in existence for over 80 years,” she said. “So that’s something I want to do a refresh on and I want to have our rural partners at the table and say what do you need? Do we need more money because of sparsity aid or transportation costs that are more excessive up here in the rural schools?”

Ultimately, Kerr said she wants to create an education system that encourages students to stay in Wisconsin throughout their education and into their careers.

“I think it’s important that we keep the best and the brightest in our communities,” she said.

An interview with Pecatonica Superintendent Jill Underly will be posted later this week.

Erin Gottsacker worked at WXPR as a Morning Edition host and reporter from December 2020 to January 2023. During her time at the station, Erin reported on the issues that matter most in the Northwoods.
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