About the Petition:
  We are the Milwaukee Student Union (MSU). On January 2nd, 2022, Milwaukee Public Schools announced that all schools within the district would transition to virtual learning for the following week before returning to the classroom on January 10th due staffing shortages. This was then extended to the 18th. Now as we near the proposed return date, lobbying groups have announced that they will be pushing for an even longer period of virtual learning. While these two weeks of virtual learning have been reasonable to ensure adequate staffing, the longer schools stay virtual, the more it harms students and their families in the end. The MSU’s mission is to raise student voices and concerns about these issues, and to convince the district to let students return to the classroom on the 18th.

  With the extension of virtual learning, working parents and families with young children enrolled in MPS are forced to both find and pay for long-term childcare while schools are not in-person. In addition to this, children learning from home may not have access to the resources needed to succeed in school, or their homes may not even be a safe learning environment to begin with. Staying virtual also runs the risk of MPS students falling behind the suburban schools academically, which have been open this entire time and have not had to face these extra challenges. This has a major impact on the mental health of students and teachers alike, and all of these impacts hit students of color the hardest.

  The fate of the education of these students rests in the hands of the District and School Board, so sign this petition to encourage them to make the right decision and reopen schools on the 18th.

About Us:
  The MSU is a student-led group designed to amplify the voices of the MPS student body across the district and to bring our concerns to the school board. Right now, the union’s primary focus is the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on students. See the links below to learn more and join our cause.

Milwaukee Student Union Registration

MSU Discord Server

Insta: mke_studentunion

Twitter: @mkestudentunion