ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND CLARIFICATION OF FUNDING

This report is being submitted to the Department of Public Instruction. The Department of Public Instruction appointed the lead author as an independent evaluator of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program in September 1990. We gratefully acknowledge the opportunity to evaluate this new program. Because several commentators and critics have misrepresented the funding for these reports and the relationship of the principal author to the Department of Public Instruction, we emphasize that the state of Wisconsin has paid almost nothing for four and one-half years of research and four evaluations. In addition, the authors have received no external consulting fees whatsoever. The research was funded by an initial grant from the Robert La Follette Institute of Public Affairs of the University of Wisconsin-Madison and by a substantial grant from the Spencer Foundation in Chicago. The funding covered all expenses, including student wages, project assistantships and partial release time for the author. Since August, 1994, The Department of Public Instruction, through a standard interagency agreement with the La Follette Institute, has paid a modest amount to support the research. John Witte has received two weeks of summer support from the Department. Without the support of the La Follette Institute and the Spencer Foundation, this research would never have been possible. Numerous people aided in the research. Most important are the members of the research team. With one exception, all are or were students, both graduates and undergraduates at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Some worked for brief periods, others have been with the project for most of the time. Past or present members of the team include: Andrea Bailey, Mark Rigdon, Tim King, Todd Price, Nadine Goff, Chris Kennedy, Zina Lawrence, Steve Little, Tamara Louzecky, Lori Mauer, Larissa Ripley, and Julie White. Stephanie Fassnacht provided computer programming support, and Alice Honeywell editing and editorial advice. We would also like to thank State Superintendents Herbert Grover and John Benson, and Bambi Statz, Sue Freeze, Steve Dold, and Bob Paul of the Department of Public Instruction. Their involvement was very beneficial and completely supportive of the research. We also received considerable help from employees of the Milwaukee Public School system. They include Gary Peterson, Stan Pauli, George Rennicke, George Krieger, John Berg, Acquine Jackson, and India Gray. Finally, and most important, we would like to thank all the individuals connected with the choice schools: students, parents, teachers, and administrators. Those bearing the most burden and responsibility for cooperatively opening up their schools were Dennis Alexander, Vincente Castellanos, Zakyia Courtney, Rob Rauh, Walter Sava, Susan Wing, Sam Rondone, Ken Burkel, Katherine Harrell-Patterson, Bruce Thompson, Virginia Flynn, Dr. Allen Nuhlicek, and Adrian Hipp.