The Waunakee school district’s 2024-25 school is well underway with a new superintendent and a tagline that states, “Inspiring Excellence. Every Student. Every Day.”
Dr. Monica Kelsey Brown, who began as the superintendent this summer, spoke about her vision for the year as she introduced herself to the Waunakee Rotary Club at the Oct. 3 meeting.
She prefers to be called Dr. Brown, she said, particularly among students so they can aspire to earn a doctorate either in medicine or another discipline.
Dr. Brown earned her Ph.D at UW-Madison in curriculum and instruction with a minor in educational policy. She completed her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at UW-Whitewater, where she received the Distinguished Alumni Award for Professional Achievement. Dr. Brown has worked in education for 34 years, and comes to Waunakee from Brown Deer where she served as assistant to the superintendent and then was appointed superintendent on March 20, 2020. Her mother is also an educator, and at age 82, still works for the Milwaukee public schools.
Some of Dr. Brown’s priorities for the 2024-25 year in Waunakee include safety, student and staff wellness, academic achievement, seeing the referendum through, and making herself visible within the schools.
As for wellness, the district hosted a speaker to talk to teachers about resilience and administered a behavior risk assessment for the students.
Waunakee schools have performed well on state report cards, with several earning the Significantly Exceeds Expectations rating. None of the schools failed to meet state expectations. The district is ranked No. 2 in Dane County, Dr. Brown said. The 2023-24 report card results are embargoed while school administrators study the results. The results are expected to be released in mid November, she said.
Dr. Brown said her goals this year are to continue the legacy left to her and to work on the referendum. Like many other districts throughout the state, Waunakee is asking for additional dollars to fund operations and salaries.
Dr. Brown also spoke about her family. She and her husband have been married for 30 years, and their daughter just completed her law degree at UW-Madison in May. Dr. Brown comes from a large family from Mississippi, where her grandparents have a farm. Her mother was one of 13 children, and every July 4 they have a large family reunion at the farm.
Next week, Dr. Brown will speak more about the Nov. 5 referendum question, a long one. It asks whether:
The School Board of the Waunakee Community School District be authorized to exceed the revenue limit by $8.6 million for the 2025-2026 school year, and by an additional $500,000 (for a total of $9.1 million) for the 2026-2027 school year and thereafter, for recurring* purposes consisting of maintaining programs and services and for employee compensation; and by an additional $1.05 million for the 2025-2026 school year (for a combined total of $9.65 million), and by $2.1 million for the 2026-2027 school year (for a combined total of $11.2 million), for non-recurring** purposes consisting of employee compensation expenses.
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Other News:
-Rotarians are invited to watch Francisco Alvarez, the club’s exchange student from Argentina, play in the next home soccer game on Oct .15.
-The visitors from Croatia will be at the Rotary brat stand at the Badger game on Saturday at 9:30 a.m. Later, Rotarians are invited to join them for a tour of the Wisconsin State Capitol. If you’re interested, meet at 1:15 p.m. at the State Street entrance of the Capitol.
-Linda has Waunakee Rotary pins for sale for $4.
-Food for Kidz is Oct. 20. They are looking for more volunteers and donations to package more meals.
-The board of directors met and approved expenditures from the tips at Wauktoberfest. They will go to YMCA, DAIS (Domestic Abuse Intervention Services), and Polio Plus, with a matching donation from the club.
-To commemorate the 20th year of Rotary in Lights, Christmas ornaments have been ordered and will be for sale. Proceeds from these will go to the Waunakee Neighborhood Connection. Let Jennifer Tasker know how many you’d like.
-A new credit card payment method is in the works.
Guests: Leah Abeyton, guest of Lori Derauf; Hillary Pink Budworth, 4th visit; Jim O’Brien, guest of Mark McFarland.
Visiting Rotarians: None.
Birthdays: Oct. 11, Carol Bleifield.
Anniversaries: Oct. 10, Troy and Crystal Salisbury; Oct. 13, Ray and Harriet Statz.
Greeters: Oct. 10, John Reuter and Sarah Bonk; Oct. 17, Alex Welk and Tim Decorah; Oct. 24, Paul Carderella and Lori Derauf.
To sign up to greet or to find out if you are greeting, visit:
https://www.signupgenius.com/go/805054CAAAA2CA7F85-44320149-2023#/
