21-05-2025
MPS misses financial reporting deadline; superintendent weighs in
The Brief
Milwaukee Public Schools is once again at risk of losing funding as it missed a financial reporting deadline.
A finance committee meeting was held on Tuesday night, May 20, but the issue was not on the agenda.
MPS is working to meet a new May 30 deadline.
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee Public Schools is yet again facing financial problems.
What we know
MPS schools risk losing state money, because the state said MPS is late turning in financial reports – again. Without those reports, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction said school districts everywhere else can't budget for next year.
The state needs the district's 2024 financial reports, which help calculate how funding is distributed across school districts statewide.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android
MPS missed the Friday, May 16 deadline.
A finance committee meeting was held on Tuesday night, May 20, but the issue was not on the agenda.
However, FOX6 News was able to ask MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius if she has been able to pinpoint the problem.
What they're saying
"The issue is really about our systems, talking to the systems, talking to the state systems, and we have to make sure we're doing that so we prevent that from accounting errors we are having, and it's the accounting errors we're continuing to see unravel within the systems for the very many years we are trying to fix," Cassellius said. "My job here is to address what is right in front of us but also plan for the future."
What's next
It is still unclear how much money DPI will withhold from MPS for missing last week's deadline.
MPS is working to meet a new May 30 deadline.
The Source
FOX6 News was in attendance at the MPS finance committee meeting.
