Milwaukee has, by far, the worst public school district in Wisconsin and arguably one of the worst in America. It is a failing school district. Yet, only three districts in America spend more per pupil than Milwaukee. The Wisconsin average per pupil cost was about $11,600. We pointed out recently that Milwaukee spent much more than other more successful school districts in the state. I had no idea it was this close to the top nationally.
Yet, the education establishment claims the problem is we're not throwing enough money at MPS and competition is a bad thing. This is the beauty of a legal monopoly for those who hold it(yes, even with the voucher program this is still pretty much a monopoly): costs can be out of control and the prodcut can be lousy and it doesn't matter when you're the only game in town.