News and Updates

Missing Forward Exam Data May Point to Even Lower Student Proficiency

The recent release of 2020-21 Forward Exam results was largely characterized by gaps in the data due to a record number of students not taking the test. But those gaps tell a story. WILL Research Director, Will Flanders, examines the missing students and what their past performance could reveal about the true proficiency rates of Wisconsin students during the pandemic.

Read more here.

Non-Profit Acquires Vacant School, Plans Private Choice School for Mattoon, Wisconsin

A non-profit finally acquired a vacant elementary school in Mattoon, Wisconsin, subject of a lengthy legal dispute over ownership, and intends to start a private choice school in the underserved community. WILL represented the non-profit, Shepherd’s Watch, in the legal fight over ownership of the building that concluded earlier this year when the Antigo School Board voted to sell the property to the Village of Mattoon and Town of Hutchins, who in turn sold it to Shepherd’s Watch.

Read more here.

Bonus: Read more about Shepherd's Watch and their goals for Mattoon in this piece at Wisconsin Public Radio.

U.S. Supreme Court Grants Cert, Remands Religious Freedom Case to Lower Court

The United States Supreme Court granted cert, vacated a judgment and remanded a key religious freedom case involving the Archdiocese of Albany to a lower court for reconsideration. The lower court had held that a New York law requiring all employers to fund abortions applied to the Archdiocese, despite their objection on religious grounds. WILL filed an amicus asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take the case.

Read WILL's amicus here.

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