🚌 Bus drivers call out over contract dispute

🏘️ Dane County Weeds Out Racial Property Restrictions

• After three years of research into Dane County property covenants, county employees found over 1,000 deeds issued between 1910 and 1969 containing language that restricted property ownership on the basis of race who could own property.
• The Board of Supervisors is highlighting and rejecting the discriminatory documents, telling an appalling story of prejudice in Dane County neighborhoods, particularly for Black residents. A new exhibit at Monona Public Library delves into the history of racial covenants. [WKOW, Dane County Historical Society]

🚌 Dispute Between Bus Drivers and City Hits the Streets

• Bus service was disrupted last Thursday morning due to an extreme number of driver absences, and other drivers refusing to take overtime to cover the shifts, city officials said.
• The absences occurred as the city is in the middle of labor negotiations with Teamsters Local 120, which represents drivers and mechanics. City officials declined to release details on the state of negotiations, but noted that other represented units such as police and fire received a 3% pay increase in 2025, and was committed to ensuring parity with bus drivers. [WKOW, City of Madison]

☮️ Ex-Peace Corps Workers Try To Mitigate Trump’s Actions

• As President Donald Trump and his billionaire advisor Elon Musk have tried to block foreign aid and conduct mass deportations, a group of former Peace Corps workers in Madison are pushing back.
• Returned Peace Corps Volunteers Madison is a local group that has stepped up its fundraising efforts to support refugees in the Madison area, as well as organizing letter-writing campaigns to Congress.
• 🎧 Dig deeper: On the City Cast Madison podcast today, host Bianca Martin talks to Wisconsin Watch’s Jack Kelly and Hallie Claflin about Wisconsin GOP efforts to replicate Trump’s actions on the state level. [Cap Times, 🎧 City Cast Madison]

As the dust settles after last week’s primary, Wisconsin voters will have a clear choice in the April 1 general election in the race for State Superintendent of Public Instruction, also known as superintendent of schools.

While the position is technically non-partisan, incumbent Superintendent Jill Underly, supported by the state Democratic party, will face a challenger in education consultant Brittany Kinser, who is supported by Republicans. Here’s what the state superintendent actually does, who the candidates are, and where they stand on hot-button education issues in Wisconsin.

What Does the State Superintendent of Schools Do?

Under the state constitution, the superintendent has broad authority over education in Wisconsin. It’s the superintendent’s role to oversee public schools, provide guidance for principals, and offer assistance for organization.

In Wisconsin, the superintendent gets involved in school funding battles between Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and the Republican-controlled legislature. They also weigh in on education issues, including testing standards, and federal education issues, such as President Donald Trump’s threats to dissolve the U.S. Department of Education.

It’s a powerful position. Unlike many other states, Wisconsin does not have a state board of education that the superintendent shares power with. And it can be a stepping stone to higher office – Evers was Wisconsin’s superintendent of schools before being elected governor.

Who Are the Candidates?

Underly was assistant superintendent of schools before being elected to the top post in 2021. Before that, she had a long career in public education, serving as a district superintendent, elementary school principal, and middle and high school teacher.

Kinser is a Milwaukee-based education consultant who was head of Wisconsin’s Rocketship Schools, part of a nationwide network of charter schools. She’s also the past president of City Forward Collective, an education nonprofit that advocates for charter and voucher schools.