New MPS interim superintendent doesn't have license to be a superintendent; here's why that's allowed

 

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) -- The newly appointed leader of Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) does not have a license to be a superintendent, state records show. However, a carve-out in Wisconsin law will allow Interim Superintendent Eduardo Galvan to lead MPS even though he could not legally serve as superintendent of any other Wisconsin school district.

The Milwaukee Board of School Directors voted 5-2 Thursday night to name Galvan the interim superintendent. Galvan, who previously served as the district's southwest regional superintendent, will likely lead MPS for all of the 2024-25 school year. Board leaders have said they expect their nationwide search for a permanent superintendent to last into next summer.

While Galvan served in the upper levels of MPS administration, he said he should not be considered an extension of former Superintendent Keith Posley, who resigned in June amid a fiscal scandal that will cost MPS an estimated $42.6 million. 

"People from the outside may see that, but I think that's a little unfair to all the wonderful people who have spent decades here, or even ten years or even five years," Galvan said in an interview Friday. "Because those are all wonderful people that have done good work, that work hard."

Galvan was one of three finalists for the interim superintendent position; the other two candidates either worked for MPS or had done so in the past. Board directors Darryl Jackson and Henry Leonard voted against appointing Galvan.

Licensing records for the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI) show Galvan is not currently licensed to be a superintendent. His current administrator's license is for the positions of principal and director of instruction.

Galvan's licensing history shows the MPS board requested a one-year superintendent license in 2022, which was granted, but it expired last year.

DPI Spokesperson Chris Bucher confirmed Friday MPS is the only district in Wisconsin where Galvan would legally be the superintendent given his current lack of licensing. A section of state law dedicated entirely to a public school system in Milwaukee allows the district to have a superintendent and "business manager" who do not have state licenses for those roles. 

MPS' previous Chief Financial Officer, Martha Kreitzman, oversaw a fiscal mess that saw the district provide late and inaccurate data to the DPI. The bad financial reporting led to overpayments in state aid, totaling an estimated $42.6 million, which the state will now take away from MPS' 2024-25 state aid. Kreitzman was not licensed as a business manager, and she was not a certified CPA. 

"You're comparing two different people, two different situations," Galvan said when asked about the similarities between he and Kreitzman. "What I can tell you and any family and anybody that knows that has been in any of the schools that I've been in, I am- been here, I've done the work. I will continue to do the work, so I can reassure them that I am committed, and I will do the work."

Bucher said the DPI did not have any applications on file for Galvan seeking a superintendent license. Galvan said he was applying to take a course that would qualify him for that license.

“We are in daily contact with MPS on a range of issues, including the corrective action plan, and have started building our relationship with Interim Superintendent Galvan," Bucher said in an email Friday. "We look forward to making progress, and are providing regular feedback to the district.”

A critical time

In addition to taking charge amid financial challenges, Galvan will also oversee a district where more than 60% of students have tested at a below basic level in both reading and math. 

While Galvan said he knew there would be some public frustration with the district hiring from within, even on an interim basis, but he insisted his decades of experience within MPS was a positive.

"We need stability, we need people who care, who are committed, who buy in," he said. "So, it's not a bad thing."

The upcoming year will bring changes in the classroom, as the MPS board abruptly reversed course and adopted a new math curriculum, even though that vote failed at the committee level. The district will also be adjusting to a new state literacy law requiring specialized programming for struggling students.

"We, as a district, for whatever reason, deserved, sometimes not, get a lot of criticism," Galvan said. "But I want families to know we deeply care. I deeply care, and we'll do the best that we can, and we'll move forward and we're a good place to be."

The district is also adjusting its offerings for the earliest learners in what seems to be anticipation of losing up to $10 million in federal Head Start money. MPS' Head Start funding was cut off at the end of last year amid a series of violations, including staff members abusing kids and bus drivers dropping off toddlers in the wrong location with no adult to greet them.

According to a post on the MPS website, the district is pivoting to offer K3 "programming similar to Head Start" in 17 schools. Last year, MPS offered Head Start in 37 schools. The change will bring K3 classrooms to a total of about 40 MPS schools, a district spokesperson said Friday.

"The sites that we've chosen will be sites are sites where there was already enrollment and sites where we had better control of those kinds of issues," Galvan said. "Where we had a higher standard or higher efficacy in Head Start."

Ultimately, Galvan said he wanted MPS families to measure his success by their own children's experiences throughout the upcoming year.

"Whether their child learned," he said. "Whether they feel that it was a good outcome for them."