Milwaukee resident Wilma Scott (right) and a friend exit an early voting location at Midtown Shopping Center in Milwaukee Sunday, Oct. 28, 2018. Scott came to vote after her Sunday church service as a part of Souls to the Polls, a get out the vote effort where congregations urge their members to vote. Emily Hamer / Wisconsin Watch
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School trauma, Milwaukee voters, 911 failings, deportation fears, Russian hackers


Of note: This week we highlight a story by Samantha West of the Post-Crescent in Appleton. She examined a pair of disciplinary tactics for violent or overly aggressive students in Wisconsin schools: restraint and seclusion. The U.S. Department of Education advises schools to avoid physically restraining or isolating students. A federal study linked the practices to hundreds of cases of abuse and death, and there is no evidence that it improves behavior. But restraint and seclusion remain “widespread” in Wisconsin schools, West reports. A 2012 law requires schools to report these incidents, but schools are not required to share the data with any state agency. Meanwhile, some parents of restrained or secluded students say schools never told them about the reports.

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Schools are discouraged from restraining or secluding kids. Both still happen in Wisconsin — but no one can say how often.

Post-Crescent — February 12, 2020

When students are secluded from their peers or restrained, it can be traumatic for all involved: children, parents, teachers and school staff. That’s why the U.S. Department of Education says the practices should be avoided. But in Wisconsin, they’re widespread.

Milwaukee resident Wilma Scott (right) and a friend exit an early voting location at Midtown Shopping Center in Milwaukee Sunday, Oct. 28, 2018. Emily Hamer / Wisconsin Watch

Milwaukee turnout a key for Democrats in 2020, but it’s not why Hillary Clinton lost in 2016

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel — February 13, 2020

For Democrats, maximizing turnout in Milwaukee is vital. For Republicans, every scattered vote they can pick up in Milwaukee is a prize. But the city is just one of many keys to the political map. 

9 years after telecom deregulation, 911 results in busy signal for some Frontier customers

Wisconsin State Journal — February 9, 2020

The inability of rural Wisconsinites to contact 911 in life-threatening emergencies is the most serious consequence of a company that has long been the subject of complaints about poor telephone and internet service. And because Frontier is reportedly on the verge of bankruptcy and state lawmakers have ceded most regulatory oversight of the telecommunications industry, there appears little that consumers can do about it.

Hmong leaders say reported Trump deportation plans would put people at risk

Wisconsin Public Radio — February 11, 2020

Members of Wisconsin’s Hmong community are speaking out after reports that the Trump administration is seeking to deport thousands of Hmong residents to Laos.

Previously from Wisconsin Watch: A Syrian family settles in Wisconsin, just before U.S. refugee pipeline closes

Racine’s cyberattacker still a mystery, but FBI says Oshkosh’s ransomware came from Russia

Racine Journal Times — February 10, 2020

The city of Racine still does not know who (or what) was behind the ransomware virus that crippled internal online networks since at least Jan. 31, a spokesman said. However, another cyberattack that hit Oshkosh at about the same time appears to have come from a group of Russian hackers, said City Manager Mark Rohloff, citing what he was told by the FBI.

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