Milwaukee Schools Crisis

Is the Milwaukee Schools lead crisis the next "Flint"? 

Milwaukee Schools Crisis is a slow moving train wreck

• Local authorities seem unable to coordinate testing the schools and the children. Who is in charge? 

• Parents believe they are not getting answers from local officials. 

• Some are beginning to ask: "Hundreds of thousands of kids over the years, so how many kids have suffered ill effects from this and what impact does that have on our communities?"

• Finally a little attention from the National Media. April 18, 2025 NYT. Milwaukee’s Lead Crisis: Flaky Paint, Closed Schools and a C.D.C. in Retreat. and from the New England Journal of Medicine: Lead Contamination in Milwaukee Schools — The Latest Episode in an Ongoing Toxic Pandemic

• Once parents lose trust, institutions have more to do than lead remediation. Fear and mistrust in town where more than 200 children poisoned. Prevention is a cheaper and more humane policy.

As a new school year begins...the news continues

For the week ending September 6, 2025

• July 23, 2025, New England Journal of Medicine. Lead Contamination in Milwaukee Schools — The Latest Episode in an Ongoing Toxic Pandemic. "While important in itself, the situation in the Milwaukee schools is also symbolic of lead contamination and poisoning throughout the United States and the world. With some exceptions, such as bullets, small-airplane fuel, and lead–acid batteries for motor vehicles, lead is no longer used in the United States. Many people therefore assume that lead poisoning is a problem of the past. Yet exposure continues to occur from lead paint in older houses and other buildings, deposition of leaded gasoline in soil, and leaching of lead from water lines. In many countries, lead is emitted from industrial plants and incinerators, by smelting, battery production, recycling, and electronic waste, and it is often found in paints, ceramics, cosmetics, and even spices. Indeed, childhood lead poisoning is a pandemic — essentially the largest mass poisoning in history, which has resulted in a staggering number of deaths and disabilities over the past century and is still expanding. Globally, more than 800 million children (one in three) have alarmingly high levels of lead in their bodies. Lead exposure clearly adversely affects human health and life expectancy. The 2021 Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study estimated that there are 5.5 million premature deaths each year from the cardiovascular effects of lead4 and that developmental intellectual disabilities and increased blood pressure attributable to lead exposure resulted in the loss of 14.3 million disability-adjusted life-years in 2021."

• Sep 5th, 2025. Press Release. MPS Clears Lead Risks from all Pre-1950 Elementary Buildings. "Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius announced Friday that after months of intensive work, all 50 MPS schools built before 1950 that serve elementary students are cleared of lead risks. 'We are committed to providing safe and welcoming schools to the community. Successfully addressing lead paint issues is a critical step in this work,” Dr. Cassellius said. “I am grateful for the tireless efforts of our Facilities and Maintenance Services team led by Interim Chief Operating Officer Mike Turza, our contractors, and the Milwaukee Health Department. The news comes during the first week of school for the 65,000-plus students who attend MPS. As the school year started Tuesday, 43 of the 50 elementary-age buildings built before 1950 were fully cleared. In the remaining seven schools, lead paint stabilization work was already completed and a limited number of spaces—typically one or two rooms in each school, including a bathroom in one case—were closed to students and staff during final cleaning and testing. Now the work is completed, and all 50 schools are cleared. The final two schools received clearances Thursday night." Skeptics remain. Advocates want more transparency in Milwaukee Public Schools lead action plan  

For the week ending August 23, 2025

• August 19, 2025. PBS Wisconsin. Brenda Cassellius on screening students for lead poisoning. "Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent Brenda Cassellius discusses the district's ongoing efforts to screen students for lead poisoning and communicating with parents about the urgency of this issue."

• August 20, 2025. PBS Wisconsin. Mike Totoraitis on the CDC and lead in Milwaukee schools "Milwaukee Commissioner of Health Mike Totoraitis describes on and off support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to assist efforts to address lead contamination in school buildings."  Best quote? 'Thankfully, Secretary Kennedy was asked in an interview, I think by an ABC reporter, 'Was this done by accident?' You know, this is a really serious issue across our country, not just in Milwaukee. And what I took away from that interview was that he might not have known that this division within the CDC had been let go. And, you know, whether or not that was true in that moment, they got their jobs back. It wasn't too long ago we got communication that they had been rehired. We were actually in the process of bringing on one of those former staff to support the department, given that they had the expertise that really would complement our own internal expertise, and it was through that individual that we learned that they had gotten their jobs back. So, it was really an incredible moment for us to realize that we had someone to call now and partner with. Since that moment, they have been meeting with our teams regularly again. We've been sharing our updates on what's going on with the district to ensure that we were headed in the right direction. And we've also just put in a request for additional funding to help with testing and screening of students. So at this point, we're still in conversation about them sending a team here to Milwaukee, but we have asked for actual dollars to support ongoing screening and surveillance work here in Milwaukee.' " Whistling past the graveyard or Wisconsin Nice?

• August 21, 2025. Wisconsin PBS. Shannon Pahlicek on concerns of parents over lead in schools. "Transparency keeps coming up, you know? As they're going through this process, sometimes it's taking longer than expected for schools to be cleared, which is a good thing in the sense that you want them to do the work right — but making sure that they're also communicating with the families and keeping them abreast of what's happening. There's a portion on the website where you can access some of the information, but, you know, it's really on a school-by-school basis. And so it would be nice to have principals be able to directly contact the families, and let them know like, "Hey, here's where our school is at." Because displacing students — relocating them, I mean — it's disruptive to families. So, transparency keeps coming up — communication, clarity about the scope of the problem, and what the plan is moving forward beyond cleaning protocols."

• August 21, 2025. Wisconsin PBS. More than 20 Milwaukee Public Schools were damaged by flooding. "MPS Superintendent Brenda Cassellius said the schools will be ready to open in time for the first day of school Sept. 2. But she said the cost of repairs and replacement of damaged equipment could reach into the millions. That comes as the district is spending about $25 million on lead remediation. [.....] The flooding also affected ongoing lead remediation work being done at schools across the district. One of the main contractors working on the lead project was called away to help Milwaukee residents clean out their properties, Cassellius said. The project was also set back by heat waves over the summer. She said there were a few days when 30 painters walked off the job because of the heat inside buildings. MPS parents and guardians were first notified in January that a student had lead poisoning. From there, the issue snowballed, revealing dangerous levels of lead contamination at multiple schools due to the use of lead paint prior to 1978. Nine schools were temporarily closed and their students relocated during the 2024-25 school year. Those schools have been cleared of lead hazards. Another 14 schools are still in the process of stabilization and will be ready by Sept. 2, Cassellius said. “It’s not like you just go and slap new paint on,” Cassellius told WPR. “Sometimes you go in there, and you have to replace electrical and change the plumbing out. You never know what you are going to find once you start doing the work' "

For the week ending August 16, 2025

• August 14, 2025. Wisconsin Public Radio. Milwaukee Public Schools confronts dangerous lead problem"As a new school year begins, Milwaukee Public Schools continues efforts to clean up a widespread lead contamination problem in its numerous older buildings and continue to test students for poisoning. [......] Despite all of their efforts so far, MPS officials say there’s still a lot more work to do with cleaning and painting the schools to get them to a standard that’s safe for students. And once the schools are stabilized, additional maintenance and regular inspections will be needed to keep them that way. 'So far, we think it’s going to cost somewhere around $25 million to do,' Cassellius added. 'Then there’s the ongoing cost. We put an additional $16 million of ongoing investments within our facilities department to add custodial support — to add painters, to add plasters, to add lead abatement or lead inspectors to the team to make sure that we’re keeping up with our lead action plan.' ”  

For the week ending August 2, 2025

July 29, 2025. WISN. Free lead screening clinic Tuesday for MPS students. "But just last week, the Milwaukee Health Department confirmed all affected buildings are now safe for students to return in the fall. Milwaukee Public Schools is currently undertaking lead remediation efforts at 14 schools, with work already in progress. The buildings include ALBA, Auer Avenue, Forest Home, Milwaukee French Immersion, Hartford, Hayes, Humboldt Park, Longfellow, MacDowell, Mitchell, Riley, Siefert, Townsend and Vieau. MPS says updates will continue throughout the summer, with a goal of having buildings cleared before the next school year begins.Despite the urgency, turnout at past clinics has been low. In May, only 22 students were tested out of 300 available slots." Since lead poisoning can be asymptomatic, parents and pediatricians often skip child lead tests. Solution: Test them all. 

For the week ending July 27, 2025

July 24. 2024. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Brown Street Academy, built in 1897, becomes 9th MPS school cleared of lead dangers. "When inspectors toured the building in March, they found deteriorating paint in spaces where children 6 years and younger spend time: in classrooms, common areas, bathrooms, the cafeteria and more. The visual inspection report noted that paint was often found to be chipping or peeling on areas like baseboards, doors, windowsills and cabinets." Like Flint, but on a smaller scale, the Milwaukee School Crisis was a trigger for expanded lead safety in Wisconsin led by Governor Tony Evers. This week Evers announced that he would not seek another term.

For the week ending July 20, 2025

July 14, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Health officials worried MPS lead crisis would compete for resources amid uptick in cases. Here's what happened. "Milwaukee health officials feared earlier this year that the growing lead crisis in the city's public schools would divert resources needed to respond to the annual summer rise in childhood lead poisoning cases in homes across the city. At this time, though, city Health Department leaders feel confident in their ability to handle the increase in cases that accompanies the warmer weather, when lead dust starts to swirl from homes' open windows and the city's youngest residents head back outside to play in soil flaked with lead paint." Crisis abated for now, plans for on going surveillance will be required.

For the week ending June 29, 2025

• June 23, 2025. WisPolitics. Freshwater For Life Action Coalition (FLAC): Calls for criminal investigation: Wisconsin DHS finds MPS mishandled lead remediation, but imposed $6000 fine is not  "FLAC supports Lead Safe Schools (LSS) in calling for community oversight of the lead paint cleanup in Milwaukee Public Schools. We agree with the State of Wisconsin DHS assessment that MPS is not competent to do the job without significant supervision and community input. On June 10, 2025, the Wisconsin Department of Health Services reported their finding that MPS and its subcontractors, Service Painting Corporation and Thomas A. Mason Company, Inc., received 13 code violations, including failure to conduct interior lead-safe work practices (Wis. Admin. Code § DHS Code 163.14(11)(f). The only result was the resignation of one administrator. These subcontractors are still in possession of the credentials to remediate lead in our city in spite of these code violations. The contractors sent in uncertified staff who may have not known about the dangers of lead remediation work because they were not trained by their employer appropriately. As usual, MPS is penny wise, pound foolish. This will certainly cost more in litigation than the remediation would have cost in the first place. Freshwater For Life Action Coalition (FLAC), a community grassroots network, calls on the State of Wisconsin Attorney General, Joshua Kaul, to review this matter and initiate an investigation for criminal neglect by all parties involved."

• Jun. 25, 2025. Spectrum News. Sen. Tammy Baldwin grills CDC Director Nominee about Milwaukee lead crisis. "Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., appeared visibly frustrated Wednesday as she questioned President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Susan Monarez about her commitment to the federal Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program. [.....] HHS did not answer a question about whether the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program has been reinstated but said the Trump administration is committed to safeguarding public health through lead prevention."

• June 26, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel You asked about lead in Milwaukee Public Schools. Here's what we found. "The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel asked readers to send us their questions about maintenance of lead paint in Milwaukee Public Schools. The district is undertaking lead remediation at dozens of schools. That action came after an announcement in January that a student had been poisoned by lead at Golda Meir Lower Campus, built in 1890, driving broader scrutiny of deteriorating lead paint in district facilities. We have answers to your questions below." You gotta read it to believe it.

• June 27, 2025. Wisconsin Public Radio.. MPS lead crisis: Here’s how the district plans to clean over 40 schools this summer

• The Milwaukee school district is prioritizing schools built before 1950. "The district has spent over $3 million to address the lead crisis so far, according to [interim facilities and management director at MPS Mike] Turza. 'We’re expecting to spend another $16 million to do the next set of schools,' he said. The treatments described in the article appear to fall into the category of "interim controls" rather than lead abatement. 

May 2025

For the week ending May 25, 2025 

May 21, 2025 NPR 'Which is it?' RFK Jr. waffles on cuts to lead poisoning prevention efforts. "There is no team in Milwaukee," Milwaukee Health Commissioner Mike Totoraitis tells NPR. 'We had a single [federal] staff person come to Milwaukee for a brief period to help validate a machine, but that was separate from the formal request that we had for a small team to actually come to Milwaukee for our Milwaukee Public Schools investigation and ongoing support there.' Totoraitis says Secretary Kennedy may have been misinformed. More here: This city’s lead poisoning crisis

For the week ending May 17, 2025

• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Milwaukee Public Schools says 48 schools already inspected for lead hazards, with more to come "In Milwaukee, efforts are underway to ensure no kids are poisoned by lead at school ever again. By the end of this summer, Milwaukee Public Schools said, it will stabilize hazards caused by lead-based paint in all elementary schools built before 1950. Along with those 54 buildings, it will complete paint stabilization at another 52 schools — those constructed between 1950 and 1978 — by the end of the 2025 calendar year. That's according to a lead action plan released April 28 in response to a request by the City of Milwaukee Health Department. In an attached letter, Superintendent Brenda Cassellius acknowledged it was 'unacceptable' that previous district protocols used to manage lead 'did not function as they should have.' "

• May 15, 2025 Spectrum News. Health department official shares additional insights to MPS lead issues. " 'We’re a Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, so the majority of the children we work with are from ages 0 to 6,' he said. 'When we have an elevated blood lead level and a lead poisoning, state statute says 15 micrograms per deciliter and above, and that is high.' Weber went on to say that state law mandates children cannot graduate from the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program until they have tested below that level twice, six months apart. 'The challenge is what happens when they’re lead poisoned, but now, they’re 8-years-old or 10-years-old and we don’t have the capacity to help them in that way,' Weber said. 'That’s why I think how we’re building this partnership with MPS will become more critical over time.' Every blood lead test filters through the state and is accessible to health departments. MHD, Weber said, wants to merge that data with MPS enrollment information to determine which students go to which schools and what their blood lead levels are. MHD is working on an agreement with MPS to have access to enrollment data.' "

For the week ending May 10, 2025

• May 6, 2025. FOX6 News Milwaukee lead poisoning concerns in schools; new screening options. "More lead screenings are underway in Milwaukee. It is an effort to get as many Milwaukee Public Schools students checked for lead. The tables are set inside North Division High School cafeteria. They are ready to receive Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) students on Wednesday, May 7. A lead screening clinic will be held. Officials said they have the capacity to provide screenings for 300 students. The screening comes as MPS tackles the ongoing lead crisis at the district's schools. Most recently Westside Academy was added to the list of schools closed. Later in May, Brown Street Academy will be added to the list of schools that will be shut down for cleaning."

• May 8, 2025  Wisconsin Examiner. Lead screening clinic held in Milwaukee high school. "City to continue lead testing efforts as parents demand more. [.....]  'Until the district, city and state work proactively to address root causes of lead exposure, these testing clinics will do little to prevent exposure of a harmful toxin.' Every year, more than 1,200 children in the city of Milwaukee test positive for lead poisoning, with an average age of 3 years old. With over 70,000 MPS students among the tens of thousands of children in the city, ensuring that enough children are getting tested can be challenging."

• May 8, 2025. CNN via KESQ Half of Milwaukee’s kids aren’t being screened for lead. Fewer than 20 came to a free testing clinic. "The stage was set at North Division High School for a surge of families Wednesday as city health officials held a free lead screening clinic for Milwaukee families. Instead, fewer than 20 kids came in for testing over a four-hour span. The low turnout wasn’t what the Milwaukee Health Department, Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS), Children’s Wisconsin and others were hoping for when they arranged for the free clinic, the second of its kind since the start of MPS’ lead crisis this spring. So far, nine MPS schools have closed at various points over the last two months after inspectors found dangerously high levels of lead paint dust.

For the week ending May 3, 2025

April 28, 2025. CNN. Milwaukee announces additional school closures, new plan to address lead paint hazards as contamination crisis deepens "Milwaukee will temporarily close two more school buildings as the city works to address a lead crisis in its public schools. The district also announced Monday an updated plan to tackle the flaking and chalking paint in aging buildings that’s suspected to be the cause of elevated blood lead levels in four students this school year. The new closures affect elementary schools Westside Academy and Brown Street School. Two other elementary schools remain closed: Starms Early Childhood Education Center and LaFollette School. In total, the Milwaukee school district has announced work at nine schools this year to address lead hazards. Students are being relocated while the work is underway. The city’s school district and health department are in the process of inspecting about 100 buildings that were built before 1978, the year lead was banned from paint. They expect the work to continue through the summer. Superintendent Brenda Cassellius said the district expected to clean 54 schools built before 1950 ahead of the next school year. An additional 52 schools built between 1950 and 1978 are slated to be cleaned before the end of the calendar year, she said." thanks to CLASHer Andre for sharing.

April 28, 2025 Wisconsin Public Radio. 2 more Milwaukee Public Schools to close due to lead hazards. "Lead cleanup work has already cost the district nearly $2 million, according to Cassellius." More here: MPS says it will clean up lead paint in 100+ schools by the end of the year. How?

April 29, 2025. ABC7Chicago. Milwaukee announces additional school closures, new plan to address lead paint as crisis deepens "The city of Milwaukee, which has a large share of older homes, has a long history of lead problems. In some areas on its north side, health department data shows, about 1 in 5 children tested positive for elevated blood lead levels between 2018 and 2021. The current crisis, however, is the first time lead poisoning in kids has been linked to the city's schools. One of the most cost-effective ways to control lead exposure from old paint is to keep it sealed it under layers of new paint. The school district had fallen behind in its efforts to do that.In a report to the state legislature last year, the district disclosed more than $265 million in deferred maintenance for its schools."

April 2025

Week ending April 26, 2025

• April 21, 2025 TMJ4 Concerned parents, community group to team up with MPS over lead concerns. "Monday's town hall focused on finding solutions rather than placing blame, with community organizations stepping up to assist the district. Shyquetta McElroy, Executive Director of the Coalition on Lead Emergency (COLE), emphasized the importance of community involvement. She noted that MPS only received 20% of consent forms back for testing of children. That's why her organization is calling on parents who know the impact of lead poisoning to help spread awareness and take action for their kids." More here: Milwaukee Public Schools to ramp up work on lead paint issues over the summer

• April 24, 2025 Public  News.Service  Experts say lead in Milwaukee schools is an environmental justice issue "As the city of Milwaukee continues to grapple with addressing unsafe levels of lead across public schools, experts are calling it an environmental justice issue and are urging reform of the systemic causes driving the problem. At least three Milwaukee schools have closed and about a handful of students were exposed to unsafe levels of lead. As city officials continue to investigate, they are forced to do so without federal support usually available in crises like these. Tony Wilkin Gibart, executive director of Midwest Environmental Advocates, said Milwaukee was already facing a lead poisoning crisis from other sources and finding hazardous levels in schools can easily overwhelm city departments working with limited resources."

• Apr. 25, 2025. Spectrum. Students return to Fernwood Montessori after lead remediation wraps up. "School is back in session at Fernwood Montessori. This is the first time in more than a month students will be in the building after the school was closed for failing a lead inspection. 'Nice to have the kids back in the regular spot,' Ryan Gabbard, Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) parent, said."

Week eding April 19, 2025

Apr 16, 2025. WJFW. Parents, MPS school board members push amid lead paint cleanup "There continues to be a lot of discussion around Milwaukee Public Schools’ lead paint cleanup, even though little of it is about the actual cleanup. The city’s school district has not said when it expects to have seven schools with dangerously high lead levels cleaned, or when it expects to test the rest of its students for lead poisoning. Gov. Tony Evers last week ordered MPS to do more to clean up the lead that has closed several schools. This week, two parent groups suggested that MPS sue the makers of lead paint that is still in the city’s schools. 'As the district begins to weigh the costs of remediation of this highly toxic hazard harming the health and well-being of MPS students, teachers and staff, we agree efforts must be made to find revenue to cover the costs of this daunting endeavor,' Lead-Safe Schools MKE and Get The Lead Out Coalition said in a statement. Lead-based paints have been banned in the United States since 1978, but many of Milwaukee’s schools were built before that ban went into effect. MPS has not said how many schools have lead paint, or how many kids have been exposed to the chips or dust that comes from lead paint. Parents, though, could get a bit more information about the work to replace that lead paint. MPS School Board members Missy Zombor and Megan O'Halloran are planning to introduce a proposal at Thursday’s school board meeting to create a public portal to track work orders at Milwaukee schools. 'We have heard loud and clear from...parents that they were very concerned with the work that was being done and how we are going to ensure there is strong oversight,' O'Halloran told The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 

The public portal would track the 'quantity of work orders' for lead paint complaints. Parents and the public could also see the response times to deal with those orders. MPS' superintendent is not saying just how long it could take to clean the lead paint from all of the city's schools. She's also not saying how long it will take to clean the lead paint out of the seven schools that have been flagged for dangerously high lead levels. Milwaukee's health department said this week there could be lead paint in as many as 100 MPS buildings. The health department has also warned in the past it may need to test as many as 10,000 MPS students for lead poisoning."

Week ending April 12, 2025

• April 10, 2025.  PBS Wisconsin. Lead levels and cleanup costs are high in Milwaukee schools. "Multiple schools in Milwaukee have had closures due to lead contamination, and costs of cleaning up paint and replacing water pipes is one element in the politics of Wisconsin's 2025-27 state budget. [.....] So far in 2025, seven buildings in Milwaukee Public Schools have had concerning levels of lead found in them following investigations by the city. 'That probably is the tip of the iceberg here,' [State Rep] Clancy added."

• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Parents push for transparency on lead paint crisis in Milwaukee Public schools. "Milwaukee Public Schools parents demand transparency and accountability after lead hazards were found in seven schools. MPS attributes the lead issue to budgetary constraints and staffing shortages, particularly in facilities maintenance. Parents express concern over communication lapses, school closures, and the impact on student learning. Saying they feel 'baffled' and 'betrayed,' parents are demanding Milwaukee Public Schools be more transparent in managing its aging facilities to prevent threats to their kids' health. Over 250 people attended a virtual town hall April 10, bringing with them detailed questions to ask of MPS and city of Milwaukee Health Department officials. Invited were parents and guardians of children who attend the seven MPS schools where the city recently identified dangerous levels of lead in chipping paint and dust."

• April 11, 2025 CBS News CDC denies help for lead poisoning in Milwaukee schools due to layoffs 

Week ending April 5, 2025

• Nearly 250 MPS students tested for lead as district axes facilities director

• April 3, 2025 CNN A city responding to a lead crisis in schools reached out to the CDC for help. The agency’s lead experts were just fired. "A few months ago, a test revealed that a child in Milwaukee had elevated levels of lead in their blood. The results triggered an investigation into the family’s home, then the child’s school and then more aging school buildings still riddled with lead paint. With 68,000 students in the Milwaukee Public Schools district and dozens of buildings potentially affected, the city’s health commissioner, Dr. Michael Totoraitis, knew that he needed more help, so he reached out to the National Center for Environmental Health, a division of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to make a plan to address the threat. For the past two months, Totoraitis has been working with a medical toxicologist to triage, essentially, which schools and children might need additional screening and how to understand the lead levels they might find. On Tuesday, he got an email that made his stomach drop. The environmental health team he had been working with at the CDC had been cut, swept up in a massive layoff of federal health workers that’s hitting entire divisions of some agencies. Many employees were immediately placed on administrative leave and are no longer able to access their work. 'They were able to send a last email giving us new points of contact, but the new points of contact were essentially unable to say what level of support they would provide us moving forward,' Totoraitis said." See update at Federal Funding Crisis.

• April 3, 2025. Wisconsin Public Radio. MPS director overseeing facilities during lead crisis has been reprimanded by the state. "Sean Kane, the senior director of facilities and management at the district, was fined $1,319 this week by the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services for violating state law and misrepresenting himself as an architect after his license lapsed in 2020. The reprimand comes as lead hazards have been found in at least seven schools in the district so far. Four MPS students have tested positive for lead poisoning in recent months." There's more: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Milwaukee Public Schools facilities director Sean Kane leaves post amid lead crisis

• April 3, 2025. WisPolitics. Gov. Evers highlights comprehensive plan to prevent lead poisoning and ensure clean water for kids and families in 2025 Year of the Kid. "Wisconsin has recently seen cases of lead poisoning in kids who were exposed to dangerous levels of lead at school—at school, folks. That should never happen anywhere in Wisconsin. Period. We have to work together to fix this. I’m asking for bipartisan support to invest over $300 million to help get lead out of our service lines, bubblers, schools, homes, and child care centers for good. This includes relaunching the Windows Plus Program to support lead-free renovations in schools, homes, and child care centers. And lead is just one contaminant that’s affecting kids, families, and water across our state."

March 2025

• March 1, 2025 FOX6 News Milwaukee MPS lead exposure: Parents express concerns, educate community "On Saturday, the parent-led group Lead Safe Schools MKE held an assembly to educate the community on the issue and express concerns. Cameras were not allowed inside, but those who attended told FOX6 News the information was eye-opening. Some parents said they're still wondering how lead levels in certain MPS schools got so high, and how it took so long to address the problems. 'The only thing that surprised me is that we’re just now getting to the bottom of this, and I think that’s a huge concern,' said MPS parent Ron Jansen. 'Hundreds of thousands of kids over the years, so how many kids have suffered ill effects from this and what impact does that have on our communities?' he added. 'I’m really, really frustrated by the city government's response so far.' "

• March 1, 2025 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Group demands more transparency and accountability from MPS over dangerous lead levels in schools " 'Our end goal is to prevent any children from being lead poisoned at school. It is a ridiculous thing to say out loud,' said Kristen Payne of Lead-Safe Schools MKE and whose child is a third grader at Golda Meir Lower Campus, which serves students in grades three through five." Here's an update MPS's Trowbridge will not reopen Monday to allow more time to remove lead hazards

• Mar 01, 2025. TMJ4.com  Parents mobilize to voice concerns about lead in Milwaukee Public Schools "Parents are urging the school board and city health department to act quickly. 'You have the power. This is our city, these are our schools, paid for by our dollars, and we should have a say in what happens and how they’re run,' Jansen said. Organizers plan to hold additional meetings across the city to reach more parents and advocate for change."

• Mar 3, 2025. WISN Trowbridge students start at new school after lead dangers detected. "More than 200 Milwaukee Public Schools students and staff members are starting the school week at a different building. Milwaukee's health department shut down Trowbridge School in Bay View due to dangerously high lead levels, moving classes 5 miles away to the Wisconsin Conservatory of Lifelong Learning. WISN 12 News was there as parents dropped off kids for their first day of school at the new building around 7 a.m. Monday. A lead-poisoned student prompted the health department to test Trowbridge last month." Here's an update MPS elementary school to remain temporarily closed due to lead hazards Milwaukee Public Schools said several areas of concern in the school will be deep-cleaned again on March 10.

• Mar 5, 2025. CBS58. MPH to announce children's lead testing clinic soon, no reopen date for Trowbridge School yet  "On Wednesday, March 5, the Milwaukee Health Department announced lead testing clinics will start soon for students who attend the four MPS schools that have tested positive for dangerous levels of lead. The department also unveiled a timeline for when MPS must address issues at the currently closed Trowbridge School. Also Wednesday, there was a call with federal health authorities about expanding testing to every school in the district. At the health department's monthly meeting, Milwaukee Health Commissioner Mike Totoraitis said, 'It's a high number of children that are at high risk.'

• March 15, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Milwaukee school students undergo testing in the wake of lead concerns. "The finger-prick test for lead poisoning was painless enough, but Sean Hayes was disappointed that his two young daughters even had to go through the process." Good summary of the week's news. Cute kids. 

• Mar 14, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Here's what Milwaukee parents need to know about getting their children tested for lead poisoning. "Parents are encouraged to get their children tested for lead poisoning — for free —at clinics offered by the Milwaukee Health Department, Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers and Children’s Wisconsin. The clinics come as four MPS schools have now been temporarily closed because of unsafe levels of lead, and three others have had work done because of lead hazards."

• Mar 14, 2025. WISN. 3 more MPS schools to temporarily close due to lead paint hazards. "Three more Milwaukee schools are temporarily closing because of lead paint hazards inside of the buildings. In a letter sent to MPS families, Starms Early Childhood Center, Fernwood Montessori and LaFollette School will be temporarily closing on March 17 for cleaning and testing. The City of Milwaukee Health Department will be providing updates on the school as they conduct inspections."

• Mar 14, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Three more Milwaukee Public Schools buildings to temporarily close due to lead hazards. "Exactly when the schools will reopen was not immediately clear. 'MHD will continue to work closely with MPS to conduct inspections, oversee remediation efforts, and determine safe reopening timelines for each impacted school," the letter states. A free lead screening clinic on Saturday will now be open to students at those three schools in addition to students from the four other MPS schools previously identified as having lead hazards."

• March 14, 2025 Milwaukee Public Radio. Milwaukee Health Department closing 3 more MPS schools due to ‘significant lead hazards’ "The closures come after staff with the Milwaukee Health Department performed visual inspections at the three schools and seven others in the Milwaukee Public Schools district this week."

• March 19, 2025. City of Milwaukee Health Department and MPS Provide Updates on Lead Safety Efforts Lead Screening Clinic Results, School Inspection Plans, and Next Steps Announced

• March 17, 2025.FOX6 News Milwaukee MPS lead hazards: 3 more schools closed, leaders urge testing.

• Mar 19, 2025 WISN. All MPS schools to be checked for lead hazards. "The health department also shared some of its results from this past weekend's lead testing clinic at Bradley Tech High School."

• March 19, 2025. WTMJ. Two schools cleared of lead-dust as remediation continues in MPS. "While two schools are cleared of lead-dust, MPS is still dealing with properly remediation and cleaning lead dust from 11 other schools."

• March 25, 2025.  Milwaukee Neighborhood News. Groups demand resignation of MPS leader, transparency following unsafe lead work at schools "Lead safety advocates have called for the resignation of a Milwaukee Public Schools official following a state order of noncompliance related to lead renovation projects. Lead-Safe Schools MKE, Get the Lead Out Coalition and Metcalfe Park Community Bridges seek the removal of Sean Kane, senior director of facilities and maintenance services at MPS. On March 19, the state Department of Health Services issued a noncompliance order addressed to Kane, which listed multiple lead safety violations that occurred during renovation work at four MPS schools."

• March 26, 2025. Black Chronicle News Service. Kinser: State takeover of MPS an option. "One of the candidates for Wisconsin’s state superintendent says Milwaukee Public Schools are in “crisis” and could need some sweeping changes. Brittany Kinser told the crowd at the Rotary Club of Milwaukee candidates forum that Milwaukee’s school district needs to change quickly. 'Look at the results for kids,' Kinser said. 'That’s why I give [MPS] an F. When you have 5% of black children reading, only reading well enough. When we have lead poisoning, that’s enough.' ”

• March 28, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Students in three schools displaced by lead hazards won't return to regular buildings Monday "Three Milwaukee Public Schools buildings that have been temporarily closed since March 17 due to lead-based paint hazards will remain closed when students and staff return from spring break on Monday. That means students and staff from Fernwood Montessori School, Starms Early Childhood Center and LaFollette School will continue attending other MPS buildings while theirs are made safe. Robert M. LaFollette School on North Ninth Street has been temporarily closed since March 17 while authorities clean up lead hazards. No reopening date has been set. 'We understand that this closure is disruptive, and we appreciate your patience as we work to remediate all lead hazards and conduct necessary safety evaluations," the communication reads."

• Mar 23, 2025. On Milwaukee. Here's what you can do to mitigate lead hazards in Milwaukee. "In Milwaukee, lead poisoning is one of the most serious health threats facing young children, according to the City of Milwaukee Health Department. From 2018 to 2021, nearly 6.25% of children younger than 6 in Milwaukee County tested for lead were considered lead poisoned, with percentages of children poisoned in some Milwaukee neighborhoods nearing 25%, according to data from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services. Lead hazards in paint, water and soil are common throughout many of Milwaukee’s older homes and buildings, contributing to the widespread issue of lead poisoning. Here are some ways that you can identify and manage lead hazards."

February 2025

• FEBRUARY 24, 2025. Milwaukee Health Department may shut down city schools due to high levels of lead. "Gov. Tony Evers’ proposed budget, which was released last Tuesday, also mentions the issue. He is proposing funding for lead hazard investigations. 'Failure to act swiftly and effectively will place children at serious risk of lead poisoning, developmental delays, and other possible health complications,' the budget brief said. When asked about the situation last week, he said the issue at MPS is 'unbelievably bad. I mean … this should have been taken care of years ago,' Evers said." 

• February 17, 2025 Milwaukee Neighborhood News. Opinion: MPS failed to keep our kids safe. And we should all be concerned. "In the end, this is a racial justice issue, an environmental justice issue, a public health emergency, a working-class issue and a moral issue. I am a parent of a third grader at Golda Meir and have volunteered many hours of my time at both Gola Meir and Parkside School for the Arts.  I take my role as a parent and a community member seriously. I believe it is our individual and collective responsibility to make our communities safe, caring, and functional places for us all to live and thrive. It’s why I sprung into action when I was first alerted to the lead issues in my child’s school. It's why I worked with other parents to form Lead Safe Schools MKE to lead the charge on parents addressing the lead emergency in MPS. We have created an online petition to encourage community members and parents to voice their concerns and make demands of the Milwaukee Health Department and MPS.  So far, we have been able to secure several victories, including the public release of the lead-risk assessments for all schools assessed as well as the public release of the health department’s remediation orders with timelines.  But we need your help. We have lots to do!"

• Feb 21, 2025. WISN MPS lead dangers: What schools will be inspected next? "The school district said on Friday, it plans to expand its lead inspection efforts. A lead-poisoned student has prompted health officials to test another Milwaukee Public School building. This time, it's Trowbridge Street School in the Bay View neighborhood. It's the fourth MPS school with either confirmed or possible lead contamination. Health officials have already confirmed lead dangers in Golda Meir's lower campus and Kagel School. Results from Maryland Avenue Montessori's lead risk assessment are pending. Right now, Milwaukee's health department said it only has the resources to test schools with lead-poisoned students. That's why they've tested the school they have. But they've expressed concerns that any MPS building pre-dating 1978, which is a majority of them, could have lead hazards." More here: Answering questions on lead poisoning, MPS official points to staffing and budget issues

• Feb 14, 2025 WISN Milwaukee health officials planning pop-up lead testing clinics for students It comes as the health department discovered dangerous levels of lead inside multiple MPS buildings. "Two lead-poisoned students prompted health officials to test Kagel School and Golda Meir's Lower Campus. The health department released the schools' lead risk assessments this week. It shows elevated lead levels inside both schools, which is why officials want to hold pop-up clinics to get more students tested for lead poisoning. 'Once we have the site identified, we will get the consents out to the parents at the schools that we're already in,' Milwaukee Health Commissioner Michael Totoraitis said. 'Then we will continue to have the broader conversation of how we will do additional testing sites for the broader community of MPS  students.' "

• February 13, 2025 Milwaukee Neighborhood News Lead hazards pose ‘immediate and ongoing risk’ at Kagel Elementary, Health Department says. "The Milwaukee Health Department has found lead levels at Kagel Elementary School up to 72 times higher than thresholds set by the state Department of Health Services. A lead risk assessment conducted by the Milwaukee Health Department has found hazardous levels of lead paint and lead dust alongside elevated lead levels in water taps at Kagel Elementary School, 1210 W. Mineral St. 'There are unsafe levels of lead,' said Tyler Weber, deputy health commissioner at the Milwaukee Health Department. 'We need to take all the actions we can to reduce lead exposure.' ”

• February 12, 2025. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Health department orders MPS to correct lead hazards at a second school

• Feb. 11, 2025. Spectrum News. Milwaukee Health Department releases Golda Meir lead risk assessment "There are dangerous levels of lead contamination in several Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) buildings, according to the Milwaukee Health Department (MHD)."

• Why is this a CLASH Story? CMSD lead issues have been ignored for years. The MSD "case" should become a case study for other communities in addressing a lead crisis.

The Milwaukee School Saga last week's news.

• Feb 7, 2025 WISN MPS lead dangers: Will more schools be tested?. "WISN 12 News asked the city if any other schools will be inspected. 'We will test more if there are lead-poisoned children,' Milwaukee Health Department Commissioner Michael Totoraitis said. 'We go through the step of initially investigating the primary residence and a caregiver residence or any affiliated residence with that child. And after we exhaust those options, then we'd pursue an MPS school in that case.' " Using the kids as canaries in the coal mine.

• Feb 10, 2025 Parents petition for transparency after ‘significant’ lead exposure at MPS schools "Parents at Golda Meir School are demanding transparency from the Milwaukee Health Department (MHD) and Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) after tests confirmed elevated lead levels in school buildings. A petition with over 100 signatures as of Sunday night calls for the full release of environmental assessment results, stating that families deserve full access to the findings." Read more here. And here. 

• February 11, 2025 FOX6 News MPS lead exposure, toxic dust levels at 1 school 'scary to see'

• February 11, 2025 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel  4th MPS student possibly lead poisoned at school; report on Golda Meir released

• February 11, 2025  CBS58. Golda Meir at risk of closing down if MPS fails to address lead hazards

• February 13, 2025. CBS58. Milwaukee Health Dept needs help testing MPS schools for lead after hazardous levels found at Kagel Elementary

• February 13, 2025. WTMJ. Second lead report reveals high levels of lead at Kagel School

• February 13, 2025 WISN. Milwaukee Health Department releases Kagel School's lead report

Around Us-Milwaukee School crisis week of Feb 2nd

• Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Dangerous levels of lead found in more schools. Health department warns MPS to improve monitoring and control of lead hazards. "Just weeks after the Milwaukee Health Department said a Milwaukee Public Schools student had been lead poisoned at school, the city agency on Wednesday sent a letter to the district saying dangerous levels of lead contamination had been found in 'multiple' MPS buildings. 'Failure to act swiftly and effectively will place children at serious risk of lead poisoning, developmental delays, and other possible health complications,' Health Commissioner Michael Totoraitis wrote in the letter addressed to interim Superintendent Eduardo Galvan and Board Clerk Tina Owen-Moore. The lead hazards inside MPS buildings exceed state safety standards and were discovered through separate case investigations, he wrote. During a news conference Thursday, Totoraitis confirmed that another MPS child has tested positive for elevated levels of lead, bringing the total to two." 

  • Milwaukee schools 'significant' lead exposure issues; what we know

  • 'Dangerous levels' of lead identified in multiple MPS schools

  • Parents voice concerns over ‘significant’ lead exposure at MPS schools

• February 6, 2025 Up North News. Free lead testing in Milwaukee: What you need to know. "For families concerned about testing costs, several options exist. BadgerCare Plus members can access free lead testing, with coverage extending to children in families earning up to 300% of the poverty level. Additionally, the MacCanon Brown Homeless Sanctuary and Coalition on Lead Emergency offer free monthly testing clinics with incentives including stuffed animals for children and gift cards for families."