<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1s3OfP_1Gv5Y0y600" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1s3OfP_1Gv5Y0y600" width="1600" height="1200" ></figure>Dear Editor: In the most recent Dane County budget, Supervisors Heidi Wegleitner, Brenda Yang and Yogesh Chawla moved to eliminate $55,000 in funding for the Madison Reading Project, an invaluable program connecting children with books and building a foundation for educational success.During budget debate, Supervisor Jeff Glazer dismissed the program as “someone’s pet project,” while Supervisor Keith Furman supported eliminating its funding. Those dollars were redirected toward case management funding for Urban Triage, an agency that, in 2024, struggled to account for funds associated with a single program.Supervisor David Boetcher of Waunakee ultimately identified funding within Dane County Human Services to fully restore the reading program without cutting case management services. Despite that opportunity, the board ultimately funded the program at just 50% of the county executive’s original request.This decision is particularly troubling because literacy programs benefit all children and can make an especially meaningful difference in communities of color, where educational disparities persist.The hypocrisy is difficult to ignore. Some of the board's most progressive members routinely advocate funding Human Services programs across the spectrum yet were willing to eliminate a children's literacy program while prioritizing funding for a political ally.In a budget approaching $1 billion, investing in children's literacy should have been a no-brainer. Instead, protecting this program became a fight.Those who voted to eliminate its funding or opposed fully restoring it should be ashamed. Dane County's children deserve better. Their educational opportunities should never take a back seat to political relationships.Sean BurkeMadison</div></body>

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Dear Editor: In the most recent Dane County budget, Supervisors Heidi Wegleitner, Brenda Yang and Yogesh Chawla moved to eliminate $55,000 in funding for the Madison Reading Project, an invaluable program connecting children with books and building a foundation for educational success. During budget debate, Supervisor Jeff Glazer dismissed the...

Letter | Dane County children deserve better

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Dear Editor: In the most recent Dane County budget, Supervisors Heidi Wegleitner, Brenda Yang and Yogesh Chawla moved to eliminate $55,000 in funding for t

Letter | Dane County children deserve better

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