MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - The state’s top public school official, Dr. Jill Underly, emphasized the need for more funding in classrooms in her State of Education address at the Wisconsin State Capitol on Thursday.

“For far too long, Wisconsin has carried a painful and unacceptable label,” Underly, the state superintendent of the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction said.

The Badger State has the largest Black to white student achievement gap in the country.

The U.S. Department of Education’s National Assessment of Educational Progress reported that in 2024, only 5% of Black Wisconsin fourth graders were proficient or better in math, and 8% in reading.

Underly attributes a lack of opportunities to the achievement gap.

“We need to invest in teachers,” Underly said to press after her s

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