The Racine Unified School District is a public school district serving the eastern portion of Racine County, Wisconsin, including the city of Racine and six other towns. Serving a total population of over 140,000 residents and over 16,000 students, the school district is the fifth largest in Wisconsin, and has 27 schools, employing 1,757 teachers and 171 administrators. According to U.S. News and World Report, the district’s minority enrollment is 70% and 45.9% of students are economically disadvantaged. ^{1 2}

The school district has continually contended with labor union negotiations and activism and one of its employees was among several individual union members and unions who brought a 2024 lawsuit seeking to overturn portions of Wisconsin’s Act 10, a package of government-worker bargaining regulations passed in 2011 under then-Governor Scott Walker (R). ³

Background

The Racine Unified School District is the fifth-largest school district in Wisconsin; it serves over 16,000 kindergarten through grade 12 students at 27 schools. According to U.S. News and World Report, the district’s minority enrollment is 70% and 45.9% of students are economically disadvantaged. Test scores for the school district show that 29% of high school students tested at or above the proficient level for reading, and 13% tested at or above that level for math, while 17% of elementary students tested at or above the proficient level for reading and 10% tested at or above that level for math. The district spends $15,323 per student each year and has an annual revenue of $315 million. ²

The school district was formed in 1961 with the merger of 24 schools to form a unified school district. The district desegregated its schools in 1975, an effort that was viewed as largely successful and was held up as a model for other cities. ⁴

Lawsuit Regarding Act 10

The Racine Unified School District was indirectly involved in a 2024 lawsuit that led to a judge overturning large portions of Wisconsin’s 2011 law that changed mandatory collective bargaining laws in the state. The judge who issued the ruling had signed a petition to recall then-Governor Scott Walker (R), leading to criticism from the right against “activist judges” and “legislating from the bench.” ³

Wayne Rasmussen, who works for the Racine Unified School District, was one of the individual plaintiffs who brought the suit alongside local labor unions, which largely centered around public-sector bargaining. The suit argued that the 2011 law violated equal protection guarantees in the Wisconsin Constitution by dividing public employees into “general” and “public safety” employees with public safety employees being exempt from the collective bargaining limitations imposed on “general” public employees. ³

Rasmussen, who was among three individuals named in the suit, is also the vice president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Wisconsin, which represents health care workers and others. Rasmussen said in a statement that “The end of Act 10 would mean that we would have a real say again in our retirement plans, health care and time off — without the threat of loss of our union every year.” ⁵

1. “Welcome to Racine Unified School District.” Racine Unified School District. Accessed July 22, 2024.  http://www.rusd.org/district/welcome-racine-unified
2. “Racine Unified School District.” U.S. News and World Report Education. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/wisconsin/districts/racine-unified-school-district-106932
3. Opoien, Jessie and Schulte, Laura. “Dane County judge strikes down elements of Wisconsin’s Act 10 law that curbed public unions.” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. July 3, 2024. Accessed July 11, 2024. https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2024/07/03/dane-county-judge-strikes-down-elements-of-wisconsins-act-10-law/74297698007/
4. Tempas, Chris and Stephen Kercher. “The Pursuit of True Freedom: School Desegregation in Racine, Wisconsin”. Oshkosh Scholar, University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh. 2011.  https://minds.wisconsin.edu/bitstream/handle/1793/56667/TempasFinal.pdf?sequence=1
5. “Unions sue to reverse Act 10 restrictions on teachers, other public workers in Wisconsin.” PBS Wisconsin. November 30, 2023. Accessed July 22, 2024. https://pbswisconsin.org/news-item/unions-sue-to-reverse-act-10-restrictions-on-teachers-other-public-workers-in-wisconsin/?__cf_chl_rt_tk=5i6e5QGmpIjoP.fROZFluOefjFYBfydxJKhNKhKENrU-1721663507-0.0.1.1-7167