Zombor Is Milwaukee’s New School Board President

Missy Zombor was elected to the Milwaukee Board of School Directors in April 2023. She began examining Milwaukee Education Partnership after being appointed to the committee that approves all district contracts. “We need to scrutinize every single penny that we spend,” she said. (Courtesy of Missy Zombor)

At the Tuesday night meeting of the Milwaukee school board, Missy Zombor was elected board president for the coming school year. She has been the citywide school board representative since 2023. Zombor is the deputy director of operations and administration for Rethinking Schools – a publisher and advocate for progressive educational reforms. Previously, she served as the marketing director for Rethinking Schools and the communications director for the local teachers’ union, the Milwaukee Teachers’ Education Association. No present school board director has closer ties to the MTEA than Zombor.

Perhaps her most high-profile initiative was to recommend the removal of the Carmen charter high school program from the Pulaski high school building. The regular Pulaski international baccalaureate program is growing, and the Carmen school occupies space that the regular Pulaski program needs. Carmen is now building a new facility on South 20th Street.

Challenging Zombor for board president was fellow director James Ferguson, He was elected and sworn in as a Milwaukee school board member five months ago to complete the term of Aisha Carr who resigned. In April, he was elected to a full four-year term. He has publicly stated that the board needs more transparency in selecting its board president and the position is too important to have a simple vote at a board meeting without public input. However, Ferguson, having only a few months’ experience on the board, was questioned by some as to whether he is ready for the board presidency.

Board members may not lobby behind closed doors for these positions as this could violate the state’s open meeting law, especially if lobbying would involve any exchange of promises for supporting a candidate. But both Zombor and Ferguson had made known their interest in the board presidency.

Director Darryl L. Jackson and new board director Mimi Reza supported Ferguson’s bid for board president. The same three board members supported Ferguson over former board president, Marva Herndon, for vice president. While neither Jackson nor Reza were supported by the MTEA in their elections, Ferguson did receive a MTEA endorsement.

New board member, Mimi Reza, stated on her Facebook page that her first major decision would be selecting the district’s president and vice president. “It is a crucial role in how we manage and guide Milwaukee Public Schools moving forward,” she stated, “with careful thought and extensive research… Your voice is powerful, and I am here to listen.” She represents a south-side, majority Latino district.

At the organizational meeting, a group of citizens shouted out when Zombor tried to give her rationale why she wished to be elected president, “We don’t want you!”

Director Megan O’Halloran, acting as pro temp chair, brought the gavel down. “People asked to have speeches, and we are honoring that request,” she declared. The start of the meeting was delayed for over 45 minutes to hammer out an agreement to allow candidates to give extensive rationale for their seeking the board presidency, something that had not been done in the past.

Zombor began with a statement, “There is a destroy-public education movement,” and then listed efforts to privatize education. She highlighted what needed to be done on the state level and the efforts she had made to make MPS better.

Said Ferguson: “I offer my sincere appreciation to our board clerk, our current board president for making room on tonight’s agenda for us to engage with one another… Thanks to colleagues who showed up with an open mind.” But he also listed things that needed to be changed. “The old way of doing things has not particularly serviced us well,” he contended.

The vote for board president was Zombor 6, Ferguson 3. The the vote for vice president was Hernon 6, Ferguson 3.

When Zombor was finally elected, all those who supported Ferguson’s candidacy joined in a round of applause.

The vote suggested there may be a division on the board, but not necessarily what transpired in past years, with public education supporters vs. private choice and charter school proponents. The precise nature of that division remains to be seen, but may echo the battle that erupted when Carr was forced to resign from the board because she didn’t live in the district she represented. There was much anger over this among her supporters, who bitterly criticized the board at a meeting in April 2024. The conflict pitted community activists against the establishment, as represented by the school board members.

There may be more of that to come.