Board reviews first annual crime report under Wisconsin Act 12; report limited to counts

The McFarland School Board reviewed the district's first annual report under Wisconsin Act 12, which requires public high schools to report specified categories of criminal activity occurring on school property or at school events to the district and the Department of Public Instruction.

“It's just information that they wanna collect about criminal activity at school in certain categories,” Erin, a district staff member who presented the item, said. Erin told the board the report includes categories such as homicide, assault, burglary, robbery, theft, battery, substantial battery or aggravated battery, arson, use or possession of alcohol or controlled substances, possession of a firearm in violation of statute, and municipal ordinance violations such as disorderly conduct. She noted the report lists only counts and not details about individual incidents: “No, we don't have to report any of the details. It's just a number. They're just tracking the number.”

Erin said the district compiled the report this first year from notifications received during the year and a year‑end report obtained by officer Sietsma working with local authorities. Board members asked if the district would provide comparative trend data in future years; Erin said, “I think if there were spikes, alarming things in there, that might be something that you'd discuss,” and that future reports will likely include prior‑year comparisons.

A board member asked whether the reported incidents are public record; the presenting staff member said the report is shared with the board and is public record but not routinely distributed, although members of the public could request it. The board took no formal action on the item; the presentation was informational and the district said it will provide similar reports annually.