Milwaukee Biz Blog

As part of the November elections, voters in the City of Milwaukee approved a referendum requiring private employers to provide up to nine days of paid sick leave to all employees working within city limits.

On Friday, June 12, Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Cooper permanently enjoined the ordinance's implementation and enforcement.  Judge Cooper ruled that the ordinance was unconstitutional and invalidly enacted based on its provisions related to domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking, noting "this is a case where a proposed ordinance's reach exceeds its grasp."

Judge Cooper ruled that the ordinance's provisions allowing victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking to use paid sick leave for legal action or relocation are not logically related to the broader purpose of the ordinance and were not mentioned in the ballot question: "These provisions are not details of the main purpose of the ordinance, but separate matters which must be detailed in the concise statement voted upon on a different direct legislation ballot."

While the court could have enjoined the ordinance's enactment on that basis alone, Judge Cooper went on to rule that those provisions were unconstitutional: they had no rational basis because there was no clear relationship between the amount of time needed to relocate or bring legal action as a result of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking and the number of paid sick days provided in the ordinance. 

A number of other bases for the permanent injunction were argued, including that the ordinance was preempted by state and federal law, that it unconstitutionally impaired existing contracts and that it was unconstitutionally vague and extraterritorial.  However, Judge Cooper did not grant the injunction for those reasons. 

Finally, the court refused to sever the invalid portions of the ordinance from the remainder and instead struck it down in its entirety.

While Judge Cooper's decision is good news for employers, the issue may not be entirely resolved: Milwaukee 9to5, the special interest group that led the petition drive resulting in the ordinance's consideration on the November ballot, plans to appeal the decision.

Sara Spiering is an associate attorney at DeWitt Ross & Stevens S.C., where she is a member of the Litigation and Employment Relations Practice Groups.

I applaud President Barack Obama for bringing national attention to two things I’m passionate about: health care reform and Wisconsin. I am eager to work with the president and Democrats toward a bipartisan solution to health care.

However, the majority has chosen to exclude such collaboration. After reviewing the president’s remarks in Green Bay, I have one basic observation to make: the difference between the president’s rhetoric and the substance of his plans is nothing short of astounding.

In fact, non-partisan experts continue to claim that the president’s "public plan option" will cause as much as 120 million of Americans to lose the health insurance they already have and like. This makes it difficult to keep the insurance they like, underscoring the growing divide between the president’s promises and his policies.

The president reiterated a false choice that is damaging the open, honest health care debate that we deserve. The president frames the debate as: The government must take over the management of health care OR continue with the failed status-quo of today. He continues to challenge his critics by asking, "What is the alternative?"

He knows that there are alternatives - better alternatives where the patient, not the government, is at the center of health care in America. He knows that we have introduced the Patients’ Choice Act of 2009.  He knows this and is simply hoping that the American people don’t know it. It should be noted that Democrats haven’t yet introduced a bill - we have.

The Patients’ Choice Act is a real proposal with actual legislative text, demonstrating that we can have universal health insurance in this country without the government taking it over.

Another favorite refrain of the president is that entitlement reform is health care reform. With health security threatened by the unsustainable growth of Medicare and Medicaid, serious reform of these programs is no longer an option. Last year, I introduced comprehensive reforms of both programs, and yet again - nothing but rhetoric from Washington.

What’s worse, the administration’s current strategy to fixing our entitlement crisis is to add yet another entitlement program to an already unsustainable fiscal future. You can't create new government entitlements, impose trillions of dollars of new taxes, and call this cost containment. We already spend over two-and-a-half times any other country on health care. The problem is not that we don't spend enough money, but that we don't spend it efficiently or effectively.

The president highlighted innovative reforms in Wisconsin by providers and patients alike, and used these market-driven reforms to argue that the federal government should take it from there. It takes an uncomfortable faith in Washington to believe that bureaucratic waste will be replaced by innovation and efficiency if only we gave government more control. Again, there is a better path forward on health care reform, and pretending there are not alternatives is a weak argument against our proposals.

What is at stake in this health care debate is nothing short of our definition of America.  The outcome of this debate will reshape, in deep and enduring ways, our nation's historic sensibilities.  Will we reaffirm our first principles where the government is purposefully limited and the individual is purposefully empowered, or will we sacrifice liberty with a sense of passive security and dependence? Do we want to follow the stagnant European welfare state model, or do believe that there is something unique about our founding, something unique about America that still endures today?

President Obama made the case in Green Bay for a government-centric approach to reforming an issue of tremendous economic and personal importance for all Americans.  We will continue to make the case for an approach where patients and doctors are the nucleus of health care in America. We will continue to make the case for health care reform rooted in faith in the individual. We stand ready to engage in a serious health care debate, and are hopeful President Obama and Congressional leaders in Washington are willing to give the American people a health care debate they deserve.

U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Janesville) represents Wisconsin's 1st Congressional District.

Over opposition from employer representatives, Gov. Jim Doyle just signed into law 2009 Wisconsin Act 20, which significantly expands the damages available to employees pursuing claims under the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act (WFEA) - the state law that prohibits discrimination in employment.

The result of that expansion is not only a likely increase in the number of claims that will be brought against employers under the WFEA, but an increase to employers in the cost and risk of defending such claims.

Under the WFEA, complaints are filed with the Department of Workforce Development's Equal Rights Division (ERD) and are initially heard by an administrative law judge (ALJ).  The ALJ's decision may be appealed to the Labor and Industry Review Commission (LIRC), a three-person administrative body in Madison appointed by the Governor, which is authorized to make its own findings regarding liability and remedies based on the evidence introduced at hearing. Prior to the recent change in law, employees' remedies were generally limited to recovery of back pay, reinstatement, and attorneys' fees.

However, as a result of the changes to the WFEA, employees will now be able to pursue compensatory and punitive damages by filing an action in circuit court following a finding of liability in the administrative proceeding. Employees will thus be able to recover damages for pain and suffering and emotional distress, and in proving the appropriate amount of punitive damage will be allowed to "introduce evidence of the wealth of a defendant."

Further, the new law allows for employees to choose to have a jury decide the amount of these additional damages - presumably after being told the employer discriminated against the employee.

Those damages are subject to the following limitations:

• Not applicable to employers with fewer than 15 employees (or local governmental units).
• For employers with between 15 and 100 workers, compensatory/punitive damages are capped at $50,000.
• For employers with 101 to 200 employees, they are capped at $100,000.
• For employers with between 201 and 500 employees, they are capped at $200,000.
• For employers with 501 or more employees, they are capped at $300,000.

Although the damages and caps parallel those under several federal civil rights statutes, a key thing for Wisconsin employers to be aware of is that the WFEA offers broader protections to employees.  For example, the WFEA allows employees to sue for discrimination based on arrest and conviction record, sexual orientation and marital status, while federal law does not.  Further, the changes will likely result in an increase in the number of claims pursued under the WFEA because its law and procedures are more favorable to employees. 

Ultimately, the expanded remedies and ability of employees to have a jury decide them is not only likely to increase the number of claims pursued under the WFEA, but also to result in a significant increase to employers in the cost of litigating and resolving such claims. 

The new law will become effective two days after the state budget passes, likely this summer.
Of course, employers should always work to ensure discrimination does not occur and that they are prepared to defend claims that may arise. However, the changes to the WFEA make it especially important for employers to ensure that they have appropriate policies and practices in place to reduce the risk of claims and to aid in their defense.  Additional efforts now in the review and appropriate documentation of hiring, firing and other personnel decisions will go a long way towards limiting the negative impact for businesses later.
      
Sean Scullen is a partner in the labor and employment group in Quarles & Brady LLP's Milwaukee office. He can be reached at (414) 277-5421 or sean.scullen@quarles.com.

This recession has spared no group of workers when it comes to losing jobs, with white-collar workers who seemed nearly immune to past economic downturns standing in unemployment lines with their blue-collar counterparts.
Still, there’s a clear “education gap” in the national jobless statistics – and it’s wide enough to buttress the commonly held belief that better educated workers are more likely to find work, earn a good wage and keep working when times get tough.
The gap should also reinforce efforts by Wisconsin policymakers and business leaders to support strategic ideas for building a better educated workforce, from K-12 programs that emphasize science, technology, engineering and math to targeted tax credits that can help older workers earn a college degree.
In February 2009, the U.S. Department of Labor reported that unemployment rates for people without high-school degrees was 12.6 percent, compared to 8.3 percent for those with a high-school degree only, 7 percent for those with some education after high school and 4.1 percent for those with a college degree.
Wisconsin ranks about 33rd among the 50 states in the percentage of adults with college degrees, well behind Minnesota (11th) and Illinois (15th). So perhaps it’s no coincidence that Wisconsin’s 9.4 percent jobless rate for March 2009 was higher than unemployment nationwide (9.0 percent), in Minnesota (8.2 percent) and in Illinois (7.3 percent).
Skeptics can make chicken-or-egg arguments all they want, but the fact is that “knowledge economy” businesses tend to cluster in cities and states where they can find workers who hold post-high school degrees. If you build the workforce, those businesses will come. Plus, knowledge-based businesses weather recessions better than most – which means workers at those companies tend to keep their jobs.
What can Wisconsin do to build a better-educated workforce? There are many ideas. Here are two that have received recent attention.
1. Invest in a state Education Tax Credit – This bill would provide an incentive for employers to invest in expanding the number of people attending college in Wisconsin. It calls for a 25 percent employer tax credit (rising to 30 percent in areas where there are critical worker shortages) for tuition paid to a Wisconsin college or university. For every 25 or 30 cents in lost revenue to the state, employers would have contributed 70 to 75 cents toward educating either current workers or building tomorrow’s workforce. That investment yields higher tax revenues over time as the economy grows. The bill allows “employers and Wisconsin citizens themselves, not government, (to) determine what fields of study will drive the economy,” said Rolf Wegenke, president of the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities. Testifying a few weeks ago to the Senate Economic Development Committee, Wegenke noted “government is ill-suited to make decisions about the kind of investments needed in education because it is difficult to predict exactly what kind of knowledge workers will be needed in the future… The Education Tax Credit lets the marketplace and the students decide.”
2. Improve what works in STEM education – The United States and Wisconsin have lagged the world in recent decades in producing science, technology, engineering and math graduates. And yet, those are among the skills valued most in the global economy. A report released April 21 by the non-partisan Wisconsin Technology Council capped a series of public meetings on “Educating a Tech-Savvy Workforce in Wisconsin” and urged embracing proven ways to engage students, teachers and businesses.
The report noted the success of programs such as Project Lead the Way, Science Olympiad and FIRST Robotics, which have private roots and have been adopted in a growing number of public schools because they capture the imagination of students at an early age. Among other ideas, the report recommended focused training opportunities for teachers and hands-on involvement of business leaders with schools, teachers and students.
These are just two examples of ideas to improve Wisconsin’s supply of “knowledge workers” over time. Pursuing these strategies and others won’t shorten this recession or stop the next one, but it will enhance economic security for Wisconsin and its workers.

Tom Still is the president of the Wisconsin Technology Council.

Last October, Gov. Jim Doyle and I sought a comprehensive independent review of the finances and operations of Milwaukee Public Schools. The results of that review were released Thursday. Click here to read the report.

The data is sobering. MPS faces serious long-term financial problems because of increasing expenses, declining enrollment and the financial impacts of the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program. The long term financial issues compound the district's serious academic challenges.

In response to the review, Gov. Doyle and I will partner with State Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster and lead an effort to drive innovation, school improvement and fiscal responsibility in the Milwaukee Public Schools.

We will jointly implement an MPS Innovation and Improvement Initiative. This initiative has five main tenets:

• Create a MPS Innovation and Improvement Advisory Council that will guide the reform work and put MPS in the best position to improve student achievement and compete for federal dollars.
• Develop a comprehensive, district-wide school improvement plan that promotes innovation, accountability and results.
• Develop a state corrective action plan for MPS. 
  Strive for fiscal responsibility and transparency through financial and performance management oversight.
• Compete for American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (ARRA) funding.

I am committed to reforming MPS, and believe this initiative is a step in the right direction. I hope that you will join my drive for reform in the coming months.

Tom Barrett is the mayor of Milwaukee.

On Jan. 14, I sent an e-mail to Robert Puente (my Milwaukee alderman) and numerous other city and county of Milwaukee "officials" (including the mayor and county executive), outraged over the nearly 40-percent increase in my commercial property taxes over last year. (See my blog at www.BecomeTheLeadDog.com if you care to see the original.)

Alderman Puente did respond to me and basically said "tough luck" on the taxes issue, "appeal next April." I never heard from Mayor Barrett, although I did receive a phone call from (Department of City Development Commissioner) Rocky Marcoux, who promised he would have his administrative assistant get back to me to set up a meeting between him and me (I never received the call), and I did receive a response from County Supervisor Joe Rice. I didn't even send the e-mail to Mr. Rice, so "kudos" to him!!

I received a call from Steve Jagler of BizTimes Milwaukee who posted my e-mail on the BizTimes Daily. This was subsequently picked up by Charlie Sykes who not only read it on air, but also posted parts of it on his Blog and then picked up a quote from it as the "Quote of the Week." Thank you Charlie! I also received supportive calls from many, many of my small business colleagues: thank you. 

I really didn't expect to get much response from the "city folk." After all, I'm not a "big shot" businessman in Milwaukee (I've only been an independent business person in the community for 30 years, I only founded several successful small businesses employing several hundreds of Milwaukeeans, was recognized six times for having one of the fastest-growing companies in Milwaukee and one of the fastest in the nation and paid what I think of as enormous amounts of taxes over those years).

But here is what really got me going: I heard Milwaukee Public Schools Superintendent William Andrekopoulos musing in front of the TV cameras about how they (MPS) should spend the stimulus funds that have been earmarked for MPS. They (MPS) had no idea how they were going to spend the money, and he was appealing for suggestions from the community!!

How outrageous is that? They didn't know how they might spend the millions and millions of our hard-earned tax dollars being sent to them by the federal government? Manna from heaven? The thought of perhaps returning some of it - or reducing other expenses - never crossed their minds! Superintendent Andrekopoulos: How aobut returning it to the taxpayers by reducing the 49.3-percent tax increase your school board foisted on them last fall?

The insanity continues!

Wayne Staats is the owner of the Granville Business Development Center in Milwaukee.

Editor's note: The following letter to U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) and Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner (R-Menomonee Falls) was written by Patti Wallner, president of the Waukesha County Chamber of Commerce, and Brian Nemoir, advocacy chairman of the chamber.

The Waukesha County Chamber of Commerce is writing to urge you to vote AGAINST the Employee Free Choice Act, aka the Card Check Bill (H.R. 800/S. 1041). The Waukesha County Chamber, a membership organization of over 800 members businesses with 37,000 individuals, strongly opposes the Act because it deprives all employees of important rights they currently have in the workplace.

The Act will eliminate an employee's right to a federally-supervised private ballot election, and replace it with a "card check" process. As you are aware, the secret ballot process is a hallmark of American society, and should not be eliminated so that union organizers will have an easier time forming unions in the workplace.

The Act will create the potential for intimidation and threats if an employee does not want to sign a card to form a union. Under the card check process, employees will be asked to openly choose their preferences for representation in the workplace in front of union representatives and other employees. The results of each employee's decision will be known to the union representatives, and also to their employers. If an employee does not wish to sign a card, he/she could be pressured to do so by union organizers or other employees. No employee should ever face intimidation or threats in the workplace for any reason, especially if it is based on the question of whether to form a union.

The Act will allow a union to be formed very quickly if more than 50 percent of the employees sign cards. Under the Act, if more than 50 percent of employees sign cards, the National Labor Relations Board must recognize the results and certify a union. This means that union organizers could arrive at a place of business on Friday afternoon to collect signatures on the union cards, and a union could be formed by Monday morning if more than 50 percent of the employees sign the cards - without the employer or other employees even being aware that a card-signing campaign had been started.

Further, while this initiative affects all businesses, it will potentially have the greatest impact on small businesses. For example, in 2005, the National Labor Relations Board conducted 2,649 union representation elections. More than 20 percent of those elections involved bargaining units of fewer than 10 employees and a full 70 percent of the elections involved bargaining units of fewer than 50 employees. The card check bill would make union organizing cheaper and easier and would allow labor unions to target the smallest that may have limited resources to sustain themselves in a protracted card check election.

Due to a concern about the impact of this legislation on the American workforce, and the detrimental effects it could have on small business owners, we strongly urge you to OPPOSE this legislation, and vote AGAINST the Employee Free Choice Act (aka the Card Check Bill).

Thank you for your attention to this very important matter.

Regards,

Patti Wallner, president
Brian Nemoir, advocacy chairman

A national crisis has convinced America of the need for new leadership. During the presidential election, Barack Obama promoted change, and John McCain promoted reform. A record number of voters cast their votes in favor of either change or reform. The message was delivered: America needs new leadership.

An unprecedented transition is taking shape in an unprecedented time. President Obama promises a fact-based administration. He promises pragmatism over ideology. He is being touted as a new breed of leader.

As the financial industry and the auto industry implode before our eyes, there is a spirited debate about whether the executives who led during the decline can lead during the recovery. The media is debating whether key industries need to change or retain executives.

Clearly there are costs and benefits in either retaining or replacing current executives.

It is clear that American industry needs a new breed of leader as well. Another pragmatic question arises: Can executives change?

My colleagues and I have coached executives in Fortune 500 companies and small family-owned businesses, in North and South America, Europe and Asia. These men and women share more similarities than differences.

Executives can change. They can also make the choice to learn the skill set of a new breed of leadership.

Many factors influence their capacity to change. Two factors are key:
(1) The executives who successfully strengthen their leadership capacity are highly self-motivated to change. They are hungry to strengthen their capacity to both manage and to inspire.
(2) They welcome candid feedback. They exhibit the courage to invite hard truth and work diligently to overcome their blind spots. It can be a painful process, and, it is a privilege to witness.

The new breed of leadership demands learning new skills. Daniel Pink, author of "A Whole New Mind - Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age," describes "…a seismic shift now under way in much of the advanced world. We are moving from an economy and a society built on the logical, linear, computer-like capabilities of the Information Age to an economy and a society built on the inventive, empathic, big-picture capabilities of what is rising in its place."

The most highly rewarded workers in the 20th century were knowledge workers: lawyers, doctors, accountants, engineers, executives. Knowledge will always matter, but it is no longer enough.

According to Pink; the 21st century skills that will be rewarded are "ingenuity, personal rapport, and gut instinct." These skills are both invaluable and often not highly developed in executives who forged their careers and successes based on their knowledge levels.

These are also skills that cannot be shipped overseas. Pink also adds "sometimes we need detachment; many other times we need attunement. And the people who will thrive will be those who can toggle between the two."

Executives who take their leadership and inspiration to a higher level display the wisdom and maturity to toggle, to balance.

• They learn to balance logic and vision.
• They learn to balance speaking with listening.
• They learn to balance predictability and spontaneity.
• They learn to balance making rules and breaking rules.
• They learn to balance process orientation and people orientation.
• They learn to balance criticism and forgiveness
• They learn to lead with head and with heart.

Toggling between attunement and detachment may not be instinctual or easy. Balance never is. However, it is more pragmatic and more profitable. Research from the Harvard School of Business suggests that 80 percent of employees are disengaged or moderately engaged. Yet, engaged employees give more effort, greater performance and have less turnover. Engaged employees are inspired by more confident and connected leaders.

Executives must continue to draw on the best of the knowledge economy while simultaneously adapting to the attunements of the inspirational economy.

Futurist Alvin Toffler once said, "The future arrives too soon and in the wrong order."

Indeed. The future has arrived, and it is demanding new leadership. The first executives to volunteer to change will be the new leaders. Inspiration will be rewarded. The reward will be commensurate with the risk and the investment.

Will you volunteer to change?

Cheryl Juech is a leadership consultant/coach with Vernal Management Consultants LLC in Milwaukee.

Several years ago, Bob Stutman spoke to my three TEC groups. Stutman was the "head narc" for the Drug Enforcement Administration's New York office. He had 1,000 DEA agents reporting to him.

After a 25-year career with the DEA, Bob started a consulting firm that works with corporations and communities throughout the United States in dealing with the issue of substance abuse. Bob has a family connection in Wisconsin. We are fortunate to have him speak to TEC groups in Milwaukee on a regular basis.

Bob's TEC presentations describe the drug problem in the workplace and the drug problem at home. On the corporate side, he challenges CEOs who think they have adequate substance abuse programs, but don't.

On the family side, he confronts our members who are essentially clueless when it comes to the substance abuse going on in our communities and our homes. Most of us had no idea that drugs with names like "special K" or "roofies" or "easy lay" existed, much less what they were or what they were doing to our kids.

In addition to speaking to TEC groups and working with corporations on their substance abuse programs, Bob has developed a model that he has introduced in several school districts to deal more effectively with drug problems.

Several TEC members over the years have sponsored Bob's presentation and program for their local school districts. One such member, Paul Grunau, president of the Grunau Company, sponsored Bob at Whitefish Bay Middle School two years ago. That is, Paul paid all the expenses relative to Bob's appearance. There was no cost to the school district.

The initial day-long presentation was divided into four segments. Bob spoke to Whitefish Bay Middle School seventh and eighth graders in the morning. Following the morning presentation, students were offered the opportunity to speak with Bob confidentially, on a one-on-one basis about anything they wanted to talk about.

Approximately 400 students attended the morning session. More than half asked to speak to Bob confidentially after the presentation. That's 200 13- and 14-year-old Whitefish Bay kids asking to speak to the "bald drug guy!"

After speaking with the kids, Bob spoke with the faculty and administration of the school.  Paul Grunau, as the sponsor, was invited to attend. The session was after a TEC meeting that day. Paul invited me to attend, as well.

Stutman made it clear that based on his experience and the turnout of students who wanted to meet with him individually that Whitefish Bay Middle School had a problem and whatever they were doing in terms of a substance abuse program wasn't working.

The faculty and administration listened politely.

In the evening, Bob spoke to the Whitefish Bay community as a whole, with concerned parents and students in attendance. The title of the evening presentation was "Not My Kid."

Some school districts in Wisconsin have embraced the follow-up, ongoing Stutman substance abuse program. Typically, Bob's school programs are sponsored by TEC members. Andy Burkart, CEO of Burkart-Heisdorf Agency, brought the program to Sheboygan South High School. Rhonda Sullivan. president of Lavelle Industries, did the same with Burlington High School.

Paul Grunau offered to sponsor Stutman at Whitefish Bay High School. The principal, Bill Henkle, declined Paul's offer. Henkle indicated they had their own program and didn't see the need for anyone from the outside to offer assistance.

The response from Whitefish Bay Middle School was just as surprising. The administration actually became defensive when it came to their substance abuse program efforts. They didn't want any more of Stutman's program.  The follow up, ongoing pieces that have been effective at Sheboygan South and Burlington High Schools never got beyond the principal's desk in Whitefish Bay.

It is my understanding that Maddie Kiefer, the student who died last weekend from an apparent drug overdose, did not attend Whitefish Bay Middle School prior to enrolling at Whitefish Bay High School. If she had, she might have been in attendance when Stutman was there two years ago. Perhaps Bob could have made a difference - if he had been afforded the opportunity.

If you are interested in information regarding Bob Stutman's school programs, please contact me. I will be pleased to e-mail the description of the program and the fees involved. Please consider sponsoring Bob in your school district. This is an opportunity to build something positive out of the tragic death of Maddie Kiefer.

We need to expand the conversation beyond the walls of the school district administration. We need to do it now.

Dennis Ellmaurer is a principal of Globe National Corp., a Milwaukee firm working exclusively with sellers of small businesses in southeastern Wisconsin. Ellmaurer also is a chairman of The Executive Committee (TEC), facilitating three CEO groups in southeastern Wisconsin. He can be reached at dennis@globenational.com.

If it seems like something - or more precisely someone - has been missing in Milwaukee lately, I know exactly whom it is.

Sister Joel Read, former president of Alverno College, suffered a stroke on Christmas Eve, one day after she had undergone successful heart bypass surgery. She has been hospitalized ever since.

Contacted by phone Monday, Sister Joel told me, "My whole left side is no good."

For those of you who know Sister Joel, take comfort in knowing she is speaking as eloquently and with as much purpose as ever.

I count the fact that my life's path crossed Sister Joel's path as one of my life's true blessings. We became friends as we worked together on the committee that formed the College Readiness 21 Program for the Wisconsin Foundation for Independent Colleges.

Sister Joel, a nationally renowned educator, wears many hats in this town. She's co-chair of the Greater Milwaukee Committee's Education Committee, where the folks at the GMC will freely tell you she's the moral compass in the room. The lady does not know how to mince her words, and she does not hide her lantern under a blanket. You know precisely what Sister Joel is thinking about any topic you are discussing with her.

In fact, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co. chief executive Ed Zore, outgoing GMC chairman, jokingly acknowledged Monday that Sister Joel had recently "rapped (his) knuckles" about an education issue of some sort.

Zore then read aloud a message from Sister Joel to members at the GMC's annual meeting. I asked Sister Joel for permission to share that letter with our readers, many of whom will no doubt be interested in her progress.

"Sure go ahead. I need all the prayers I can get. The wider my prayer chain, the better off I will be," came the reply.

So, here is the message Sister Joel sent to the GMC members:
"I would like you to know that your cards, visits and thoughtful gifts really brightened those early days for me and encouraged me on the long journey that I am on to regain my independence. I would also like you to know that I am making progress on this journey. Each day, the left side, which the stroke rendered unusable, has begun to show signs of returning to life. Please do not stop praying for me. I have only just begun. Thanks a million for your support."

Get well soon, my friend. Milwaukee needs you!

Steve Jagler is executive editor BizTimes Milwaukee. For additional information, Sister Joel Read wrote a Milwaukee Biz Blog last year, making the point that we all have a stake in the fate of the children at Milwaukee Public Schools. If you have any thoughts you would like to be passed along to Sister Joel, send an e-mail to steve.jagler@biztimes.com.