Democratic Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski was in the Chippewa Valley on Tuesday to announce a record breaking investment for school libraries across Wisconsin.
EAU CLAIRE (WQOW) - Democratic Secretary of State Sarah Godlewski was in the Chippewa Valley on Tuesday to announce a record breaking investment for school libraries across Wisconsin.
She was joined by students, faculty and administrators at Eau Claire Memorial High School to announce a $73.5M distribution. That breaks down to about $65.39 per student per district. The investment is the largest in state history and will be distributed from the through the State's Common School Fund.
The money will be used for books, literacy materials, digital resources and technology.
Godlewski explained the fund is set up to re-invest itself which is crucial for districts across the Badger State.
"This is a reliable source of funding that our librarians and media specialists can rely on regardless and that even includes in economic downturns. We had a solid distribution during COVID because of the smart investing strategies that we have and will continue to do for the people of this state," she said.
Memorial students and staff also spoke at the event about the importance of having a well funded library. In 2025, the fund distributed about $70M. The 2026 distribution is a 5% increase compared to last year.
