Wisconsin Statutes
Wis. Stat. § 118.001 (2026)
Duties and powers of school boards; construction of statutes
✓ current as of July 2026
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118.001118.001 Duties and powers of school boards; construction of statutes. The statutory duties and powers of school boards shall be broadly construed to authorize any school board action that is within the comprehensive meaning of the terms of the duties and powers, if the action is not prohibited by the laws of the federal government or of this state.
118.001 AnnotationThis section expresses the legislature’s intent to give school boards broader powers and wide discretion in exercising those powers, but it does not mean that, when the legislature had previously authorized a board to take particular actions using specified procedures, the board has the authority to follow other procedures in taking those particular actions. Madison Metropolitan School District v. Burmaster, 2006 WI App 17, 288 Wis. 2d 771, 709 N.W.2d 73, 05-0875.
118.001 AnnotationThe duties and powers under this section and ss. 120.12 (14) and 120.13 extend to individual teachers as employees of the school board. It would be absurd to require teachers to obtain special permission from the school board with respect to every detail of their teaching. Summer homework, particularly for an honors class for which students receive additional credit, fits comfortably within the range of what is reasonable and is not unconstitutional. Larson v. Burmaster, 2006 WI App 142, 295 Wis. 2d 333, 720 N.W.2d 134, 05-1433.
118.001 AnnotationTogether, this section and ss. 120.12 (1) and 120.13 provide that a school board has the power to do all things reasonable to promote the cause of education and the duty to care for, control, and manage the property and affairs of the school district, and courts are required to broadly construe such already broad powers and duties so as to authorize any school board action that is within the comprehensive meaning of the terms of such powers and duties, so long as the action is not prohibited by state or federal laws. The powers of a school board include the power to authorize a ban from district property of an individual whose presence on district property the board has determined would unnecessarily expose students to potentially dangerous behavior. Klosterman v. School District, 2022 WI App 54, 404 Wis. 2d 688, 981 N.W.2d 424, 20-2076.
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 6
cases (1 in the last 5 years), 2001–2022 · leading case: Larson v. Burmaster, 2006 WI App 142 (Wis. Ct. App. 2006).
Larson v. Burmaster, 2006 WI App 142 (Wis. Ct. App. 2006). “On appeal, the Larsons contend that: (1) Bien-iek was acting beyond his authority in assigning summer homework; (2) Wis. Stat. §§ 118.001 and 120.13 are unconstitutionally overbroad and Wis.”
Pritchard v. Madison Metro. Sch. Dist., 2001 WI App 62 (Wis. Ct. App. 2001). “120, broadly construed as mandated by Wis. Stat. § 118.001 , include the authority for the District to provide the benefits in question.”
Sch. Dist. v. Evers, 2010 WI App 144 (Wis. Ct. App. 2010). “51(6) or, in the alternative, limit the number of transfers via an exercise of its general authority under Wis. Stat. § 118.001 based on undue financial hardship on the resident district.”
Madison Metro. Sch. Dist. v. Burmaster, 2006 WI App 17 (Wis. Ct. App. 2005). “12 (1) in view of the expanded powers given the school board under Wis. Stat. § 118.001 and, independently, under the introductory language of § 120.”
Johnson v. Burmaster, 2008 WI App 4 (Wis. Ct. App. 2007). “We also note that, though Wis. Stat. §§ 118.001 and 120.13 (intro.) require broad construction of the statutory duties and powers of a school hoard, a school board's discretion remains limited to acts not contrary to state or federal law.”
Neil Klosterman v. Sch. Dist. of Omro, 2022 WI App 54 (Wis. Ct. App. 2022). “§ 118.001 provides: Duties and powers of school boards; construction of statutes.”
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