Madison, Wis. – After nearly 10 years of serving as the Executive Director of the Wisconsin Council of Religious and Independent Schools (WCRIS) and several other faithful years of public service and education advocacy, Sharon L. Schmeling has announced her retirement, set for Sept. 12, 2024.
Schmeling earned her bachelor of arts degree in both journalism and theology from Marquette University and completed her master of arts degree in religious studies with an emphasis on political philosophy and ethics from Villanova University. She’s also a graduate of WCRIS member Messmer High School.
Schmeling’s decorated career includes working as a journalist in Milwaukee, Madison and the east coast, covering local government and private education. Since then, she served in various director positions for Wisconsin non-profit organizations and chaired the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors from 2004 to 2010.
Schmeling, a dedicated public servant, also participated on several non-profit boards of directors and state committees, while also finding time to serve as a substitute teacher at a local private school and adjunct instructor at the University of Wisconsin – Whitewater.
Among Schmeling’s many state and national accolades, some of her proudest accomplishments include being the first female chair of the Jefferson County Board of Supervisors and WCRIS’ first female Executive Director. Centered by her faith, private school roots and concern for Wisconsin children, she fought for religious and independent schools’ autonomy in educating students.
She was also part of the pivotal parental choice movement in Milwaukee, which now impacts thousands of children nationwide. Schmeling donated her papers and artifacts from the movement to the Marquette University Raynor Memorial Libraries archives in 2018, known as the Sharon L. Schmeling Collection.
Due to her leadership, Schmeling leaves WCRIS a robust organization, representing 600 Wisconsin private K-12 schools and employing four full-time staff members, the most in organization history. The WCRIS board of directors thanks Schmeling for her passionate commitment to WCRIS and the schools and students it serves.
The WCRIS board of directors is accepting applications for WCRIS’ next leader. For more information, go here.
If you’d like to send Schmeling well wishes via U.S. mail, please send them to the WCRIS office at 110 E Main St, Ste 802, Madison, WI 53703.
WCRIS is a non-profit, nonpartisan membership organization representing 100,000 children in 600 K-12 schools since 1974, and the official Wisconsin chapter of the Council for American Private Education (CAPE).
WCRIS supports the unique missions of member schools through advocacy, education and partnerships, to ensure an extraordinary education and equitable opportunity for each child. Learn more at wcris.org.
