MILWAUKEE — As Yusuf Goodluck enrolled his child in kindergarten this past Saturday, he said it was a bittersweet day.

“The experience so far has been interesting,” said Goodluck.

He attended the Milwaukee Public Schools’ Kindergarten Enrollment Fair, where parents and guardians had a chance to check out over a hundred schools MPS has to offer. 

“You get to walk around and speak to representatives from each school,” said Goodluck. “You consider your distance from where you live to each of the schools and services they offer.” 

Goodluck said the fair gave him the opportunity to pick which school would be the best for his son. 

“Because our child has a speech delay, we are looking for a school to accommodate his uniqueness and a school that can take him and provide after school services,” said Goodluck.

Matthew Boswell is the senior director of the MPS Department of Student Services. He said MPS hosts an enrollment fair because it can be overwhelming to choose the right school for your child.

“MPS is a district of choice,” said Boswell. “We have Montessori schools, we have language-based schools, we have arts, we have traditional. If your kid has special needs, we have schools that will address those needs.” 

Boswell said the district’s goal is to always enroll as many kindergarteners as possible. 

“We have a very... dedicated, strategic focus on kindergarten enrollment, K3, K4 and K5 students with the hope that families and students will remain with MPS until graduation,” said Boswell.

Goodluck already has two other children in the district. He said MPS has been a good experience for his family.