December 2019

MIDDLETON–Middleton Police Chief Charles Foulke, 63, retires after a 38 year career in the department serving many roles and the last five and a half as chief. Foulke looks back at his career and shares what he’ll be doing after his last day on Dec. 13.

Foulke says he went to UW Madison expecting to end up in law school, but was inspired by his professors to get into criminal justice. 

In the summer of 1980 Foulke took on a criminal justice internship in Middleton going into senior year. 

Having always lived in Madison and never spending much time in Middleton, he realized he really liked the community. After graduating he felt fortunate to get offered a position at Middleton Police Department.

Foulke says he and his wife grew up moving around a lot and expected they would be the same, but it turned out they both found jobs they loved and saw the area as a great place to stay for their kids. 

They have been a model of consistency for a quarter century now. And don’t expect anything to change this winter.

Middleton’s girls gymnastics team has qualified for the WIAA Division 1 state meet 22 times since 1995. The Cardinals have been to state eight straight years and 12 of the last 13 seasons.

Middleton begins its new season Dec. 19 at Sun Prairie. And expectations are sky high for another banner year.

“This is the strongest team Middleton has seen since Aryn Skibba's days as a MHS gymnast,” Middleton coach Kari Steck said of Skibba, a 2014 MHS graduate. “I'm excited for this young group to grow as gymnasts.

“We've always had the goal of the girls having a healthy and happy season, and being a family, and that means success for us is more than a state visit. These girls all have a lot going on outside of the gym, so to give them a space where they can just be kids and have fun is something very special.”

Jacob Beckman can breathe easy now.

It isn’t that Middleton’s standout junior golfer was sweating the college recruiting process. But when Beckman agreed to take his immense skill set to the University of Wisconsin last week, a large load was definitely lifted from his shoulders.

Beckman, the No. 1 rated golfer in the Class of 2021 by Wisconsin.golf, can now spend the next 18 months enjoying his time at Middleton before joining the Badger program.

“Yes, it is a giant relief to have my college plans figured out,” Beckman said. “Now this spring I am completely focused on the high school season and can go out there and just play golf.”

Playing golf has always come naturally for Beckman.

He began playing when he was 3 years old, took quickly to the game, then began making a name for himself in Wisconsin when his family moved to Middleton three years ago.

MIDDLETON–Middleton High School and Clark Street Community School will not have classes on Dec. 11 after threats were made on social media.

In a call to parents on the night of Dec. 10, the Middleton Cross Plains Area School District stated the following:

We are canceling school on Wednesday, Dec. 11 at Clark Street Community School and Middleton High School.

Late today, we learned of serious and specific threats to students on social media. We take these threats very seriously. We have shared the threats with the Middleton Police Department and they are investigating.  

Our elementary and middle schools will still be in session on Wednesday.  

In a separate call to elementary and middle school parents, the call stated:

Due to serious and specific threats on social media, we are canceling school on Wednesday, Dec. 11 at Clark Street Community School and Middleton High School.