Since the early 1990′s Michigan public schools and educators have been criticized for poor student achievement scores and a plethora of other social ills. But without adequate funding, schools are limited in what they can accomplish.
The recent study completed by Michigan State University, titled “Michigan School Finance at the Crossroads: A Quarter Century of State Control,” concludes that our public schools are not adequately funded.
LANSING — No state has squeezed school spending more in recent decades than Michigan, education researchers said Wednesday in a study that attributes the tightening to tax cuts and notes a corresponding drop in student achievement.
LANSING, Mich. — A new Michigan State University report endorses the findings of the School Finance Research Collaborative ’s study that determined the true cost of educating all students to make the way we fund schools more fair. MSU College of Education professor David Arsen supports the Collaborative’s work in his new report, Michigan School Finance at the Crossroads: A Quarter Century of State Control .
EAST LANSING, Mich. — A new Michigan State University report endorses the findings of the School Finance Research Collaborative’s study that determined the true cost of educating all students to make the way we fund schools more fair. MSU College of Education professor David Arsen supports the Collaborative’s work in his new report, Michigan School Finance at the Crossroads: A Quarter Century of State Control.
“This important research further validates our call for a new, fairer school funding system that meets the wide-ranging, individual and unique needs of all Michigan students and provides the support services necessary to prepare them for college and jobs,” said Dr. Wanda Cook-Robinson, School Finance Research Collaborative Interim Project Director. “There is no one-size-fits-all approach to educating our kids, and a new school funding system is needed that serves all students, regardless of zip code, income, learning challenges or other circumstances.”
In his assessment of Michigan’s school funding system, Arsen supports the Collaborative study’s findings that it costs a minimum $9,590 to educate a child to Michigan’s academic standards, and that additional funding considerations are needed for students living in poverty, English Language Learners and special education students.
“Right now, Michigan’s school funding system fails to meet the needs of far too many students, and this new research further proves the need to provide all students the opportunities they deserve, whether that means college, technical training, apprenticeships or jobs right after graduation,” said Rob Fowler, CEO of the Small Business Association of Michigan, and a School Finance Research Collaborative member. “By following the Collaborative’s roadmap for a new, fairer school funding system, we can provide a high-quality education to all students that provides them with competitive skills for good-paying jobs.”
In 2018, the School Finance Research Collaborative completed Michigan’s first comprehensive school adequacy study. The Collaborative is a diverse group of business leaders and education experts, from Metro Detroit to the U.P., who agree it’s time to change the way Michigan’s schools are funded.
###
For media inquiries, contact Christopher Behnan, Byrum & Fisk Communications, at (517) 333-1606, ext. 1
LANSING, MICH. – The School Finance Research Collaborative is looking forward to working with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the new Legislature on a new, fairer school funding approach that addresses the unique, individual learning needs of all Michigan public school students, the school funding group announced today.
“The School Finance Research Collaborative congratulates Gov. Whitmer and the new Legislature as they begin settling into their offices and tackling the many challenges facing the state of Michigan,” said Dr. Wanda Cook-Robinson, School Finance Research Collaborative Interim Project Director and Oakland Schools superintendent. “We are looking forward to sitting down with the governor and state lawmakers to discuss a new school funding approach that provides every student with the same opportunity to receive a high-quality education and compete for good-paying jobs.”
In 2018, the School Finance Research Collaborative completed Michigan’s first comprehensive school adequacy study that determined the true cost of educating all students to make the way we fund schools more fair. The Collaborative is a diverse group of business leaders and education experts, from Metro Detroit to the U.P., who agree it’s time to change the way Michigan’s schools are funded.
The final Collaborative report provides a base cost for student achievement in Michigan, with additional funding considerations for special education, English Language Learners, Career and Technical Education programs, students living in poverty, preschool, geographic isolation, district size, cost of living differences and student transportation.
“Now is the time for action to fix Michigan’s broken school funding system to meet the needs of all students, no matter their circumstances, and the Collaborative study provides the roadmap for our newly elected leaders to do just that,” said Steve Wasko, co-chair of the Collaborative Public Engagement Committee. “Working together, we will chart a fresh path toward a new, fairer school funding system that provides all students with the support services necessary to prepare them for college and jobs.”
###
For media inquiries, contact Christopher Behnan, Byrum & Fisk Communications, at (517) 333-1606, ext. 1
LANSING, Mich. — The School Finance Research Collaborative is looking forward to working with Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and the new Legislature on a new, fairer school funding approach that addresses the unique, individual learning needs of all Michigan public school students, the school funding group announced today.
I read with great interest the recent Crain’s story about Consumers Energy CEO Patti Poppe’s assessment of Michigan’s public schools (“Education overhead doesn’t add up, Consumers Energy CEO says,” Nov. 18). Improving Michigan’s schools will require the input of business leaders like Poppe, educators, community stakeholders and the public at large.