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MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST
August 15, 2006

Contents of this issue:
  • Mona Shores schools consider competitive contracting
  • Teachers accept incentives in new contracts
  • Report: Michigan plan fails to address minority students
  • Flint Promise?
  • Gwinn schools will contract custodial work, add jobs
MONA SHORES SCHOOLS CONSIDER COMPETITIVE CONTRACTING
NORTON SHORES, Mich. — Mona Shores Public Schools could seek competitive contracts for custodial and transportation services as a way to save money, according to The Muskegon Chronicle.

The district ended the 2005-2006 school year with a $1 million deficit, The Chronicle reported. One secretary and one custodian were cut, while five teaching positions were reduced by attrition.

"We're still looking at much more significant cuts next year for the 2007-08 year," Finance Director Michael Schluentz told The Chronicle.

The Chronicle reported that Mona Shores is considering competitive contracting because it saves money on "salaries, retirement expenses and union-sponsored health benefits." Locally, Reeths-Puffer, Fremont and North Muskegon all contract for janitorial work.

SOURCE:
The Muskegon Chronicle, "Privatization could be in school district's future," Aug. 9, 2006
http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-9/1155136643199370.xml?muchronicle?NEM&coll=8

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Competitive contracting getting more popular," Aug. 8, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7866

Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Schools continue to privatize," July 26, 2006
http://www.mackinac.org/7827

Michigan Education Digest, "Hartland schools to save $5 million with competitive contract," May 16, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7704

TEACHERS ACCEPT INCENTIVES IN NEW CONTRACTS
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Recent contract agreements in three western Michigan school districts show teachers are willing to agree to incentive-based raises and bonuses, according to The Grand Rapids Press.

Unions in the Byron Center, Grand Rapids and Holland districts recently approved contracts that could give teachers more money if certain requirements are met, particularly student enrollment levels.

"Word of mouth is the most powerful form of advertising," Ronald Koeholer, assistant superintendent for the Kent Intermediate School District, told The Press. "I think the goal of an incentive like this is to establish better relationships with their customers and link that to the financial health of the district."

State funding of schools is tied to individual students, and with limited schools of choice in Michigan, parents have some options to choose which school their child attends. Higher student enrollment means more money for a district.

Byron Center teachers can get bonuses if enrollment in the district goes up by 100 or more students, The Press reported. Other criteria the district must meet deal with budgets and school performance on the state's report card.

Holland teachers can get more money if enrollment grows by 35 students, while Grand Rapids teachers and staff could see raises if the district simply doesn't lose as many students as it anticipates, The Press reported.

Margaret Trimer-Hartley, spokeswoman for the Michigan Education Association union, said the agreements should not be called incentives, but says they have more to do with districts not being able to accurately predict enrollment, according to The Press.

Charles Bullard, president of the Holland teachers union, disagrees. Teachers in his district who receive the National Board of Teaching certification will get a $5,000 stipend.

"This came from our side of the table," he told The Press. "It rewards teachers who complete this very extensive process, but it also benefits the district, which could incorporate NBT certification into its marketing plan."

SOURCE:
The Grand Rapids Press, "Incentives show shift in teacher contracts," Aug. 9, 2006
http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-31/1155135325147710.xml?grpress?NEG&coll=6

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Grand Rapids administrators could get incentive-based raises," July 19, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7817

Michigan Education Digest, "Grand Rapids teachers agree to incentive-based pay," June 27, 2006
http://www.mackinac.org/7798

REPORT: MICHIGAN PLAN FAILS TO ADDRESS MINORITY STUDENTS
LANSING, Mich. — A national education group says Michigan's plan to meet federal requirements for teacher proficiency fails to address the impact of unqualified teachers on minority students, according to Booth Newspapers.

The Education Trust looked at state plans filed with the U.S. Department of Education recently that detail how each state will meet the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind act that says core subjects must be taught by "highly qualified" teachers, Booth reported. Highly qualified, according to the law, applies to teachers who earned a college degree in that subject and have passed a certification test.

The Education Trust report said 40 states, including Michigan, did not take into account how minority students will be affected in the process, according to Booth.

"States really have not seized this opportunity to acknowledge inequality," Ross Weiner, policy director of The Education Trust, said in the report, according to Booth.

The federal government did not require states to address the issue of minority students impacted by unqualified or inexperienced teachers, Frank Ciloski of the Michigan Department of Education told Booth. Michigan looked at the Adequate Yearly Progress of schools to gather information for its report.

"AYP is a better measure, because AYP does not take into account the racial makeup of a building," Ciloski told Booth. "All it says is that these kids are learning what they're trying to learn."

As of last December, the state was reporting that 92 percent of all teachers were considered "highly qualified" as per NCLB requirements.

SOURCE:
Booth Newspapers, "Education group: Michigan plan for qualified teachers falls short," Aug. 13, 2006
http://www.mlive.com/news/kzgazette/index.ssf?/base/news-19/1155484203316370.xml&coll=7

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "Does the No Child Left Behind Act help black students? Yes, test scores prove it," May 25, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7740

Michigan Education Report, "Does the No Child Left Behind Act help black students? No, it will lead to a resegregation of schools," May 25, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7741

FLINT PROMISE?
FLINT, Mich. — Community leaders in Flint are talking about developing a program similar to the "Kalamazoo Promise" aimed at increasing the number of high school students who attend college, according to The Flint Journal.

"We are just in the preliminary stages of exploring," Kathi Horton, president of the Community Foundation of Greater Flint, told The Journal. "Feasibility is the big question. The one thing we're anxious about is raising expectations prematurely."

Announced last fall, the Kalamazoo Promise is funded by anonymous donors and will provide up to 100 percent of tuition costs for Kalamazoo Public Schools students who meet certain residency requirements, The Journal reported.

"We're not looking to replicate Kalamazoo," Horton told The Journal. "We want to design something that makes sense for our community."

The group, comprised of representatives from local colleges and philanthropic agencies, has discussed establishing a needs-based program that could be applied on a regional basis, rather than limited to one school district, according to The Journal.

SOURCE:
The Flint Journal, "Promise on Flint horizon?" Aug. 8, 2006
http://www.mlive.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-38/1155046821219730.xml?fljournal?NEF&coll=5

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "K-Promise: A whole new environment for Kalamazoo," March 7, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7624

Michigan Education Digest, "Charters, independent schools not worried about K-Promise," Nov. 29, 2005
http://www.educationreport.org/7448

GWINN SCHOOLS WILL CONTRACT CUSTODIAL WORK, ADD JOBS
GWINN, Mich. — A competitive contract for janitorial work in the Gwinn schools will save the district $716,000 over the next three years while adding three new jobs, according to The Marquette Mining Journal. The savings will help eliminate almost all of the district's projected $740,000 budget deficit.

Superintendent Steven Peffers told The Journal that most of the current 14 custodians will be able to "bump" into other jobs in the district. Bumping is a process whereby one union member fills another union job, often times based on seniority rather than performance.

The new contract calls for 17 custodians, which Peffers said would be filled locally if possible, according to The Journal.

"We will actually have our buildings staffed for more hours with custodial services," Peffers told The Journal.

SOURCE:
The Marquette Mining Journal, "District to go private with custodial work," Aug. 7, 2006
http://www.miningjournal.net/stories/articles.asp?articleID=5465

FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Digest, "Competitive contracting getting more popular," Aug. 8, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7866

Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Schools continue to privatize," July 26, 2006
http://www.mackinac.org/7827

Michigan Education Digest, "Hartland schools to save $5 million with competitive contract," May 16, 2006
http://www.educationreport.org/7704

MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST is a service of Michigan Education Report (http://www.educationreport.org), a quarterly newspaper with a circulation of nearly 150,000 published by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy (http://www.mackinac.org), a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational institute.

Contact Managing Editor Ted O'Neil at
mailto:med@educationreport.org

To subscribe or unsubscribe, go to
http://www.educationreport.org/pubs/mer/listserver.aspx?Source=wwwMED
Michigan Education Daily
Wed., March 17, 2010
"Detroit Public Schools will end up with 100 fewer school buildings than it had in 2006 if a new closure plan is carried out." >>
Tue., March 16, 2010
"Most of the country's public schools would have more freedom under a proposed rewrite of the No Child Left Behind law." >>
Tue., March 16, 2010
"Reading scores improved in all grades, and math scores in most grades, while science and social studies scores dipped slightly on the Michigan Educational Assessment Program tests taken in fall of 2009." >>
Mon., March 15, 2010
"Some parents who attended a South Redford School District forum recently called on teachers to make wage or benefit concessions as a way to protect school programs." >>
Sun., March 14, 2010
"An ambitious proposal to overhaul Detroit Public Schools ran into opposition Thursday over the issue of dissolving the school board and allowing Mayor Dave Bing to take charge." >>
Sat., March 13, 2010
"At least 14 public school districts in the Muskegon area offer some type of alternative education, either on their own or through a consortium, but the programs are under both budget and academic pressure." >>
Fri., March 12, 2010
"Michigan voters may see a ballot initiative in August asking them to approve a sales tax on services, with the understanding that their approval would also mean education spending reform, the chairman of the House Education Committee said Wednesday." >>
User Comments
JackI
Is it true that young ones today are losing interest on these subjects? Obviously, the White House is promoting programs that will help students on coping up with math and science subjects. But, The federal government thinks that the quality of math and science education can repair credit with the scientific community and improve US education with a few <a rev="vote for" title="U.S. Government Spends $250 Million on Science and Math" href="http://personalmoneystore.com/Payday-Loans/ ">payday loans</a> of sorts. In reality, it will take far longer to accomplish than they might think – US educators can't even get students to accept that "irregardless" isn't a word, and the difference between their, they're, and there – our students can't even learn their own language! It's a noble aim, to be sure, but throwing money at it may not work in the long run. >>
beggarsall
I am a teacher in the same county who is presently trying to quit the union. Like Caldwell, I strongly disagree with the MEA.

This article was timely.

Rob Olson
Pittsford Area Schools

>>
rickolson
I agree this is a change worth making. I describe some of the uneven effects of the idea on my blog at http://rickolson.blogspot.com/2009/08/statewide-health-insurance-plan-for.html which you may also wish to read.

The devil will be in the details, so this is one we will need to monitor closely.

Rick Olson from Saline, former school Business Manager >>
MichelleO

Nowadays, saving money is very crucial and properly investing the money can keep you and your family away from the effect of the financial crisis. The sad news is that a lot of the options for short term funding have been drying up. Short term funding is a necessary thing to have around, and going through traditional channels such as banks isn't an option for a lot of people anymore – basically it's only open to Ken Lewis. Installment loans are an option, but some people, including senior citizens, have been thinking about raiding their retirement fund. Getting into your pension retirement plan or 401(k) funds is the last thing you want to do if you don't qualify for any withdrawals yet. The penalties are substantial, and you'll end up needing installments loans to pay them if you use retirement funds for <a rev="vote for" title="Installment Loans Reliable Option As 401(k)s are Dwindling" href="http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2009/05/17/installment-loans-reliable-option-401ks-dwindling/">short term funding</a>.


>>
QUEEN_BEE_09
I AGREE >>
colonelb
Godfrey-Lee on the west side of the state has been running all-day, every-day kindergarten for several years. >>
BenjaminY
We have a problem in Detroit Public School, their system had cash flow problem for years now. And honestly it getting worst in terms in progression with more children leaving to charter their schools almost every year. The state decided to give the Detroit school districts cash advance of $70 million so they would meet the schools expenses, as well as payment for teachers. Robert Bobb, the newly appointed emergency financial manager, requested the funds early in order for him to get the house in order before he had to start panicking. President Obama has been giving out large sums of money for troubled school districts, perhaps that’s where a generous portion of the aid came from. Getting Detroit Public Schools in working order is a worthy cause.

LINK TO READ FOR MORE INFO:
http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2009/03/10/state-advance-detroit-public-schools-70m/


>>
colonelb
I am all for school choice and think its great that charters are finally moving forward. However, I'm wondering if the research accounts for a playing field that is not level. I can't take my school buildings and move them anywhere I want, nor can I simply slap up a pole building and make it a school. If anything, public schools need less state regulation and oversight so we can play by the same minimal rules charters do. If you want public schools to compete to improve, remove the barriers to doing so. I will gladly except less funding per pupil if the playing field is level.
>>
karen
The purpose is to encourage non excercising children to excercise but my daughter's highschool gave her an improper body fat percentage and made my healthy daughter who trains 20 hours a week in tap jazz and ballet believe she was overweaghit instead of a person with muscles.
I believe the public schools do not have the right to make the diagnoses with these kids because they are using one measurement and recording it from their arms that they have a certain percetnage of body fat with one arm caliper test.
Does any one have feed back?
>>
deepakp9
Specifically, 81 percent of students in religiously affiliated schools and 82 percent of students in other private schools have parents who report being "very satisfied" with their schools, compared to 55 percent of students in assigned public schools and 63 percent of students in chosen public schools.

High levels of satisfaction among private school parents also extend to opinions about their children's teachers, academic standards of the school, order and discipline at the school, the amount of homework assigned, and interactions with school personnel.

http://fitt.in >>