tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-65228034051939789932023-11-15T13:43:45.433-05:00EGRPS Legislative CommitteePurpose Statement <br>
-Examine current education issues<br>
-Stay informed about legislation regarding those issues<br>
-Determine ramifications of legislation and the effects on students<br>
-Provide accurate information regarding candidates and issues to district voters<br>
-Establish relationships with our legislators<br>
-Mobilize parents and community members to advocate for positive change in education policies and laws<br>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comBlogger333125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-75802931106598659612014-02-13T09:00:00.001-05:002014-02-13T09:00:31.648-05:00Bridge Magazine Analysis of School Funding--It is worth the read!<h1 style="background-color: #fffcf2; color: #004169; font-family: Rambla, sans-serif; line-height: 1em; margin: 0px; padding-top: 0px; text-shadow: rgb(187, 187, 187) 1px 1px 1px;">
Lies, damn lies and education funding</h1>
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10 February 2014</div>
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by <a href="http://bridgemi.com/2014/02/lies-damn-lies-and-education-funding/#" style="font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none;">Mitch Bean</a></div>
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<img alt="Mitch Bean was the long-time director of the Michigan House Fiscal Agency which provides non-partisan information and analysis for members of the Michigan House of Representatives. He is one of the most knowledgeable financial and policy figures in Lansing and serves on the Bridge Board of Advisers." class="size-full wp-image-192" src="http://bridgemi.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/M_Bean.jpg" style="border: 1px solid rgb(7, 21, 63); box-shadow: rgb(78, 106, 159) 1px 1px 6px; height: auto; margin-top: 6px; max-width: 100%; width: 329.703125px;" /><div class="photocaption" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(166, 166, 166); border-bottom-style: solid; border-bottom-width: 1px; color: #909090; font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 0.8em; font-style: italic; line-height: 1.3em; margin-bottom: 2px; margin-top: 3px; padding-bottom: 3px;">
Mitch Bean was the long-time director of the Michigan House Fiscal Agency which provides non-partisan information and analysis for members of the Michigan House of Representatives. He is one of the most knowledgeable financial and policy figures in Lansing and serves on the Bridge Board of Advisers.</div>
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In his State of the State address, Gov. Rick Snyder noted that total state spending in all categories in the School Aid budget has increased from about $10.8 billion of actual expenditures in FY 2010-11 to almost $11.5 billion in appropriations in FY 2013-14 – and that, on a per-pupil basis, the increase equates to about $660 per pupil.</div>
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If schools got that much of an increase, why has there been so much rhetoric in the school community about cuts to education, and underfunding of education, and why are so many school officials asking, “Where’s all this money, because I don’t see it?”</div>
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Is more money actually getting to the classroom or not?</div>
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School finance is a complicated issue. In order to sort through these issues I reviewed detailed Michigan Department of Education budget files provided to me by the Senate Fiscal Agency. The administration’s $660 calculation is correct – but in my opinion doesn’t reflect what actually goes to schools. And it’s further complicated due to declining enrollment.</div>
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Let’s decompose the $660 calculation. Total state spending in all categories includes payments made directly to districts; items that do not show up in direct payments to districts; and other items funded with General Fund/General Purpose (GF/GP) that are included in total state spending but are not paid directly or indirectly to districts.</div>
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Payments to districts included 64 items between actual fiscal year (FY) 2010-11 expenditures and FY 2013-14 appropriations. However, the School Aid budget has changed significantly since FY 2010-11.</div>
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Forty-eight items have been changed or eliminated since 2011 and 41 new items have been added. After adjusting for those changes, total spending has increased about $321.6 million, or 3.03% in three years. And per-student spending on direct payments to districts has increased $416 in per student in three years.</div>
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What does that mean? Average yearly growth in spending going to the classroom is about 1.03%. That’s below inflation as measured by Detroit (Consumer Price Index) CPI-U which the Senate Fiscal Agency was 2.6% in FY 2010-11, 2.4% in FY 2011-12, and 1.9% in FY 2012-13. And average growth in per-pupil spending going to districts over three years is $138.7 per year.</div>
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It’s also important to note that state spending on the foundation allowance which includes three items in FY 2013-14: the Proposal A Obligation, the Discretionary Payment, and the Discretionary Payment Adjustment – declined since FY 2010-11. It was about $543 million higher in FY 2010-11 ($9.27 billion compared with $8.72 in FY 2013-14).</div>
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That means state spending on the foundation allowance declined 5.87% since FY 2010-11. Total state spending on the foundation allowance is down, while per-pupil spending increased because enrollment is down 41,136 since FY 2010-11. That’s why some school districts are receiving less money.</div>
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The second category of total state spending is items that do not show up in direct payments to districts. This category includes nine items and has increased $121.9 million since FY 2010-11. However the item that dominates this category is debt service for the school bond loan fund which has increased $128.8 million since FY 2010-11.</div>
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This money doesn’t go directly to districts and hardly seems appropriate to include in a per-pupil calculation for schools.</div>
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The third category is other items funded with GF/GP that are included in total state spending but are not paid directly or indirectly to districts. This category includes money for the state Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI), Michigan Virtual University, and the Michigan Public School Employee Retirement System (MPSERS) rate cap for libraries. Clearly this category does not belong in the $660 calculation either.</div>
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Neither my $416 estimate nor the administration’s $660 estimate includes new line-items (new since FY 2011-12) for MPSERS. The FY 2013-14 School Aid budget includes Sections 147a, which is a one-time cost offset of $100 million, and 147b, which is the state share of MPSERS unfunded liability – which total $503 million in FY 2013-14. The three-year total for MPSERS cost offset and unfunded liability is approximately $1 billion – which the administration refers to as new money that offsets MPSERS costs for schools.</div>
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These are new line-items that were not included in the FY 2010-11 budget – but is it new money or existing School Aid Fund money reassigned to a new line-item? I pose this question because the $543 million reduction in state funding for foundations when I compare FY 2013-14 with FY 2010-11 is so similar to the $503 million of “new money” for MPSERS in the FY 2013-14 School Aid budget. I’ll let readers decide what to call it.</div>
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In order to be consistent with the Administration’s calculations, I used actual expenditures for FY 2010-11 and FY 2013-14 appropriations. However, appropriations change during the year and are seldom equal to actual expenditures.</div>
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In FY 2010-11 state appropriations to districts were about $100 million higher than actual expenditures. I expect actual expenditures in FY 2013-14 to be somewhat higher than current appropriations because more money is available, staff consensus is that some programs are a bit underfunded, and it’s an election year. That means most of these calculations will need to be redone when final expenditure numbers are available.</div>
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Depending on what you want to count and how you count it, an argument can be made that funding has increased, decreased, or is flat.</div>
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The case for an increase</h4>
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Total state spending per pupil and divided it by the number of pupils gives you what the administration wants to count. In FY ’11 it comes out to $6,884, and in FY ’14 it comes out to $7,545. The difference between those two numbers is $661.</div>
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But dig a little deeper, and only $439 of that is due to state spending. The other $222 is due to a decrease in the total number of students.</div>
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But there’s an important point here: the foundation allowance and “per pupil” funding are no longer synonymous.</div>
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Now, instead of just the foundation allowance being sent to schools, people, including the Governor’s number crunchers, are rolling in spending on things like the Michigan Public School Employee Retirement System, MPSERS.</div>
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The Governor pointed to $1 billion invested into MPSERS, saying “It’s the right answer and we need to keep it up.” A rate cap on districts was instituted for FY 13 and FY 14 of $160 million and $403.3 million respectively. In addition, grants in FY 12, FY 13, and FY 14 of $155 million, $155million, and $100 million helped fund MPSERS.</div>
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So the $1 billion (actually $973.3 million) was over a three-year period, and it should be noted that the impact varied by district depending on how much of their payroll represented employees subject to MPSERS.</div>
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The Legislature has included MPSERS cost offsets for local districts, created a MPSERS Reserve Fund, and capped employer contribution rates for unfunded accrued liabilities at 20.96 percent of payroll.</div>
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That last part is the largest – it means that school districts know they have to pay up to that amount, but after that the state will cover the costs directly through the School Aid Fund.</div>
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So if you roll MPSERS in to that total per-pupil number, the total amount of money going to schools divided by the total number of students going to schools has indisputably increased from FY ’11 to FY ’14.</div>
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The case for a decrease</h4>
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If you just look at the foundation allowance, that is lower than it was in FY ’11. There was a significant cut in FY ’12, and then a little bit of that has been restored.</div>
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According to a chart produced by the SFA in August, the minimum effective foundation allowance was $7,146 in FY ’11 — when Snyder was in office, but hadn’t set that budget. In FY ’14 it is $7,026, a $120 decrease.</div>
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FY ’12, Snyder’s first budget, saw the only drop in minimum effective foundation allowance under his tenure, but it was a big one. It went from $7,146 in FY ’11 to $6,846, a total of $300.</div>
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But the drop was due at least in part to a drop-off in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds, which had previously been infused into the state’s education system.</div>
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When those funds disappeared, the state couldn’t completely make up for them. But the reason they couldn’t be made up was a net tax cut of about $500 million and a BSF deposit of about $258 million – so that took about $750 million off the table that could have reduced or eliminated the cuts to education.</div>
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The case for flat funding</h4>
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The House Fiscal Agency (HFA) in a background briefing released earlier this month pointed out that in terms of gross School Aid Fund (SAF) appropriations, there’s not been a ton of movement.</div>
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“Total School Aid appropriations have remained fairly flat over the last ten years,” notes the document.</div>
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In FY ’14, gross appropriations were at $13,367 million. The lowest they’ve been in the past 10 years was in FY ’05, at $12,467 million. In FY ’14, gross appropriations were 7.2 percent higher than in FY ’05. There was some fluctuation between those times, but it stayed right between those two numbers.</div>
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“Excluding federal funds dedicated for specific purposes, total FY 2013-14 funding for schools is at the same level as FY 2005-2006 (not adjusted for inflation),” notes the House report.</div>
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In other words, when you pull back to look at a decade-long trend, education funding may not be trending much of anywhere.</div>
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Mitch Bean served as the Director of the Michigan House Fiscal Agency, a nonpartisan agency within the Michigan House of Representatives. Agency personnel provide confidential, nonpartisan assistance to the House Appropriations Committee and all other members of the House on legislative fiscal matters.</div>
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EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-37516782121790442302014-02-13T08:58:00.001-05:002014-02-13T08:58:01.565-05:00EAA Update Vote--Postponed Until We Are Not Paying Attention<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 14.35200023651123px;">Update from Steve Norton, Michigan Parents for Schools. Don't be complacent.This will return when they have the votes!</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 14.35200023651123px;">Guess we caught them off guard.....</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 14.35200023651123px;">Chad Livengood @ChadLivengood</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.800000190734863px; line-height: 14.35200023651123px;">UPDATE: @MIHouseGOP spokesman @aribadler stresses "we’re not voting today" on the EAA bill & there is no timeline established for a vote.</span>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-59809063970475187402014-02-13T08:52:00.002-05:002014-02-13T08:52:37.462-05:00EAA Action AlertFrom Michigan Parents for Schools:<br />
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Dear Friends,</div>
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Once again, we are asking for your help. <strong>Our state is on the verge of compounding a terrible mistake by making it even bigger.</strong> As you might guess, I'm referring to the so-called Education Achievement Authority, an agency engineered by the Governor and billionaire donors to take over struggling schools and wave a magic wand over them. It started with 15 schools in Detroit, and the Legislature is nearing a vote on whether to take it to the "big time" state wide.</div>
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<strong>Only we're too old to believe in magic, and the EAA's work in Detroit has been a disaster rather than a miracle.</strong> This experiment should be ended, for the sake of the children in those schools. We should not base our state's entire program for helping struggling schools on a failed experiment that many call "educational malpractice." There are real alternatives, which can produce constructive change. <a href="http://www.mipfs.org/node/211" style="color: #685100;" target="_blank">Our "Parent Proposal" is just such an alternative, and there is now pending legislation which would take our state in a better direction.</a></div>
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If you believe in helping struggling schools rather than punishing them, in lifting up students carrying heavy burdens rather than subjecting them to half-baked experiments, <strong>please read on.</strong> As parents who care for our own children, <strong>how can we remain silent when other children are being hurt in the name of "reform"?</strong></div>
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<a href="http://capwiz.com/miparentsforschools/issues/alert/?alertid=63092761&MC_plugin=4461" style="color: #685100;" target="_blank">Please take a moment to call your State Representative and Senator. They need to hear from all of us who want something better for all children.</a></div>
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<strong>If a sensible person were to design a program to assist struggling schools</strong>, educating children facing significant hurdles, you might expect that program to include the best resources available, the most experienced and skilled teachers, and an educational program that was proven to help children overcome the hurdles they face.</div>
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In the Education Achievement Authority, we see none of these things. In a program that prided itself on its technology-centric curriculum, there were never enough computers, no resources to repair ones that were broken, and persistent network failures. To face the most difficult classroom challenges, the EAA hired primarily new teachers, many of them in turn Teach For America fellows who are recent college graduates but with only five weeks of training to be a teacher. Since most of the teaching was to be done by computer, class size was not a concern and teachers were supposed to be just "facilitators." But those computers, when they worked, delivered a "curriculum" which was mostly an empty shell. EAA students were essentially unpaid beta testers for a private for-profit software development firm in Utah.</div>
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"First of all, there is no EAA-provided 'curriculum.' Teachers design the curriculum as we go and upload it into Buzz, which is an empty shell other than some videos and tests. In practice, however, the digital curriculum in such large classrooms winds up being students keeping Buzz open in one tab while they watch YouTube videos, go on Facebook and Twitter, check out Instagram, etc."</div>
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The gap between the marketing and the reality was so large that even inexperienced teachers started to realize they were in a losing situation: they would lose, their students would lose, their community would lose.</div>
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"Almost all [the teachers who quit] have gone back to the Detroit Public Schools. We lost all of our guidance counselors. We lost all but two special ed teachers. We lost all of our science teachers except for two."</div>
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<strong>Then the really disturbing stuff started leaking out.</strong> The EAA had huge discipline problems, and when their suspension rates attracted public attention, they responded by telling staff to "handle" things without reporting it. Building administrators reportedly used harsh physical punishments in an effort to "control" things; but at other times there seemed to be no control at all.</div>
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<div style="padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
"I've never felt this worried about going to school. I'm well aware that most of my kids would protect me and they have before, but they shouldn't have to. That's the role of discipline. But, at the same time, I afraid to report a kid because I've seen disciplinary officers hit them and I've reported it and nothing has happened from the state."</div>
</blockquote>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
Then there is the question of special education: the EAA claimed to have "discovered" that literally hundreds of their students with special education status did not actually need those services. But we started hearing stories of parents being pressured to give up, "revoke," their child's right to special ed services; of families being intimidated into taking their children elsewhere; and of serious irregularities in how special education services were handled in each school. These are all matters tightly regulated by Federal and state law, and the very serious charges are now the subject of legal complaints to state and Federal authorities.</div>
<blockquote style="background-color: #fcfcfa; border: 1px solid rgb(235, 235, 235); clear: both; color: #717171; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: italic; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; margin: 0.2em 0px; padding: 1em 1em 0.5em;">
<div style="padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
"I left because as a special education teacher, I knew that their special education program was violating the law. The treatment of students was making me sick. For my own professional reputation and mental health, I had to stop working there. I miss the kids. I worry about them."</div>
</blockquote>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
[These quotes are drawn from some remarkable interviews by independent journalist Chris Savage with current and former teachers in the EAA. To read more, <a href="http://www.eclectablog.com/tag/eaa" style="color: #685100;" target="_blank">please see the list of interviews here</a>.]</div>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
<strong>So this is our state government's vision for all schools, not just those most in need.</strong> Start with unaccountable bureaucracies implementing top-down, inflexible solutions. Then create regimented classrooms where computers replace human talent and interaction. (<a href="http://www.mipfs.org/node/201" style="color: #685100;">Remember the "skunk works" plan for a computer-based "value school"?</a>) Finally, show that you can do it on the <em><strong>cheap</strong></em> - because there's no point spending money on other people's children.</div>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
Is this what we want? Is this what our children deserve? Is this how we build a solid future for our communities and for Michigan? If this is not what we want, we need to speak out today. We need to let our lawmakers know that we need to end this awful experiment and move in a new and constructive direction.</div>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
<strong><a href="http://capwiz.com/miparentsforschools/issues/alert/?alertid=63092761&MC_plugin=4461" style="color: #685100;" target="_blank">Please take a moment to call your lawmakers today!</a></strong></div>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
Thanks for reading!</div>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
Steven Norton<br />Executive Director</div>
<div style="background-color: #f5f5f1; color: #181818; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18.559999465942383px; padding: 0px 0px 12px;">
Want to know more about the EAA? MIPFS assisted other advocates and lawmakers in combing through documents received under FOIA requests, which along with other resources can be found on <a href="http://insidetheeaa.com/" style="color: #685100;" target="_blank">the Inside the EAA web site</a>.</div>
EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-76721154556954126132014-01-16T11:14:00.000-05:002014-01-16T11:14:00.668-05:00Michigan Public Radio addresses high stakes testing<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7416" style="margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px;">
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7415" style="font-size: 12pt;">
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7414" style="color: black; font-size: 12pt;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7490"><b id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7489">State of Opportunity: High Stakes Testing</b></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7419">
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7418" style="color: black; font-family: Times-New-Roman; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7417" style="font-family: 'Arial', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">This
month, our State of Opportunity team is looking at the issue of school
testing. High stakes tests, like the MEAP, can have a big impact on
kids, teachers, and entire school districts. But are the stakes higher
for some kids and schools than others? Do low income children and
children of color have less of a chance of performing well on these
tests? And do these tests really reflect whether a child is getting a
good education?</span></div>
</div>
</div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7442" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7445" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7444"><b id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7443">"High Stakes Testing" Call-in Show</b><strong id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7468"> - This <span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7467" style="color: black;">Thursday, Jan. 16, 3:00 pm and 10:00 pm (repeat)</span></strong></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7447" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7446" style="font-family: 'Arial', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">Join
Jennifer White as she hosts a live call-in special on this important
topic. You can submit your questions by phone at 866-255-2762, on
Twitter <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001-7uU8y9R7Ls4RhRKGuTeLaOsjtFuLT958wQzWA3SBZ2l_p5ed7lLws-WtKpdk2CJIIOGSsHQJh-FXwHJZEEY5SpQaP-u6iTMK5cCNBjj-jRl9ZcSC3EYe2Y49WTxFcbq" rel="nofollow" shape="rect" style="color: blue; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">@StateofOpp</a>, or on Facebook <a href="http://r20.rs6.net/tn.jsp?e=001-7uU8y9R7LsackSvDTa52vqjKhzTWk2sxOba8yRv6xmQV5Df6kw7XAXHTvMyGvSbMgFj2J9dE1GoCsAHqKeExSUuQ8hcslKZyjO9cDd6VezueZhgAzjl3Od_0hs5UpPK2ACK390nXlQxI20tqqA5dQ==" id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7495" rel="nofollow" shape="rect" style="color: blue; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: underline;" target="_blank">here</a>.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7448" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7496" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; text-align: left;">
<span style="color: black;"><b>"The Big Test" Documentary</b></span><span style="color: black;"><strong> - Thursday, Jan. 30, 3:00 pm and 10:00 pm (repeat) </strong></span></div>
<span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7498" style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial', 'sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt;">
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1389885568766_7497">
Then, on January 30,
Dustin Dwyer goes inside a struggling school, from the first day of the
year until the last testing day for the MEAP. He brings us a rare look
at all the things the tests don't tell us about kids, schools and what
it means to get a good education.</div>
</span></div>
EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-42654158758160602292013-12-12T11:16:00.001-05:002013-12-12T11:17:33.808-05:00EAA expansion up for a vote in the House Please read this important notice from Michigan Parents for Schools<br />
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6972">
This may be our last chance to stop unlimited expansion of the unaccountable Education Achievement Authority. <b id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6975">Yesterday,
the Senate passed a version of the EAA bill that doesn't even mention
the EAA, but makes sure
that the EAA would be eligible to run schools placed in the state
"reform district." It's hard to imagine, but they have made the bill
even worse.</b></div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6976">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6977">
The
bill:</div>
<ul id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6979">
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6978">Removes all limits on the size of the EAA</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6980">Removes all limits on the number of new charter schools the EAA could create</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6985">Removes a provision that would have let schools ask their local ISD to help them instead</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6986">Removes criteria for deciding when a school can "exit" this nonsense</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6987">Changes the law to remove any legal doubt that the EAA could be asked to run state "takeover" schools</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6988">Allows the Legislature to avoid taking any responsibility for the failures of the EAA without actually changing anything.</li>
</ul>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6989">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6990">
The bill returns to the House today. They can do one of three things:</div>
<ol id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6992">
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6991">Reject the Senate changes, in which case the bill goes to a proverbial "smoke filled room" for behind-closed-doors
negotiations and rapid passage of whatever comes out; or</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_7007">Accept the Senate changes, placing this mess in state law; or</li>
<li id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_7006">Simply throw the whole thing in the trash and start over in the
new year with something that actually works for kids.</li>
</ol>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_7005">
</div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6998">
<b id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_7004">We
favor option 3, and I think you would, too. Please ask your State
Representative to let this mess drop in the garbage can and work to
create real, lasting change for our struggling students and schools!</b><br />
<br />
Thank you for your advocacy on behalf of our children and schools!<br />
<br />
Steve Norton</div>
<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1386861531068_6999">
Executive Director</div>
<br />
click on this link to send an email to Representative MacGregor.<br />
<a href="http://capwiz.com/miparentsforschools/issues/alert/?alertid=63027511&queueid=10044509011">Contact Rep. MacGregor!</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-22970795906581592172013-12-04T20:27:00.002-05:002013-12-04T21:03:59.298-05:00Urgent Legislative Alert re: Third Grade Retention, School Grading, EAA 12/4/13<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2984" style="background-color: white; font-family: tahoma, 'new york', times, serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 14pt 30pt;">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"></span><br />
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2982" style="margin: 14pt 30pt;">
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2989">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;">Parents--</span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2989">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2989">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2988" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2987" style="font-size: 12px;">Things have been relatively quiet this fall on the Lansing front but we are shaping up to have one heck of a week for our community schools. We need your phone calls and emails TODAY AND TOMORROW MORNING (vote could be as soon at 10:30 am or early next week----so keep calling throughout tomorrow 12/4/13) ......so please please read on and stay tuned! I know this is long....but this is <b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2990">our only plea this semester and now is the time to jump to action. </b>There are three important items that we are reaching out to you about. They will require (1) a phone call or email to your State Representative and (2) a phone call or email to your State Senator. We are asking for 5 minutes of your time for our kids (and please spread to word to your parent networks). Given how fast these bills are moving (votes possibly tomorrow), we ask that you even call after hours and leave voicemail messages. </span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2991">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4294">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4293" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4292" style="font-size: 12px;">1. <b><u>Third Grade Retention</u></b>. Several weeks ago, a bill was introduced that would require that public schools automatically flunk any third grader who did not test "proficient" on the MEAP (or other standardized test). There were zero exceptions (not even for special ed kids or kids learning English). Those exceptions (and a few others) have been added after hard work by some folks, but the bill still has serious problems. I heard in testimony countless examples of kids who struggled in reading but excelled in other areas (and were not "special ed"---just late bloomers who "caught on" in 4th or 5th grade). Flunking those children would have forever devastated them socially and emotionally (and they were ready to move on in other subject areas). With zero research to back up the "retention argument" (there is ZERO proof that flunking students leads to success and in fact the research shows the dropout rate skyrockets), it is baffling why we are debating this. About 35,000 students would be held back (stretching across every district in our state), regardless of their ability in other areas, based on a single test score. A bill has been introduced, tied to the Third Grade Flunk bill, that would offer early intervention programs for kids. The amended bill also offers some alternative assessment tools, but the end result is still very likely "you flunk--regardless of what is really in your best interest" (especially since the bill has no exception for kids who are just getting accommodations and are not true "special ed"). We as parents ALL know the key to helping struggling kids is early intervention. You won't find one district in this state that disagrees. The problem is that many of those excellent intervention programs have been cut along with the severe decrease in school funding. We have no problem with early intervention (and in fact have fought hard in EGR to maintain it at the best levels possible, despite severe cuts....many other districts have not been so fortunate). Interventions will now be mandated---with NO extra money. </span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4295">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4296">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4299" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4298" style="font-size: 12px;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4297">Message to your legislator: Oppose HB 5411. (1) Tell Lansing to stop mandating more programs while cutting our money at the same time (resulting in cuts to the exact programs they are now going to mandate). Unfunded mandates mean that every school district in the state will have to cut (yet again) from programs that provide for well-rounded children. (2) Tell them that parents working directly with their child's teacher---not Lansing--are in the best position to decide if a child should move ahead to the next grade. </b></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4300">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4301">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;">GR Press Editorial advocating for early intervention and opposing 5411-</span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4302">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/11/holding_back_3rd_graders_west.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #2862c5; outline: 0px;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #2862c5; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/11/holding_back_3rd_graders_west.html</span></span></a></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4303">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">and</span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4304">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><a href="http://www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/11/new_hb_5111_wakefield.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #2862c5; outline: 0px;" target="_blank"><span style="color: #2862c5; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 15px;">http://www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/11/new_hb_5111_wakefield.html</span></span></a></span></span></span></div>
<div>
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></div>
<div>
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4490" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4489" style="font-size: 12px;">2. <b><u>Letter Grades for all Public Schools</u></b>. Sounds reasonable, right? I mean, our kids get graded, right? Yes, except that our child's letter grade reflects work over an entire semester (attendance, homework, quizzes, tests, class participation, etc). HB 5412 would grade every school in the state on one criterion: test scores. We believe this is dangerous since it will inevitably lead to emphasizing test subjects only in school and certainly does not offer parents information they need to make an informed choice about the schools they may be choosing. For example, some schools have high poverty (and thus low test scores) but in fact are making incredible progress against tremendous odds on their test scores. Some schools are strong in the arts or offer a specific curriculum area. Ultimately, we believe parents need more than just a letter grade based on a standardized test to measure a school. Further, the Department of Education just implemented its color coding system a few months ago. Just a few months later, the legislature wants to again change the rules. Public schools are treated like ping-pong balls and have to constantly figure out what system is going to be used. </span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4486" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4485" style="font-size: 12px;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4484">Message to your legislator: Oppose HB 5112. Metrics are fine, but "grading" our schools based on one test score is misleading. We support a full dashboard that shows many different aspects of a school (such as student progress, test scores, access to the arts, extracurricular programming, safety record, etc) so that parents can make a truly informed decision. Either implement a truly useful dashboard or just keep the Department of Education system in place (which is at least flexible and can be modified to adapt to better measurements as they are developed). Stop changing the rules every few months. </b></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4481" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4480" style="font-size: 12px;">Steve Norton at Michigan Parents for Schools does a great job summarizing this issue. I have cut and pasted his email at the bottom for any of you that want to read it.</span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4335" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4334" style="font-size: 12px;"><b>3. </b><b><u>Education Achievement Authority (EAA).</u></b>Okay, this is a blast from the past. Remember when the state was going to possibly be able to take over ANY empty building in any school district? That was the EAA. One year ago to be exact. </span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4339" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4338" style="font-size: 12px;">Bottom line: EAA = mega statewide school district with the unprecedented ability to take over schools everywhere. Because of your great work, we stopped the EAA. That's the honest truth. YOU stopped it. While it was rammed through the House, it stalled in the Senate because of all your work last year. Well, it's back. The Senate Education Committee actually still does not have enough votes (thank you Sen. Judy Emmons in Greenville for recognizing the danger of this bill) to get this out of committee. Using a rare procedure, the bill is now slated to be dumped on the Senate Floor directly without hearings and without a committee majority. We have learned that moving the bill is critical since the EAA is getting nervous. The current partner for the EAA is Eastern Michigan University. Given how non-transparent the EAA has been, many folks there would like to see the charter yanked (making this vote all the more urgent for this mega-statewide district). In fact, the EMU Education Dean resigned from the EAA Board. Interestingly, parents have chosen---in droves---to not stay in the EAA. They lost 27% of their students from last year to this year. The EAA has well-documented failures regarding staffing, enrollment, serving special ed students, and lack of transparency. And yet the state wants to continue expansion. The response: "The EAA can just grab more schools to make the EAA viable." That's pretty appalling in the age of "parent choice." The State Superintendent plans to grab 10-15 more schools outside of DPS. Last year, the legislature proposed creating this massive new statewide school district all on an untested idea. We said "at least pilot it." Well, turns out the test failed. And yet they are still demanding expansion.</span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4345" style="font-size: xx-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4344" style="font-size: 12px;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4343">Message: Tell your Senator that you oppose the expansion of the EAA and that we don't need Lansing taking over schools all over the state. While limited to 50 schools, that would still make the EAA the largest school district in the state (with about 50,000 students). The EAA is not a model that works. We don't need more of Lansing running our schools. </b></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_2983" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">Our sincerest thanks for all you do,</span></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4350" style="color: #454545;">Lucy & Elizabeth</span></div>
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EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-53028792458676395412013-12-04T20:26:00.003-05:002013-12-04T20:26:17.949-05:00Cut and Paste Letters for Your State Representative and State Senator<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4377" style="font-family: tahoma, 'new york', times, serif; margin: 14pt 30pt;">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4376" style="color: #454545; font-family: Helvetica Neue,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;"><div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4375" style="margin: 14pt 30pt;">
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4391" style="font-size: x-small;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4390" style="font-size: 18px;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4389"><u id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4388">Find Your Representative here: </u></b></span></span><a href="http://house.michigan.gov/mhrpublic/" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4380" rel="nofollow" style="color: #2862c5; outline: 0px;" target="_blank"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4379" style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;">http://house.michigan.gov/mhrpublic/</span></a></div>
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<u id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4393">If your are in the 73rd District, </u></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4398" style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4397" style="font-family: Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4396" style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4395">Michigan Representative Peter MacGregor, 73rd District</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4403" style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4402" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4401" style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4400">PeterMacGregor@house.mi.gov</b></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><b>Phone:</b></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> (517) 373-0218</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><b>Toll Free:</b></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> (855) 347-8073</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Hello Representative MacGregor--</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4308" style="font-family: tahoma, 'new york', times, serif; margin-bottom: 0px;">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4307" style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">I am writing to tell you that I oppose </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><b>HB5411</b></span></span><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4306" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4305" style="font-size: 13.5pt;">, The Third Grade Retention Law, currently coming up for a vote in the House Education Committee. I see this as mandating programs while cutting money going to public schools. Our district had to cut programs for early elementary learning. While these programs will now be mandated under this law to prevent large numbers of third graders from flunking, our schools will have to take money from other programs that provide for well-rounded children.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"> </span></span></span></div>
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<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4331" style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4330" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4329" style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Many factors go into a child's education. Flunking a child who tests poorly could be damaging. Whether my third grade child moves on to the next grade should be a decision made between me, my child's teacher and the school. Lansing should not be poking its nose into this decision. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="color: #797979; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #797979; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4324" style="font-family: tahoma, 'new york', times, serif; margin-bottom: 0px;">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4327" style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">I am also writing to tell you that I oppose </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><b>HB 5112</b></span></span><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4326" style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386206392977_4325" style="font-size: 13.5pt;">, The School Grading Law, currently coming up for a vote in the House Education Committee. Metrics are fine, but "grading" our schools based on one test score is misleading. A full dashboard which shows many different aspects of a school would receive my full support. This dashboard could include student progress, test scores, access to the arts, extracurricular programming, safety records and other areas. If a truly representative dashboard can't be implemented, please keep the more flexible Michigan Department of Education system in place. Please stop changing the rules every few months.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="color: #797979; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #797979; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 9pt;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Thank you for considering the opinion of your constituent.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><br /></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Regards,</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 18px;"><b>Find your state senator here:</b></span></span> <a href="http://www.senate.michigan.gov/fysenator/fysenator.htm" rel="nofollow" style="color: #2862c5; outline: 0px;" target="_blank"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 16px;">http://www.senate.michigan.gov/fysenator/fysenator.htm</span></span></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 16px;">If you are in the 86th district, your Senator is Mark Jansen. <a href="http://senmjansen@senate.michigan.gov/" rel="nofollow" style="color: #2862c5; outline: 0px;" target="_blank">senmjansen@senate.michigan.gov</a> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Hello Senator Jansen—</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Please oppose the expansion of the EAA. We do not need Lansing taking over schools all over our state. While limited to 50 schools, EAA is still the largest school district in the state with about 50,000 students. The EAA model is not working. EAA parents are not satisfied. Too many resources are being diverted to this district. Please keep Lansing out of our schools. We elect local school board members to oversee our schools.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">Thank you for considering your constituent.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: tahoma,new york,times,serif;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Regards,</span></span></div>
EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-77594577166476696412013-12-04T12:55:00.001-05:002013-12-04T12:55:22.464-05:00A Superintendent's Perspective on Third Grade Retention<a href="http://www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/11/new_hb_5111_wakefield.html">http://www.mlive.com/opinion/kalamazoo/index.ssf/2013/11/new_hb_5111_wakefield.html</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-2869122647840808882013-12-04T12:54:00.003-05:002013-12-04T12:54:33.994-05:00Boosting Early Reading is Good, But What is the Real Cost?When the concern came up that early elementary kids struggling with reading don't get help anymore due to budget cuts, the solution is mandatory help. this is great, but will it come with more money? This looks like another unfunded mandate which will take resources away from other important services.<br />
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<a href="http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/11/west_michigan_lawmaker_respond.html">http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2013/11/west_michigan_lawmaker_respond.html</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-41654605204083485872013-12-04T12:52:00.001-05:002013-12-04T12:52:11.394-05:00Here is an article from early Novermber 2013<a href="http://www.mlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/11/michigan_considering_holding_b.html">http://www.mlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/11/michigan_considering_holding_b.html</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-9137728497464473712013-12-04T12:40:00.000-05:002013-12-04T12:40:47.319-05:00MLive article on EAA Expansion. Vote in Michigan Senate Soon! Look for an alert on this soon!<br />
In other legislative issues, the Michigan Senate is looking to vote to on the House Bill that will expand the EAA. The EGRPS PTO Legislative Committee feels that the EAA diverts too many resources away from traditional public schools and their overseeing, publicly elected school boards. The EAA has not shown it is the entity to save students from poor schools. We advocate increased support and resources to schools to provide the services needed for Michigan's public school students. Lucy<br />
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<a href="http://www.mlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/12/eaa_expansion_likely_to_happen.html#incart_river">http://www.mlive.com/education/index.ssf/2013/12/eaa_expansion_likely_to_happen.html#incart_river</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-23109872814479288252013-12-04T08:50:00.003-05:002013-12-04T08:50:46.913-05:00Legislative Update From Michigan Parents for Schools<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2255" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Friends,</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2159" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">I hope you all had a warm and joyful Thanksgiving holiday, and that the school year has been going smoothly for your families.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2158" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Things have been a little quieter this fall on the education front in Lansing, but we wanted to contact you about a <span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2157" style="text-decoration: underline;">couple of proposed measures that we think are simply counter-productive</span>.</span><br />
<ul id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2089" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px; list-style-image: initial; list-style-position: initial; margin: 10px 0px 10px 30px; padding: 0px;">
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2154"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2156" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">One bill would <strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2155">require that children who don't test as "proficient" in reading in third grade be held back</strong> until they do.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2088"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2087" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">The other would <strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2086">institute a simplistic "A-F" school rating system based totally on standardized test scores.</strong></span></li>
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<br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2213" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Things are rather fluid right now, so we're not asking you to write your lawmakers just yet. But stay alert, because we might need to take quick action if these bills move to a vote in anything like their current form.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2242" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 17px;"><strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2241"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2240" style="font-family: georgia, palatino;">Getting all children to read is easy, right?</span></strong></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2285" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">We at MIPFS absolutely believe, as I am sure you do, that we should do all we can to ensure children are able to read - and to understand and evaluate what they read. Steps to catch children who are having trouble should start early. This kind of effort takes smart people and resources for quality programs.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2214" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">The bill now in the House Education committee, HB 5111, doesn't address any of these things. It's based on the idea that getting any child to read "proficiently," no matter what struggles they face, is a simple and clear task. Schools and teachers who don't accomplish this feat are simply "not doing their jobs." The answer? Punish kids - and make their parents angry.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2216" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">They've softened the bill a bit since it was first introduced, but the basic thrust is still the same. <strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2215">Instead of helping schools serve challenged students, instead of providing the resources schools need to run quality reading programs, the bill proposes simply to hold students back.</strong> Does this make any sense to you? It certainly doesn't to us.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><strong style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;"><span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 17px;">Why bother helping schools when you can just label them?</span></strong><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2234" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Ok, if you're like me, when the Michigan Dept. of Education announced their new color coding system, you went to look up your local school. Was it confusing? Sure - but not because of the colors. Sometimes it was just hard to figure out where your school did well and where it might need improvement.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2233" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Now we have HB 5112, which proposes to scrap that whole (brand new) system and replace it with a simplistic rating that gives every school and district a letter grade from A to F. <span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2232" style="text-decoration: underline;">Not only that, but this "grade" would be based almost entirely on standardized test scores and would grade schools "on a curve," ensuring that some will always "fail."</span></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2230" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2238">We're not shopping for toaster-ovens here.</strong> Trying to tote up all a school's characteristics into one color or letter is a bad idea to begin with, and basing it all entirely on one or two days' worth of bubble tests makes it even worse. <strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2229">As parents, there are lots of things we want to know about our local schools - everything from academic achievement to access to the arts and music, from hallway safety to classroom technology, from bus routes to teacher expertise.</strong></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2228" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">If they want to require schools to post information, fine. Just make it the kinds of key information that parents and other citizens really care about, and stop trying to turn it into a single rating. We're not looking at small appliances. We want to know where our schools shine, and where they need help to become better for our children and our communities. <strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2227">We're not shopping - we are looking to support and improve OUR schools.</strong></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2226" style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Your voice is important on these issues. You can help remind our lawmakers that we want to help our schools, not just beat them down.<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2225" style="text-decoration: underline;">Please keep your eyes peeled for an urgent call to action!</span></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Steve Norton</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Executive Director, MIPFS</span>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-19364329686699348792013-12-04T08:48:00.005-05:002013-12-04T08:48:46.767-05:00Are You Having Trouble Deciding What You Think About Third Grade Retention?<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Here is a link Steve Norton shared in an alert from Michigan Parents for Schools</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">A friend who is a Reading Intervention teacher in Ann Arbor recommended this article for non-specialists. It describes the chasm between what researchers know works to help kids read and policies which have actually been implemented. Hint: money doesn't help if it's used to buy mandated, but unproven and ill-advised, commercial programs.</span></span><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/TRTR.1154/abstract" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2250" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #1c8aff; font-family: Arial; outline: 0px;" target="_blank"><strong id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2249">Richard L. Allington, "What Really Matters When Working With Struggling Readers." <em id="yui_3_7_2_1_1386164428893_2251">The Reading Teacher,</em> April 2013</strong></a><span style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;">.</span></span>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-89733031830423869752013-11-06T11:04:00.000-05:002013-11-09T11:43:04.817-05:00minutes from the 11/4 meeting, amended<style>
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<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Common Core</span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">: EGRPS
PTO Legislative Committee supports the EGRPS district administration and school
board in their advocacy that the assessment, which matches the curriculum, be
passed swiftly by the Michigan Legislature.</span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">School Aid Fund Tax Cuts:</span></b> <span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The EGRPS PTO Legislative Committee
advocates that the revenue be replaced for all School Aid Fund taxes that are
cut.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do not wish to burden parents
and community members with each and every bill that is introduced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maintain the School Aid Fund revenue and fund
K-12 Schools. </span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Third Grade Assessment Bills:</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">EGRPS PTO Legislative Committee
supports full funding of K-12 schools so that districts <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><u>(including districts with high levels of poverty and special
education children)</u></i> can afford to offer reading support and reading
recovery programs for early elementary students.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">4.<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Open Carry:</span></b><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">EGRPS PTO Legislative Committee
supports our Administrators and School Board in collaborating with the East
Grand Rapids City officials and public safety officials in devising a plan to
lessen the public in our schools on voting days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Alternative locations can be found which
would allow the right to open carry without the danger of children being
exposed to arms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We also support our District
in pursuing a change of status so that schools will be exempt from open carry
laws.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Calibri; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"></span></span></span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;">5. <b>Letter Grades</b>:</span><span style="color: black; font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">We used
to have letter grades assessing our schools. Then we moved to a color
coding system</span><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> last year<span style="color: black;">.
Now the legislature</span><span style="color: #1f497d;"> </span><span style="color: black;">wants to reinstate the use of letter grades. The grades themselves, whether colors or letters, seem to favor those schools with fewer categories to grade, resulting in excellent schools faring worse than those that offer a mediocre education with fewer services.</span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="color: black;"></span></span></div>
<br />
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></span></div>
EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-15534269697006396142013-09-16T19:30:00.002-04:002013-09-16T19:30:31.636-04:00What Cuts to K-12 in Michigan?<a href="http://michiganradio.org/post/michigan-has-cut-spending-k-12-schools-9-2008?nopop=1">http://michiganradio.org/post/michigan-has-cut-spending-k-12-schools-9-2008?nopop=1</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-1434281931554428262013-06-18T09:48:00.001-04:002013-06-18T09:48:12.436-04:00Interesting article in the Bridge Magazine about the effect of the schools of choice program, particularly in SE Michigan<a href="http://bridgemi.com/2013/06/schoolchildren-shuttle-across-se-michigan-raising-questions-about-funding-community-identity/">http://bridgemi.com/2013/06/schoolchildren-shuttle-across-se-michigan-raising-questions-about-funding-community-identity/</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-13932062542267195982013-06-03T12:27:00.004-04:002013-06-03T12:27:47.399-04:00opinion piece by Steve Norton on Skunk Works When did parents become the enemy?<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20130602/OPINION02/306020061">http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20130602/OPINION02/306020061</a><br />
<br />EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-59802796013176032562013-05-28T20:58:00.001-04:002013-05-28T20:58:44.717-04:00cyber schools already making plans Okemos Parents for Schools reports that 32 cyber schools are set to open in Michigan in 2013-14. These will operate throughout the state and will compete with our schools for dollars.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://okemosparentsforschools.blogspot.com/2013/05/cyber-charter-set-to-open-in-okemos.html">http://okemosparentsforschools.blogspot.com/2013/05/cyber-charter-set-to-open-in-okemos.html</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-15947004309438591472013-05-16T13:43:00.002-04:002013-05-16T13:43:45.519-04:00Action alert from Tri-County Alliance for Public Education<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2788" style="font-family: arial,helvetica; font-size: x-small;"></span><br />
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2798">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2788" style="font-family: arial,helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Yesterday,
the State's leading economists agreed that there is an additional and
unexpected $483 million surplus for the current fiscal year.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2801">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2802">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2788" style="font-family: arial,helvetica; font-size: x-small;">On
the heels of the well-documented financial crises in Buena Vista,
Pontiac and now Albion, we think there should be no debate: It's time to
do the right thing and invest in education.
</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2812">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2803">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2788" style="font-family: arial,helvetica; font-size: x-small;">This money could go a long way to restoring the devastating cuts enacted by Lansing politicians over the past few years.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2811">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2810">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2788" style="font-family: arial,helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Governor
Snyder talks a lot about
Michigan being the "Comeback State", but with headlines detailing
schools closing early and high schools ceasing to exist, it's clear that
mantra will never be realized without our Governor and Legislative
leadership finally funding schools.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2809">
<br /></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2806">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368726014032_2788" style="font-family: arial,helvetica; font-size: x-small;">Please TAKE ACTION to tell Lansing that it's time to do the right thing and invest in education!</span></div>
EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-32322448887684132892013-05-15T09:48:00.002-04:002013-05-15T09:48:40.882-04:00In case you're wondering what happens when a school district can't close its million dollar deficit . . . a little reminder of what EGRNow! is about<a href="http://www.michiganradio.org/post/budget-deficit-forcing-school-officials-close-albion-high-school#.UZN40jgBfYU.facebook">http://www.michiganradio.org/post/budget-deficit-forcing-school-officials-close-albion-high-school#.UZN40jgBfYU.facebook</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-74117655116379189682013-05-13T13:52:00.001-04:002013-05-13T13:52:27.036-04:00Why will funding roads take money from schools<br />
<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3794" style="width: 552px;"><tbody id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3793">
<tr id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3792"><td height="10" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3791">A brief summary by Steve Norton, Michigan Parents for Schools</td><td height="10" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3791"><br /></td><td height="10" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3791"><br /></td><td height="10" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3791"><br /></td><td height="10" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3791"><br /></td></tr>
<tr id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3798"><td id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3797"></td><td id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3797"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3848" style="color: #626161; font-family: arial, helvetica; font-size: small;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3847">Why will funding roads take money from schools?</b></span></td></tr>
<tr><td height="10"><br /></td></tr>
<tr id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3804">
<td id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3803" valign="top"><div id="yiv9745500708bodyContent">
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 26px;">So, what's up with roads and schools?</span></div>
<div>
</div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Dear Friends,</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">First off, let me thank the hundreds of you who have already contacted your State
Representatives about road funding and the threat to our schools. Your message is important and is getting through.</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Many
people have asked for a bit more information about this whole deal -
and I certainly understand, because it's somewhat complicated. I'm
reprinting our earlier action alert below, but let me sketch out what is
happening on this issue:</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">The
Governor wants to find $1.2 billion to repair
state roads. The Legislature would like to do this for the Governor, but
a majority of legislators have signed "no new taxes" pledges to help
them get elected. Since the state doesn't have
$1.2 billion sitting around, that means finding new revenue. So, what to
do?</span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3845">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3844" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Our
lawmakers have been very clever - or sneaky, depending on your point of
view. Right now, there are two kinds of taxes on fuel: "specific"
taxes, like excise taxes, and the regular sales tax. The "specific"
taxes on fuel are already legally earmarked for transportation, but they
don't bring in enough money to fund the Governor's program. The regular
sales tax on gasoline and diesel fuel brings in some $1 billion, but
that mostly goes to schools, with the rest going to local governments
and the state general fund.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3843">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3842">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3841" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">So,
to find money for roads, lawmakers are trying to have their cake and
eat it too: they want to increase the "specific" taxes on fuel that are
legally earmarked for transportation so they generate the money the
Governor wants. Then, they want to eliminate the sales tax on fuel, so
that they can say they didn't raise taxes. </span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3840">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3839" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Where
does this leave schools, which stand to lose some $750 million out of
the deal (almost $500 per student)? Well, they're
"working on it." Discussions have been going on for months about how to
"replace" the revenue to schools and local government. So far, there are
only some ideas floating around and no agreement on anything. The idea
that seems to come up most often is to increase the sales tax from 6% to
7%, hopefully making up the difference to schools. Sounds good, right?</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3838">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div>
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">We have some real problems with this "arrangement":</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3802">
<ol id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3828">
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3836"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3835" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3837">Increasing the sales tax would require a vote of all the people to amend the state Constitution</b>.
The
earliest this could take place is November, and even then, no one knows
for sure that it would pass. (We just voted down a whole passel of
proposed amendments last fall, remember?)</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3832"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3834" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">One
of the problems school funding has faced is that the sales tax, which
right now covers retail goods, is not keeping up with growth in the
economy even in good times. <b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3833">This proposal would require a huge effort to pass an amendment that would not solve this problem</b>.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3831"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3830" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">The current sales tax falls hardest on
families with limited incomes. <b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3829">Instead of finding a more fair way to fund our schools, this proposal would make things harder for these families</b>.</span></li>
<li id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3827"><span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3826" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Finally, lawmakers want to move these bills that change fuel taxes <b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3825">NOW, even though we would not know until November whether schools would get replacement funding</b>!</span></li>
</ol>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3824">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3823" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">This
is nonsense, plain and simple. This whole exercise is simply to allow
our state "leaders" to push responsibility for finding new revenue off
onto the people. If we want to invest in our roads, we need to find a
sensible way to fund that and not put our schools at risk. If we are
going to change school funding, we need to address the fact
that current funding levels simply are not adequate to deliver an
excellent education to all our children.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3822">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3821">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3820" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><b id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3819"><a href="http://capwiz.com/miparentsforschools/issues/alert/?alertid=62630721" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3818" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Let
your State Representative know today that you want them to stop playing
games with school funding. They are covering themselves and putting our
children at risk.</a></b></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3817">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3815">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3814" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">If you'd like to know more about these bills, you can read the non-partisan House Fiscal Agency analyses <a href="http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2013-2014/billanalysis/House/pdf/2013-HLA-4539-F830F7B1.pdf" id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3816" rel="nofollow" target="">here</a> and <a href="http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2013-2014/billanalysis/House/pdf/2013-HLA-4571-16FE14EF.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="">here</a>. For a review of transportation funding and spending, <a href="http://www.house.mi.gov/hfa/PDFs/FINAL%20transportation%20budget%20Apr2013%20v2.pdf" rel="nofollow" target="">read this</a> for lots of
detail.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3813">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3812">
<span id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3811" style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Thanks for taking action to protect our public schools.</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3801">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;"><br /></span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3805">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Steven Norton</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3806">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Executive Director</span></div>
<div id="yui_3_7_2_1_1368466388829_3807">
<span style="font-family: georgia, palatino; font-size: 15px;">Michigan Parents for Schools</span></div>
</div>
</div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-82610667497157651382013-05-11T10:57:00.002-04:002013-05-11T10:57:39.416-04:00Michigan Parents for Schools open letter to Arne Duncan (published in the Washington Post)<a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/05/10/michigan-parent-to-arne-duncan-our-schools-are-at-the-breaking-point/">http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/05/10/michigan-parent-to-arne-duncan-our-schools-are-at-the-breaking-point/</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-21026322056262544092013-05-08T12:06:00.001-04:002013-05-08T12:08:00.566-04:00Legislative Committee Communication 5/8/13 (note additional house bills)<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>EGRPS Families</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">From:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>PTA Legislative Committee</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Several legislative policies
currently under consideration in Lansing could severely impact the school
budget for East Grand Rapids Public Schools. The PTA Legislative Committee
wants to make sure that EGRPS parents are aware of the proposals and what is at
stake so that you can let our legislators know that this community supports its
public schools and does <u>not</u> support policies that will decimate the
programs that make EGRPS a successful district.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">ISSUE:
The School Aid Budget<b> </b></span></b><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; font-weight: normal; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Currently, with the three budget proposals
(Governor’s, House’s, and Senate’s), local school districts can expect a net </span></b><i><u><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">cut</span></u></i><b><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> of between $2 and $52 per pupil.</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">
(Please click <a href="http://www.miparentsforschools.org/node/197">here</a>
for a detailed analysis by Michigan Parents for Schools.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In addition to the proposed funding cuts, we
are concerned about a provision that is common in all three of the school aid
budgets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This provision would require
school districts to pay private online vendors, who are unaccountable for
student academic performance, for up to two classes per year if students choose
this option. This could potentially siphon more money away from EGRPS’ per
pupil funding.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">ISSUE:
Roads vs. Schools (House Bills 4571, 4572, 4677 and 4539) </span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">House Bills 4571, 4572, 4677, and 4539 would shift
gas taxes, which benefit schools, to other fuel taxes that are exclusively
committed to transportation. This would result in about an <b>$800 million
reduction in the School Aid Fund</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
effect of such a shift would be <b>at least a $500 per pupil cut</b> on top of the funding
decreases we are already trying to manage. This would be devastating to EGRPS.
Replacement revenue has not been guaranteed. (Click <a href="http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2013-2014/billanalysis/House/htm/2013-HLA-4571-D67B6C30.htm">here</a>
and <a href="http://www.legislature.mi.gov/documents/2013-2014/billanalysis/House/htm/2013-HLA-4539-F830F7B1.htm">here</a>
for the House Fiscal Committee’s legislative analyses of these bills.)</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">ACTION
REQUESTED:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 4.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">If you
share the same concerns, call and/or email: </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -13.5pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Representative Pete MacGregor at (517) 373-0218,
<a href="mailto:PeterMacGregor@house.mi.gov">PeterMacGregor@house.mi.gov</a>,
and</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -13.5pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";">
</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Senator Mark Jansen at (517) 373-0797, <a href="mailto:SenMJansen@senate.michigan.gov">SenMJansen@senate.michigan.gov</a>,
and</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; margin-left: 22.5pt; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in; mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-align: justify; text-indent: -13.5pt;">
<span style="font-family: Symbol; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Governor Snyder at (517) 373-3400, <a href="https://somgovweb.state.mi.us/GovRelations/ShareOpinion.aspx">https://somgovweb.state.mi.us/GovRelations/ShareOpinion.aspx</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Other
state representatives’ information can be found here:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><a href="http://www.legislature.mi.gov/%28S%28f1hosxrdbqf1h03qtnqfyrqo%29%29/mileg.aspx?page=legislators">http://www.legislature.mi.gov/%28S%28f1hosxrdbqf1h03qtnqfyrqo%29%29/mileg.aspx?page=legislators</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 9.0pt; text-align: justify;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Tell Them:</span></b></div>
<ol start="1" style="margin-top: 0in;" type="1">
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To
oppose any reduction to the total per pupil funding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is dishonest for legislators to claim
that they are increasing per pupil funding while simultaneously reducing
other types of aid that our public schools depend on, resulting, in fact,
in a net loss to school budgets. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To
remove from the final school aid budget the provision requiring school
districts to allow students to take two online classes per year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This would siphon money from our
schools, while giving it to private online vendors who are not held accountable
for student academic performance, while at the same time holding our
schools accountable for the students’ academic performance in those online
classes. </span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Not to resolve the road crisis on the backs of our schools. The legislature
would be acting in a highly irresponsible way by removing the funding that
gas taxes provide for schools without an assured funding replacement – one
that does not rely on a ballot measure.</span></li>
<li class="MsoNormal" style="mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">To
stop using money from the School Aid Fund for purposes other than K-12
funding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The School Aid Fund has
enough money to restore the per pupil funding cuts of the last several
years and actually invest in K-12 public education, but not if those funds
continue to be divided among other recipients, such as universities and
community colleges.</span></li>
</ol>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The Legislative Committee wants
to thank everyone who has made calls to our legislators in the past as our
voices have been heard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thank you for
your continued commitment to East Grand Rapids Public Schools!</span></div>
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<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Who We Are:</span></i></b><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> As a committee of the EGRPS PTA Council,
the Legislative Committee comprises parents, teachers, and Board of Education
members.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Superintendent and
Assistant Superintendent of Business, while not members of the committee,
regularly attend our meetings so that we can share information and work
collaboratively to set and advance legislative priorities that benefit
EGRPS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Committee provides
information to EGRPS families through the PTA Blasts and the <a href="http://egrpseducationadvocates.blogspot.com/">blog</a>; regularly
communicates with state legislators and mobilizes other parents to do so; and
supports similar grassroots parent advocacy groups in school districts across
the state.</span></i></div>
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EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-49815824367996072872013-04-28T17:07:00.002-04:002013-04-28T17:07:21.174-04:00For an excellent summary of the budget proposals, as passed in the House and Senate last week, please read this article<a href="http://www.miparentsforschools.org/node/197">http://www.miparentsforschools.org/node/197</a>EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6522803405193978993.post-57063227134961081372013-04-19T14:25:00.003-04:002013-04-19T14:25:56.769-04:00Education reform group -- calling itself "skunk works" -- developing plans for "value schools"<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="width: 100%px;"><tbody>
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<b><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;">Education reform group forges voucher-like plan for Michigan</span></b></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 9.0pt;">Thu, Apr 18</span></i></div>
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<a href="http://detroitnews.com/" target="_blank">detroitnews.com</a></div>
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<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Lansing — A secret work group that
includes top aides to Gov. Rick Snyder has been meeting since December
to develop a lower-cost model for K-12 public education with a funding
mechanism that resembles
school vouchers.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The education reform advisory team has
dubbed itself a "skunk works" project working outside of the government
bureaucracy and education establishment with a goal of creating a "value
school" that
costs $5,000 per child annually to operate, according to meeting
minutes and reports obtained by The Detroit News.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The records show designers of the "value
school" are in talks with Bay Mills Community College about opening a
technology-centric charter school by August 2014. The school would seek
to maximize
the roughly $7,000 annual per-pupil funding regular schools get from
taxpayers by applying "concepts familiar in the private sector — getting
higher value for less money."</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Other records distributed to group members
indicate they want to explore using fewer teachers and more instruction
through long-distance video conferencing. Each "value school" student
would receive
a "Michigan Education Card" to pay for their "tuition" — similar to the
electronic benefits transfer used to distribute food stamps and cash
assistance for the poor.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Students could use leftover money on the
"EduCard" for high school Advanced Placement courses, music lessons,
sport team fees, remedial education or cyber courses, according to an
outline of the
advisory team's agenda.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Snyder confirmed Thursday the existence of the work group, but told The News "there is not a specific outcome" for the project.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The Republican governor has urged changing
how education is delivered by having tax dollars follow the student
instead of locking them into a traditional classroom setting and school
year.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"It wasn't a directive of the governor,"
Snyder spokeswoman Sara Wurfel said, "but he's always interested in
seeing what people can come up with" in education innovation.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The group's minutes indicate members
planned to pitch their concept to Snyder this month ahead of the
Governor's Education Summit on Monday in East Lansing.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
But Snyder's chief information officer,
David Behen, who leads the group, said it has experienced "a bunch of
false starts" and is not ready.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"It's in line with what he wants to do, though," Behen said of the project's focus.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The initiative is "very unnerving" given
the history of Lansing lawyer Richard McLellan, a work group member, in
pursuing vouchers, said John Austin, president of the State Board of
Education,
who was unaware of the "skunk works" project. A voucher system lets
parents use tax dollars to choose between private and public schools —
something prohibited by the state Constitution.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"This is disturbing to hear of secret
group meetings," Austin said. "That reflects the ideology and political
agenda of the creation of a for-profit and parallel enterprise market
for schools.
Part of its goal is to take down the education establishment:
superintendents, school boards and teachers unions."</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The panel's quiet proceedings began in
mid-December after GOP lawmakers abandoned controversial legislation in
the lame-duck session that would have allowed corporations,
municipalities and cultural
institutions to run charter schools.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
McLellan helped draft the legislation and
proposed sweeping changes in November to the way Michigan schools are
funded. The plan was developed at Snyder's request by the Oxford
Foundation, of which
McLellan is a director, but has not been delivered to the governor.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Records obtained by The News show the
education reform team got a $20,000 "initial grant" from the Oxford
Foundation to assist "the Team in creating the technology intensive
school." McLellan asked
to be the group's treasurer, according to notes from a Jan. 10 meeting.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
<b>'Special kind of school'</b></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The group consists of nearly 20
individuals, mostly from the information technology field, including
Behen and the state's chief technology officer, Rod Davenport. The group
includes employees
from the software and tech companies Vectorform in Royal Oak, InfoReady
in Ann Arbor and Billhighway in Troy. Also involved is Tim Cook of the
Huizenga Group, a Grand Rapids firm that owns and operates West Michigan
manufacturing companies.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
One of the original members, Judy Wright
of the accounting firm Plante & Moran, quit the project because of
"potential client conflicts," said Dan Artman, the firm's spokesman. The
accounting firm
works for public school districts across the state.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
The group had one educator, Paul
Galbenski, an Oakland Schools business teacher and Michigan's 2011
Educator of the Year, but he left the group.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"It really kind of looked like for me that
they were discussing a special kind of school being created outside of
the Michigan public school system," Galbenski said. "That's when I
started questioning
my involvement."</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Records show the group has strived to
remain secretive, even adopting the "skunk works" alias, which dates to
defense contractor Lockheed Martin's secret development of fighter
planes during World
War II.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
In January, participants were instructed
in a memo to use "alternative" email accounts. Records show Behen,
Davenport and two other Department of Technology, Management and Budget
employees have
since used private email addresses to correspond.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
A Department of Education official, Bruce
Umpstead, joined the group after the private email directive and has
used his government email, records show.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
<b>A different approach</b></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Behen said he and the other four state
employees are mostly working after-hours on the project with Friday
evening and Saturday meetings.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"Why are we using private email addresses?
Because it's just easier," Behen said. "There's nothing secret or
anything about this."</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
McLellan said the other participants are
justified in using private emails. "Well, they should," he said. "It's
not a government project."</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"Isn't a skunk works by definition unorganized, backroom?" he asked rhetorically.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Behen said he formed the group after
meeting with McLellan and Rich Baird, a close adviser and friend of
Snyder who called the governor's "transformation manager" on a staff
list.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
One memo crafting the group's mission said
it wanted to avoid working with education consultants who "are so
wedded to the education establishment that pays their bills and to the
existing paradigm
that an outside team of creative thinkers has a much better chance of
succeeding."</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Behen said he "purposely didn't put a
bunch of teachers on (the panel)" to generate a different approach to
delivering K-12 education through rapidly changing technology.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"Just like if I was going to do something new with law firms, I wouldn't bring a bunch of lawyers in," Behen said.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
Patrick Shannon, director of charter
schools at Bay Mills Community College, said the Upper Peninsula tribal
college that charters 42 public school academies across the state is
"very interested"
in helping launch a "value school." Shannon has attended one of the
group's meetings as has an official with the Educational Achievement
Authority in Detroit, records show.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
"We're very much into the online and digital type of oversight as well. Let's try something different," Shannon said.</div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
<a href="mailto:clivengood@detroitnews.com" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: none;">clivengood@detroitnews.com</span></a></div>
<div style="line-height: 15.0pt;">
<a href="tel:%28517%29%20371-3660" target="_blank" value="+15173713660">(517) 371-3660</a></div>
Staff Writer Jennifer Chambers contributed.<br />EGRPS LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17271722413919476035noreply@blogger.com