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Posted on Thu, Feb 9, 2012 : 12:23 p.m.

Snyder ties incentives to student growth, dedicates $179 million to help pay school retirement costs

By Danielle Arndt

Related coverage: Ann Arbor area K-12 leaders welcome proposed funding boost but question 'best practices' structure

Gov. Rick Snyder this morning proposed a beefed up K-12 budget for the 2012-13 fiscal year.

He presented what he believes is a "very good package for the K-12 education system” and shows support to school districts and children statewide, he said.

A big part of that was a recommendation to dedicate $179 million in ongoing funds to help districts offset retiree pension and health care costs. Snyder said this is part of his plan to help schools "re-deploy dollars to the classroom."

Snyder’s proposal includes keeping the per-pupil foundation allowance at $6,846 for the upcoming school year, but he said the state will be investing more in education overall.

He proposed a 1-percent increase in funding to K-12, which would mean districts would receive $113 million more than they did this year. An additional $200 million from the general fund surplus will be awarded to school districts that again meet Snyder’s “best practices.”

Student growth and performance will be added to the list of things Snyder expects to see from districts in order to receive additional funding. Intermediate school districts will be eligible for these extra dollars, contrary to 2012.

Of the $200 million, districts will have a shot at a share of $70 million for meeting performance criteria in the areas of mathematics in grades 3-8, reading in grades 3-8 and all high school subject areas.

Snyder said the state needs to be rewarding success and results.

"If someone walked up to you and said, 'Please give me $5.' Most you would say tell me what you are doing with that money," he said. "If you are in that group that likes to give away money, I'd be happy to collect it for the rainy day fund. ... But most of us like to see something if we are asked that by a family member or a friend.

"It's the philosophy for long-term success."

Snyder is proposing $120 million be divided among districts that meet five of six best-practice criteria:

  • Publishing a dashboard
  • Serving as a policyholder for health benefits
  • Participation in schools of choice
  • Monitoring student growth in each subject area at least twice a year
  • Offering dual enrollment, Advanced Placement courses, participating in a middle college or offering other post-secondary learning opportunities
  • Offering online or blended learning

A final $10 million in state grants would be available to help districts consolidate services. Snyder is hopeful this money will allow districts to "come up with efficiencies they otherwise wouldn’t be able to fund."

In laying out his case for reform, the governor noted Michigan ranks 21st in the country in per-pupil expenditures, yet it ranks 39th in the nation when it comes to fourth-grade math proficiency and 34th in reading proficiency. Fewer than 50 percent of students are proficient in writing, and ACT test scores need improvement, he said.

Staff reporter Danielle Arndt covers K-12 education for AnnArbor.com. Follow her on Twitter @DanielleArndt or email her at daniellearndt@annarbor.com.

Comments

hank

Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 2:58 p.m.

This whole funding increase is an attempt to get voters to forgive and forget what they have done to public schools,their teachers and retirees. November will be here before long and he does not want voters to fire his republican pals.

snapshot

Mon, Feb 13, 2012 : 4 a.m.

What has he done? You still have cadillac healthcare, high paying jobs, great retirement. What's the problem? Is this a veiled threat to use bullying union influence. 179 million just the "help" with retirement. Yeah, you public employees are really suffering hank.

Waterdipper

Fri, Feb 10, 2012 : 1:43 p.m.

"Student growth and performance will be added to the list of things Snyder expects to see from districts in order to receive additional funding. " ... "Snyder said the state needs to be rewarding success and results. "If someone walked up to you and said, 'Please give me $5.' Most you would say tell me what you are doing with that money," he said. "If you are in that group that likes to give away money, I'd be happy to collect it for the rainy day fund. ... But most of us like to see something if we are asked that by a family member or a friend. "It's the philosophy for long-term success." ... Comment: TOO BAD Mr. Snyder and his legislature didn't see any necessity to apply the same philosophy to the business tax give-away. The business tax reduction came without a clear "jobs created" metric, such as tying the tax break, or at least a portion of it, to actual documented jobs created by a business. Creation of jobs was the theme behind the give-away, and if a performance metric is appropriate for giving money back to our education system, why wasn't it appropriate for giving money back to the business community?

DonBee

Thu, Feb 9, 2012 : 8:01 p.m.

Great teachers can motivate any student, there are few great teachers. Good teachers can at least engage any student, there are lots of good teachers. The problem is in the legacy union contracts in the public sector - not just schools - the rising retirement and retirement health care costs are going to eat all the money to provide services in the future. Given the strength of public sector unions in Michigan, fixing this problem ends the time in office for any politician, from a city mayor to the governor. Not, fixing the problem means shrinking funds available for teachers who are still in the classroom teaching.

greg, too

Sat, Nov 10, 2012 : 12:29 a.m.

"Great teachers can motivate any student, there are few great teachers. Good teachers can at least engage any student, there are lots of good teachers. " Spoken by someone who has obviously never set foot in a classroom nor has any idea what he is talking about.

kmgeb2000

Thu, Feb 9, 2012 : 5:59 p.m.

How about giving the parent of an "underperforming" child a tax hit or some pain, and not the teacher? It matters little how good the teacher is if the student has no concern for learning (which is related to the parent not the school). You can beat the teachers & the schools all day, and the kid who doesn't care will still get low scores. I will add this is from personal experience as an underperforming student, at least when I wanted to be (underperforming that is). I know I'm dreaming but everyone can dream.