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Governor’s State of the State Address Focuses on Education

In the State of the State address on Tuesday, February 6, 2007, Governor Granholm stated that she refuses to slash school funding in the middle of this year.  The specifics of finding replacement revenue and, hopefully fixing structural funding problems, was also clarified in the Governor’s budget address on Thursday, February 8, 2007.

Education Highlights from the State of the State Address

Full Day Preschool
A phase-in full day preschool for at-risk children with a foundation allowance would be available.  To receive the allowance, school districts must offer approved curriculum that prepares the students in early literacy, language, and early mathematics.  The following services also need to be in place: nutritional services, health screening, and referral services for needy families.  Also included are funding increases for partial-day pre-school programs.

Mandatory Kindergarten
An amendment to the state law by the legislature is requested to make kindergarten mandatory for all Michigan 5 year-olds.  Currently, while public schools are required to offer kindergarten for five year-old students, parents do not have to send their children to school until they have reached the age of six.

School Attendance until Students are 18 Years of Age
The State is looking at recommendations to raise the age of compulsory school attendance to 18 years of age.

Making College Affordable in Michigan
“Promise” zones would be created in cities that have a combination of low rates of educational attainment and high rates of unemployment and poverty.  These communities will have to show a significant local financial commitment (from various sources) to qualify for designation as a “Promise” zone.  The zones would allow local communities to capture half the growth in state property tax revenues and use them to supplement the local funds dedicated to making a “Promise” tuition guarantee.

This initiative is inspired by the Kalamazoo Promise, a program that provides funding from undisclosed private sources for Kalamazoo Public School graduates to attend the public college or university of their choice in Michigan.  Eligible students must have attended Kalamazoo Public School for at least four years and graduated from the school district.  The amount of funding is determined by years of residency and grades attended in Kalamazoo Public Schools: graduates attending since kindergarten and maintaining at least a "C" average will have 100% of tuition paid at any public university or community college in Michigan.  Kate Couric reported on the Kalamazoo Promise during the CBS Evening News on February 5th.

Middle College High Schools
Additional state support is requested for six middle college high schools (planning began last year for these schools) and for funding to create additional similar schools across the state in the following years.  Middle college high schools prepare students for careers in the health care industry through a program that includes both high school and college level courses.  In several of these schools, students will be able to earn both a high school degree and an associate’s degree in a five-year course of study.  Grants totaling two million dollars will be used to have the schools in operation by the fall of 2007.

Consolidation and Sharing of Services
Financial incentives for shared services will be provided to local school districts that cut costs by sharing and consolidating services at the county and regional level.  Next year’s budget will include penalties for schools who fail to meet this expectation.

Science K-7 Grade Level Content Expectations in the Works
The first meeting of the sixteen member Grade Level Content Expectations committee met in late January under the direction of Bob Bain.   Also on hand were the Office of School Improvement’s science consultant, Kevin Richard, Larry Casler of Genesee ISD’s Mathematics Science Center and Liz Niehaus of Niehaus and Associates, Inc.   The committee’s composition includes academicians from various colleges and universities, high school teachers and representatives from Career and Technical Education.

Social Studies Update
Work to revise previous iterations of the K-12 content expectations and to develop new content expectations for social studies to meet the new high school graduation requirements will be divided into two separate projects:  K-8 Grade Level Content Expectations and High School Content Expectations.  Work on this project will be done throughout the 2006-07 school year.

New Director
The new State Department of Education Legislative Director is Lisa Hansknecht.  Lisa worked in the state legislature for nearly 20 years, most recently as the Senior Policy Advisor in the House Democratic Policy office which was responsible for the House standing committees on Education and Higher Education.

Education Yes! Performance Indicators
Forty performance indicators that will compromise 1/3 of a school’s Education Yes! letter grade have been identified.  They can be reviewed here.

In early March, the MY-Plan collection window will be open (it will remain open for at least a month). Schools can login and complete the self- assessment (with evidence to support their self-assessment) on the 40 characteristics of the new Education Yes! performance indicators.  The self-assessment is completed at the building level and then submitted to the district superintendent for final approval. 

Michigan Merit Curriculum Frequently Asked Questions Available Online. 
This online source can be accessed through the MDE High School website at www.michigan.gov/highschool. Included is an introduction to the Michigan Merit Curriculum, the new high school graduation requirements (signed into law on April 20, 2006) along with a graphic that illustrates the requirements.

School Districts Reporting Deficit Spending
22 school districts throughout the state (10 in Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw counties) were in deficit for the year ending June 30, 2006.   The size of the deficits ranged from $11,949 (Litchfield Schools) to $200 million (Detroit Public Schools).

Title I Supplemental Education Service (SES) Providers
At its February meeting, the State Board of Education heard a presentation of the Status of Supplemental Services Provision under the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act.  Amid some complaints about the quality of the service provided (at an estimated cost of $2 billion nationally), the State Board approved new criteria for the approval of Supplemental Educational Services (SES) providers.  Previously approved providers and new applicants must apply for approval under the new criteria in order to operate during the 2007-2008 academic year.  Amongst other criteria, providers will now be required to demonstrate a record of effectiveness in increasing student academic achievement and be financially sound. These requirements will more easily be filled now that providers are more established than at the inception of the SES program five years ago. SES providers are used in schools that are in their third year of school improvement, corrective action or restructuring.

The U.S. Department of Education and the Michigan Department of Education will hold a Technical Assistance workshop for Supplemental Education Service Providers on March 7, 2007 at the Hyatt Regency Dearborn from 9:00 am to 4:30 p.m.  For more information and to register online click here.

The Michigan Department of Education will also be holding the following Supplemental Educational Service Provider Workshops on February 26 & 27, 2007 from 8:30-12:30 at Wayne RESA and on March 5, 2007 at Kent ISD.  Registration for these events are closed. For more information click here.

Supplemental Educational Service Providers can be faith-based and community organizations, non-profit entities, local education agencies, public schools, charter public schools, private schools, and public or private institutions of higher education.NOTE!   Districts using Supplemental Educational Services (SES) must enter student level data related to SES providers that is/are assigned to each student by March 2, 2007.  The Center for Educational Performance and Information (CEPI) has opened a SES portal through the Michigan Education Information System (MEIS) where the information can be recorded.  Student names and other fields will be pre-populated.  This information will then be used to co generate parent and teacher surveys.  The results of these surveys will provide critical information related to the satisfaction and success of current SES providers.  This data will then be used as part of the evaluation process for SES applicants who are applying to be a state approved provider.

High School Health and Physical Education Guidelines
The State Board of Education approved the Michigan Merit Curriculum guidelines for health and physical education.  They can be viewed on the michigan.ascd.org website.

Teacher of the Year
A corporate support agreement between the Michigan Department of Education and MEEMIC Insurance Co., the leading provider of home and automobile insurance for Michigan school employees, was approved at the State Board meeting on Tuesday, February 13, 2007. Starting next year, MEEMIC will provide each Michigan Teacher of the Year with the use of a Chevy TrailBlazer to be used on the 20,000 mile-average that they would put on their own vehicles to travel around the state during their year of service.

MEEMIC will also provide the Michigan Teacher of the Year with a leather briefcase, $300 in apparel and a sculpture and plaque as well as a $1,000 monetary award to the Michigan Teacher of the Year’s school for the advancement of education.  A monetary award to the schools of each of the Michigan Teacher of the Year finalists will also be awarded.  Each of the state finalists will receive plaques.

Redefining Literacy for the 21st Century: Grades 6-12

February 28 , 2007
Macomb ISD                                  

Last Chance to Register for an Excellent Workshop and a Unique Opportunity!

One of the International Center for Leadership in Education’s most effective presenters will lead workshop attendees in redefining student literacy in middle and high schools in a way that is more relevant and conducive to success for them and their students.
 

Michigan’s Grade Level Content Expectations and the new High School Merit Curriculum call for students not only to be prose literate but to be proficient in quantitative, documentary, and technological literacy as well.

In addition to meeting the new curriculum requirements, Lin Kuzmich will show how the expanded definitions of literacy are also well suited to meet the new requirements of the workplace as well as the individual lifestyles of your students.  All of the workshop content is grounded in solid research and best practice. Lin Kuzmich has most recently been working closely with the schools in St. Clair County, where she is highly regarded as an excellent resource on literacy research and practices.

Geared to regular and special population middle and high school educators, workshop attendees will leave with a plan as to how these new skills and information can be immediately transferred back to their classrooms, schools and districts.

Join a leading published educator in a dynamic workshop that will successfully enhance your current literacy program.

Hours:

This workshop is expected to run from 8am until 3:00pm.

This workshop includes lunch.

Cost:

Individual Registration:

$100 Michigan ASCD Member

$175 Michigan ASCD Non-Member (Includes an annual Michigan ASCD Membership)

District Team Registration:

If one member of a district team is a Michigan ASCD member, the entire team can register at Michigan ASCD member cost, $100 each.

If no member of a district team is a Michigan ASCD member, one member of the team must register as a Michigan ASCD non-member, at $175 (Including an annual Michigan ASCD Membership), and the remaining team members can register at Michigan ASCD member cost, $100 each.

District Team Registrations cannot be submitted online.  The entire team registrations must be faxed together to fax # 517.327.0771.  One registration form, per team member, please.

Tentative Agenda

Printable Registration Form                      Register Online

Macomb ISD: 586.228.3300

44001 Garfield Rd
Clinton Twp, MI 48038