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Listen Tuesdays at 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. on 90.5 WKAR-FMAccording to the Kids Count report of April 2018, 56% of third graders in Michigan are not proficient in English Language Arts. At the same time, some new public school teachers in Michigan are leaving the classroom because they do not earn enough money for a decent living. Virtual and charter schools are on the rise in Michigan. And in some communities there are breakthroughs in raising better readers.Covering education in Michigan is complex, but WKAR is committed to reporting on the problems, searching for solutions, and holding leaders accountable.Listen for Making The Grade in Michigan with WKAR education reporter Kevin Lavery every Tuesday at 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. on 90.5 WKAR-FM's Morning Edition.

MI Union President Criticizes School Funding Shift

Capitol building photo
WKAR File Photo
Michigan lawmakers passed several education bills Friday morning in the final hours of the 2018 lame duck session.

Michigan schools will see fewer dollars in 2019 under legislation that passed out of the lame duck legislature early Friday morning.

 

Governor Snyder is expected to sign a bill that would shift up to $178 million away from the School Aid Fund by 2021.  The revenue would instead go towards road and environmental projects. 

Teachers say it’s a blow to an already badly underfunded school system.

American Federation of Teachers Michigan President David Hecker notes the bill was approved during the marathon final day of the session.

“It was done at like, two or three o’clock in the morning…the dark of night,” Hecker says.  “I guess if I was taking money away from children, I’d want to do it in the dark of night also.  (It’s) Horrible legislation, bad for our kids, bad for the state.”

Lawmakers also passed a controversial A through F school grading system.  Michigan will increase spending on mental health counselors in schools, and the state will begin 2019 with a new school safety law.

 

 

 

Kevin Lavery served as a general assignment reporter and occasional local host for Morning Edition and All Things Considered before retiring in 2023.
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