David Hecker
President

Lois Lofton Doniver Secretary-Treasurer

Louise Somalski
Legislative Coordinator

February, 2006

Links to current Advocacy Campaigns
may be found in the Legislative Action Center

Executive Budget Proposal for Fiscal Year 2007

Governor Granholm released her budget proposal for fiscal year 2007 on February 9. All education budgets will start in the Senate this year. Senate subcommittees are beginning to formulate their budget bills for the various state departments.

Senate leaders hope to have the bills before the full Senate Appropriations Committee before spring break, followed by floor action in late April. The bills will then begin a similar process in the House.

Listed below are some of the highlights of the 2007 Executive Budget affecting education:

School Aid Budget:

The Governor's 2007 School Aid budget totals $13.1 billion, an increase of $362 million over the current year. The Executive proposal would:

• Increase the minimum foundation allowance $200 per pupil--raises the minimum foundation allowance to $7,075 per pupil. ($25 per pupil increase this year and $l75 per pupil increase next year) (Sec. 20)


• Provide $50 million to address the problems of eligible declining enrollment school districts. (Sec. 29)


• Increase funding for Intermediate School District operations by 2.9%. (Sec. 81)


• Appropriate $15 million for a new after school program for middle school pupils focused on math, science and computer technology. (Sec. 35)


• Provide $500,000 million for ISD initiatives that provide teachers professional development for the Michigan Merit Curriculum. (Sec. 81)


• Increase funding for academically at-risk children to $319.4 million, approximately $5 million more than last year to be used for hearing and vision screening. (Sec. 31a)


• Increase funding for adult education to $25.0 million from $21 million. (Sec. 107)


• Increase MPSERS rate of 1.4% to 17.74%.


• Allocate $11 million for Michigan Virtual University operations, professional development, and developing on-line pupil testing. (State and Federal Funds) (Sec. 98)


• Dedicate $5 million grant funding to support the Great Start Collaborative System, for ISDs or first class districts in a consortium with a community college, hospital, for a middle college focused on field of health science. (Sec. 32b)


• Provide $101.4 million for Great Start preschool programs throughout the state, an increase of $29 million. (Sec. 32d)


• Allocate $10 million Great Parents, Great Start, increased from $6.6 million. (Sec. 32j)


• Appropriate $10 million for children in grades K to 3 to focus on mathematics and reading literacy skills. (Sec. 34)

Higher Education Budget:

• The Governor's fiscal year 2007 budget recommends $1.4 billion in state aid for Michigan's fifteen public universities. The Executive proposal would:


• Allocate $16.3 million to fund a 2% increase for the three major research universities in the state (University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Wayne State University).


• Allocate $6.1 million to fund a 1% across-the-board increase for the other twelve state universities.


• Allocate an additional $6.0 million to fund a 1% increase to be distributed by an incentive formula that rewards degree completion, accessibility, affordability, and outreach to low income students.

Scholarships and Financial Aid:

• Provide $127.7 million to fund the Michigan Merit Award Program for over 50,000 high school seniors.


• Increase support for Tuition Incentive Program (TIP) to $14 million to pay tuition costs for over 7,600 low-income Medicaid-eligible students.


• Merge the private college Tuition Grant program with State Competitive Scholarships to provides grants to undergraduate students at both public and private colleges with maximum grants of $1,300 per year.


• Allocate $5.0 million to new MiLEAD Initiative, which will combine community service in conservation-related areas with academic learning to encourage at-risk youth to attend college.

Community College Budget:

• Allocate funding for a 2% across-the-board increase for each community college in the state.


• Maintain $3.3 million for the At-Risk Student Success Program.

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High School Graduation Requirements

House Bill 5606 and Senate Bill 1021 call for the implementation of the Michigan Merit Curriculum beginning with students scheduled to graduate from high school in 2010.

Course Credit Requirements

• Four credits in English Language Arts.


• Four credits in Mathematics, including at least two Algebra courses, one Geometry course, and one additional course beyond Algebra I and Geometry.


• Three credits in Science, including completion of at least one Biology course, one Chemistry or Physics course, and one additional course approved by the Department (at least one of which would be an approved course in earth science).


• House Bill 5606 requires one-half credit in Civics, one-half credit in Economics, one credit in U.S. History and Geography, and one credit in World History and Geography. Senate Bill 1021 requires at least 3 credits in Social Science: U.S. History, World History, Economics, and a Civics or Government course. The History courses shall include Geography.


• One credit in Health and Physical Education from among courses approved by the Department.


• One credit in Fine Arts or Music from among courses approved by the Department.


• One course or learning experience that was presented online, as defined by the Department. (House Bill 5606 states that this requirement would begin in the academic year starting after the state board adopted a resolution indicating that its members had determined that all high school students in Michigan have substantially similar access to the Internet, and to substantially similar computing technology.)


• Senate Bill 1021 include two credits of World Language. House Bill 5606 does not.


• Senate Bill 1021 requires students to successfully complete elective courses developed and offered by the school district. These elective courses shall be aligned with the following 21st century skills: Global Literacy; Civic Literacy; Financial, Economic, and Entrepreneurial Literacy; Information and Communications Technology Literacy; twenty-first century learning skills focused on work based instruction or Accelerated Learning.

Course Content Expectations

• Senate Bill 1021 and House Bill 5606 require the Department of Education to develop course content expectations for all elements of the curriculum. House Bill 5606 requires that course content expectations be consistent with the State Board's recommended model core academic curriculum content standards, and approved by the State Board this year.


• House Bill 5606 specifies that course content expectation shall state in clear and measurable terms what students are expected to know upon completion of each course.


• House Bill 5606 specifies that the course content expectations for sophomore-level English Language Arts would have to be developed and approved before March 1, 2007, the junior-level standards by March 1, 2008, and the senior-level standards before March 1, 2009.


• House Bill 5606 details the focus of course content for English Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Civics, Economics, U.S. History and Geography, World History and Geography, Health and Physical Education, and Fine Arts and Music.


• House Bill 5606 specifies that the school district shall ensure that all elements of the required curriculum are made available to all affected pupils. If a school district does not offer all of the required courses, the school district shall ensure that the pupil has access to the required courses by another means, such as enrollment in a postsecondary course; cooperative arrangement with a neighboring school district; or granting approval for the Pupil to be counted in membership in another school district.


• Senate Bill 1021 indicates that if a district is unable to implement all of the new requirements for students scheduled to graduate in 2010, it may apply to the Department for permission to phase in the requirements.

Personalized Alternative Curricula

• Under the House Bill 5606, a student who has completed at least grade 8 can request a modification of his or her individual high school graduation requirements and a personalized alternative curriculum. Senate Bill 1021 requires pupils to complete three years of the Michigan Merit Curriculum before requesting a personalized alternative curriculum.
• If all of the requirements in the personalized alternative curriculum are met, the school may award a high school diploma to a student, even if he or she has not meet the graduation requirements previously specified.

Special Education Services

• Both bills specify that if a student receives special education services, the student's individualized education plan would supersede the requirements noted above.

Alternative Instructional Delivery Methods

• Both bills require schools to ensure that content expectations for the courses noted above are met either by providing the course work specified above or by using alternative instructional delivery methods, such as alternative course work, career and technical education, or humanities course sequences if approved by the Department.

Successful Completion

• Under both proposals, a student would be considered to have completed one credit if he or she met the course content expectations. House Bill 5606 specifies that courses would be successfully completed only if the student earned at least a 2.0 on a 4.0 scale.

Michigan Merit Examination

• Senate Bill 1021 requires pupils to complete all subject area assessments of the Michigan Merit Examination or participate in alternative assessments for pupils needing special education services.

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Youth Employment Bill

Senate Bill 179 (Senator Tony Stamas, ) would allow a 16- or 17- year-old student to work 20 hours in one week when school is in session. It also allows a 16 or 17 year old student to work an average of 8 hours per day in 1 week.

Currently, when school is in session, a student who is 16 or 17 may not work a combined school and work week of more than 48 hours. The Act also provides that a minor who is 16 or older may not work more than six days in one week; 10 hours in one day; or "a period longer than a weekly average of 8 hours per day or 48 hours in 1 week".

This bill has been introduced and moved through the legislative process every two-year session since 2002. Consistent with the past, AFT Michigan is still opposing this issue for obvious educational reasons.

Senate Bill 179 has passed the Senate and is on second reading on the House floor. A vote could be taken at any time.

bk:opeiu42aflcio: February 15, 2006

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