School Equity - (MP3- 3MB)

NBC Affiliates to Host Statewide Town Hall with Governor Granholm on Michigan's Economy

Last month, I submitted a budget to the Legislature that would make important new investments in education in Michigan - investments that are important to our children and their future and critical to Michigan’s economic recovery. The businesses that we want to grow in Michigan have one thing in common – they need an educated, skilled workforce.

We believe that ALL our children need the opportunity to get a good education and the good-paying jobs it leads to. And to make good on that commitment to our children, my budget takes an important step toward fairness in how we finance our schools.

There are huge differences in funding between our school districts – as much as $5,000 per pupil in some cases. At a time when we are asking all our schools to hit the same high standards, that funding gap just doesn’t make sense.

To close that gap, my fair funding formula for schools would give the largest increases in the year ahead to the districts that now have the lowest funding. The proposal won’t close the gap overnight, but it does narrow it today while underscoring the need to do even more tomorrow.

One of the most important lessons we teach our children is that we should always strive to be fair. Our current system of school funding is anything but fair. And because we believe that all our children are important and equally valued, we need to move step-by-step to close the indefensible gap in school funding in Michigan.

> more