Disappointed in our State Legislature

I write to you today disappointed that our Michigan State Legislature apparently disregards the importance of education for our state's future. I contacted both Senator Barcia and Rep. Espinoza after learning late Wednesday that our legislature will vote soon on one of the most devastating education bills in our state's history.

If approved by the State Senate and House and signed by Governor Granholm, we would see an immediate cut of $218 per pupil in the Croswell-Lexington district. That would equate to nearly $500,000 cut for our district. What makes this legislation even more difficult to understand is that we're nearly 1/4 of the way through our fiscal year. To cut us now gives us much less of an opportunity to reduce spending, especially when 85% of our budget is "people".

One might say, "you have fund equity, use it" and we will. We were already planning to use about $500,000 of our equity this year to balance the budget. That figure would now be doubled. Even more important, though, is that cuts to education don't lead us to a better financial future in Michigan. In fact, we're already hearing that these cuts are just the tip of the iceberg...that further cuts might be made later this school year and into next year. I loved the Detroit Free Press headline last week that said "If Children are our Future...apparently Michigan doesn't care." Education is the ONE thing we need to invest in as it is THE MOST important thing for our children's future and for the future of our state.

I understand that we're in the midst of a state budget crisis. However, the data I'm looking at does not indicate that we can simply "cut our way out of the crisis." We need to look at an overhaul of revenue gathering mechanisms in the state to help offset the crisis.

I hope you'll join me in contacting your state senator and representative to urge them to support education. Call Senator James Barcia (Bar-sha) at 517-373-1777 or Representative John Espinoza at 517-373-0835. Let them know that the MOST important part of our future is the education of our students.

Sincerely,

Kevin D. Miller, Ph.D.
Superintendent
Croswell-Lexington Schools