RELEASE: School finance group applauds Gov. Whitmer’s plan to help all students succeed

LANSING, Mich. — The School Finance Research Collaborative today applauded Gov. Gretchen Whitmer for calling for a new school funding approach that will help meet the unique needs of all Michigan students.

“We applaud Gov. Whitmer for calling for a new, fairer school funding approach that will help meet the needs of all Michigan students,” said Dr. Wanda Cook-Robinson, School Finance Research Collaborative Project Director. “We look forward to working with Gov. Whitmer on a new funding method that provides all students the same opportunity to get a high-quality education and compete for jobs.”

Whitmer’s education budget plan calls for a boost in per-pupil funding, and additional funding for special education, at-risk students and Career and Technical Education programs.

“I applaud Gov. Whitmer’s call for a new school funding approach, including greater funding for Career and Technical Education programs,” said Doug Maibach, Chairman of Barton Malow Enterprises, and a School Finance Research Collaborative member. “It’s time for a new, fairer school funding approach that helps us fill Michigan’s talent gap.”

“I support Gov. Whitmer’s call for a new school funding approach that helps prepare all students for the modern workforce,” said Jim Stapleton, a Detroit-area businessman and School Finance Research Collaborative member. “Michigan is long overdue for a new school funding approach that helps provide students with in-demand skills for good-paying jobs. That is a concept everyone, irrespective of party affiliation, can and should support.”

In 2018, the School Finance Research Collaborative completed Michigan’s first comprehensive school adequacy study that determined the true cost of educating all students to make the way we fund Michigan’s schools more fair. The Collaborative is a bipartisan, diverse group of business leaders and education experts from all corners of Michigan who agree it’s time to change the way Michigan’s schools are funded.

“School funding is not a Republican issue or Democratic issue,” said Rick Johnson, former Michigan House Speaker, and a School Finance Research Collaborative member. “It’s a Michigan issue, and I applaud Gov. Whitmer for laying the groundwork for a new approach that helps all students achieve and succeed.”

Learn more about the School Finance Research Collaborative at www.fundmischools.org, and on Facebook and Twitter.