Meeting student needs through COVID-19 and business leaders call for funding equity

As Michigan takes steps to protect the health and well-being of students and the general public, we must also address both unique and preexisting inequities faced by students across the state.

Last week, the Education Trust-Midwest identified eight specific steps that Michigan school leaders should explore in order to promote instructional equity and preserve student well-being throughout this period of school closures. This resource has been published in Arabic and Spanish, in addition to English.

Click here to access the Educational Equity & Coronavirus fact sheet and related resources.

The excerpt below is from a guest column by Mike Jandernoa (Bridge Street Capital Partners & 42 North Partners), Ric DeVore (PNC Financial Services Group) and Deidre Bounds (Ignight Social media) calling for fair and equitable school funding in Crain’s Business Detroit. Click here for the full article.

A recent report by The Education Trust-Midwest, Michigan’s School Funding: Crisis and Opportunity, shows how low-income, rural and other vulnerable students are being left behind because the public education they are receiving – in part driven by our state’s school funding system – fails to meet their needs. This lack of fairness in funding often keeps students with the greatest need from benefiting from the kinds of educational opportunities that every student deserves.

It’s true that money alone will not fix the state’s educational problems. It’s also true that fair funding based on student need, and insisting that resources are well used to close gaps in opportunity and achievement, are important aspects of the solution. Addressing this challenge will benefit students in low-income regions and rural areas, children with disabilities, and students who speak English as a second language.

This is not a political issue, nor is it regional.  It’s an issue that affects students and businesses across the state of Michigan that demands commonsense, bipartisan solutions.

Our current system is leaving too many young people behind and ill-prepared for the jobs of today and tomorrow. When faced with a business problem, we examine the data, look for best practices and lessons learned from others, and emulate them. Why can’t this same logic apply to education funding in our state?

If we are to have a workforce that meets the needs of employers, it’s vital that Michigan moves toward an education finance system that is adequate and fair for all of the state’s students. Our future depends on it.

Click here for the full article.

• Whitmer “dismayed” state education department won’t count online instruction during shutdown – Lori Higgins & Koby Levin, Chalkbeat Detroit
• Commentary: Our future depends on a fair education finance system – Mike Jandernoa, Ric DeVore and Deidre Bounds, Crain’s Detroit Business
• Education Must Be Part Of Our Coronavirus Response – Stan Litow, Albert Shanker Institute
• MI Education Advocates Worry How Coronavirus Affects Disadvantaged Students – Kevin Lavery, WKAR
• Spit On, Yelled At, Attacked: Chinese-Americans Fear for Their Safety – Sabrina Tavernise and Richard A. Oppel Jr., The New York Times