M-STEP scores underscore urgency to pass a School Aid Budget that prioritizes students with the greatest needs

This statement can be attributed to Jennifer Mrozowski, Senior Director, Strategic Communications and External Relations, EdTrust-Midwest, on the release of the 2024-2025 M-STEP data. 

“Today’s M-STEP results should be a wakeup call to policymakers that they should urgently prioritize support for our students and schools.  

“That support should start with passing a School Aid budget that invests more in Michigan’s students, particularly those with the greatest needs. 

“New investments should be accompanied by transparent fiscal accountability systems to make sure school funds are spent on the students for whom the dollars are intended. Michigan lacks such a system today, which leaves parents and stakeholders in the dark about whether dollars are being spent on research-backed strategies to raise student outcomes.

“EdTrust-Midwest and our partners with the Michigan Partnership for Equity and Opportunity urge state leaders to fully fund the Opportunity Index, which directs additional resources to districts based on their concentration of poverty.

“We urge state leaders to protect categorical funding for English Learners, who have long lacked the support needed to reach their full academic potential. 

“We also urge lawmakers to invest in early literacy strategies to implement last year’s landmark Reading for All legislation to support students with dyslexia. That’s particularly important as Michigan continues to face an early reading crisis. Our students, particularly those with the greatest needs, lag leading states in early reading, a foundational skill for students that sets the stage for their school journey. 

“Now is the moment to put aside partisanship and put students first.”