Contents of this issue:
- More Michigan schools plan to restructure
- MESSA targets Lawton schools for attaining claims data
- Changes to No Child Left Behind announced
- Brighton agrees to teacher contract it can't afford
- Belding gives teachers raises, saves at least $140,000
- Comment and win an iPod
MORE MICHIGAN SCHOOLS PLAN TO RESTRUCTURE
LANSING, Mich. — A report from the Washington-based Center on
Education Policy stated that 63 Michigan schools are planning
restructuring as specified by the No Child Left Behind Act,
according to The Grand Rapids Press.
That number is an increase from 46 schools in 2006-2007, but
still lower than 2004-2005, when 109 schools were mandated to
restructure. The increased number of schools in the
restructuring phase of the NCLB is largely due to the number of
high schools failing to meet standards on the new Michigan Merit
Exam. The report states that the majority of restructuring is
taking place in Detroit and other urban areas, according to The
Press.
Schools are required to start planning to restructure if they
fail to meet federal standards for five consecutive years. After
six years of sub-par performance, a district must implement its
plans, The Press reported.
SOURCE:
The Grand Rapids Press, "Report: More Michigan schools plan
restructuring under No Child Left Behind," April 23, 2008
http://blog.mlive.com/grpress/2008/04/report_more_michigan_schools_p.html
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "No Child Left Behind law demands
'adequate yearly progress' and offers school choice options for
parents," Nov. 7, 2002
http://www.educationreport.org/4846
MESSA TARGETS LAWTON SCHOOLS FOR ATTAINING CLAIMS DATA
LAWTON, Mich. — The Michigan Education Special Services
Association has filed a grievance against the Lawton Community
Schools for hiring an independent agent to attain the district's
insurance claims information, according to The Paw Paw Courier-Leader.
Legislation passed last year requires MESSA, a third-party
administrator affiliated with the Michigan Education Association
school employees union, to provide aggregate claims data so
districts can seek competitive bids for insurance benefits. The
requirement, however, only applies to districts with 250 or more
employees receiving health benefits. In response, Lawton
Superintendent Joseph Trimboli hired an independent agent to
collect claims information from support staff. The agent
provided envelopes and forms for the health care information and
it was sent directly to the insurance bidders, The Courier-Leader reported.
In response, MESSA filed a grievance against the district,
arguing that the collection of health care information violated
the civil rights of employees.
"As a result of me asking the support staff to cooperate with
the independent provider, MESSA felt threatened and made an
accusation that the district says is incorrect," Trimboli told
The Courier-Leader. "MESSA has filed a grievance that will be
denied by the district — a grievance that was filed for the sole
purpose of trying to intimidate the district into complying with
their wishes of not seeking health care from any other provider
but MESSA."
SOURCE:
The Paw Paw Courier-Leader, "Lawton School officials at odds
with MESSA," April 28, 2008
http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=19524159&BRD=2188&PAG=461&dept_id=414962&rfi=6
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "MESSA says no to requests for
insurance data," Feb. 29, 2008
http://www.educationreport.org/9288
CHANGES TO NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND ANNOUNCED
LANSING, Mich. — U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings
has announced a number of policy changes to the No Child Left
Behind Act, according to the Detroit Free Press.
The first major change is the mandate that all states adopt the
same graduation rate formula by 2012-2013. Michigan will release
data for the class of 2007 with the new formula in August, the
Free Press reported.
"It's a more honest way of getting the information about the
success rate of students in our schools," David Maile, director
of instructional services for Huron Valley Schools, told the
Free Press.
In addition to standardizing graduation rates, Spellings also
announced that schools that fail to meet graduation targets will
face different sanctions under the law. For the first time, the
graduation rates of specific subgroups of students, whether it
is minorities or special education students, will factor into
determining whether or not a school meets federal standards,
according to the Free Press.
Spellings also wants schools to be more accountable for
communicating the right for parents to receive free tutoring or
to transfer to another school if their child attends a failing
school. This means requiring schools to use more federal funds
for parental outreach, the Free Press reported.
SOURCE:
Detroit Free Press, "Changes to No Child unveiled,"
April 23, 2008
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080423/NEWS01/804230346
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "NCLB Falls Short of Helping
Parents," Aug. 24, 2007
http://www.mackinac.org/8960
BRIGHTON AGREES TO TEACHER CONTRACT IT CAN'T AFFORD
BRIGHTON, Mich. — The Brighton schools and its teachers union
agreed to a new three-year contract that district officials say
they might not be able to afford, according to the Livingston
Daily Press & Argus.
"The challenge now is figuring out a way to pay for it," school
board member Bill Anderson told the Press & Argus.
Superintendent Jim Craig noted that the district didn't receive
about $1 million in concessions from the union that it needed to
remain financially sound. The district will save about $337,000
because of a switch to a less expensive health benefits package,
but it will still be paying out more than expected. Teachers
will receive a 1.13 percent pay increase this school year and
2.26 percent increases in the second and third year of the
contract deal. In addition to raises, the district has also
agreed to a tuition reimbursement program for continuing
education and longevity payment, the Press & Argus reported.
SOURCE:
Livingston Daily Press & Argus, "Teacher pact stirs concerns,"
April 27, 2008
http://www.dailypressandargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080427/NEWS01/804270301
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "School Budgets: A Crisis of
Management, Not Finance," Feb. 11, 2005
http://www.mackinac.org/6980
BELDING GIVES TEACHERS RAISES, SAVES AT LEAST $140,000
BELDING, Mich. — The Belding school district has approved a
contract with the Belding Education Association union that will
provide yearly raises for teachers and save the district between
$140,000 and $150,000 in insurance costs, according to The Grand
Rapids Press.
The three-year contract gives the district's teachers a 2
percent salary increase each year, while also seeing an increase
in prescription co-pays. Teachers who receive their health
benefits through the Michigan Education Special Services
Association will now contribute $10 to the cost of their generic
prescriptions, and $20 for name-brand drugs. This is estimated
to save the district at least $140,000, The Press reported. MESSA is a third-party administrator affiliated with the
Michigan Education Association school employees union that
outsources insurance underwriting to Blue Cross Blue Shield of
Michigan and then resells the policies to school districts.
The district has also decided to set aside $25,000 in a
"prescription pool" to reimburse single teachers who spend more
than $125 per year on co-pays or families that spend more than
$250 each year, according to The Press.
"I'm extremely pleased we were able to negotiate a contract that
will be in effect for more than a year, so we don't have to go
back to the bargaining table anytime soon," board Vice President
Tom Humphreys said, according to The Press.
SOURCE:
The Grand Rapids Press, "Belding: School board, teachers reach
contract deal," April 22, 2008
http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1208870156119030.xml&coll=6
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Employee Salaries and
Benefits," in "A Collective Bargaining Primer," Feb. 28, 2007
http://www.mackinac.org/8266
COMMENT AND WIN AN IPOD
MIDLAND, Mich. — Go to
http://forum.educationreport.org
and post a comment for a chance to win one of three iPods.
MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST is a service of Michigan Education
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