LANSING – In response to decades of funding disparities that have left many Michigan students shortchanged, State Representative Gary McDowell (D-Rudyard) has joined other members of the Michigan House to form the House School Equity Caucus. The bipartisan group will work to find new ways to provide schools with the resources they need to enable every Michigan student to succeed, regardless of where they live.
"Our children deserve a top-notch education in order to be prepared for the jobs of the 21st century," McDowell said. "Currently, there are large disparities in education funding, giving some schools the resources to provide extraordinary instruction while others struggle just to provide children with everyday resources. This group will allow us to work across the aisle to find ways to level the playing field for all of our students."
As schools around Michigan prepare for another school year, funding levels for school districts continue to vary wildly. Many school districts across the state receive the minimum state allowance of $7,316 per pupil, while other districts, primarily in Southeast Michigan, receive far more from a combination of state and local funds – up to $12,443 per pupil. This funding gap persists through 1994's Proposal A, which allowed just 51 of Michigan's 551 traditional school districts to levy additional millages to maintain pre-1994 funding disparities.
"In order to build a strong workforce that will attract new investment, businesses and jobs, we must give our students the education and training they will need to compete for good-paying jobs," McDowell said. "Education is the great equalizer for our urban and rural communities. We must come together to find a solution to address funding disparities in our schools to ensure that all of our children – no matter where they live – leave school with a high-quality education under their belt."