Contents of this issue:
- Atherton saves by contracting coaching positions
- Otsego County schools see enrollment drop
- Royal Oak teachers keep MESSA, contributes more for co-pays
- Metro Detroit parents upset over dress codes
- Negotiations between Marquette schools, union focus on MESSA
- Comment and enter to win an iPod
ATHERTON SAVES BY CONTRACTING COACHING POSITIONS
BURTON, Mich. — Atherton Public Schools will save about $50,000
by contracting for noninstructional services. The district
recently added athletic coaches to the list of contracted
services within the district, according to The Flint Journal.
The schools will rehire all coaches through Portland-based PCMI
West. This will result in savings of approximately $7,000, as the
district no longer has to pay 18 percent of a coach's $1,500 to
$3,000 stipend into the state retirement system. Contracting has
allowed for an increase in employees' pay.
"The only difference is you get your paycheck from someone else,"
Atherton Athletic Director Ralph LaDuke told The Journal.
Many teachers who served as coaches in the past have refused to
fill any of the 23 positions, The Journal reported. "I don't believe in privatization," said Stephanie Sudz, an
elementary school teacher and former junior varsity volleyball
coach. "I cried and explained it to the team and I told them that
I hoped they understood."
SOURCE:
The Flint Journal, "Atherton privatizes athletic coaches, causes
stir in school district," Sept. 19, 2007
http://blog.mlive.com/flintjournal/newsnow/2007/09/atherton_privatizes_athletic_c.html
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Survey 2007: More Growth in
School Support Service Privatization," Aug. 16, 2007
https://www.mackinac.org/8881
OTSEGO COUNTY SCHOOLS SEE ENROLLMENT DROP
OTSEGO COUNTY, Mich. — Schools in northern Michigan's Otsego
County are waiting to determine the effect that enrolling fewer
students will have on their budgets, according to the Gaylord
Herald Tribune.
Public and private schools in Otsego County lost a total of 77
students since last year. Although Gaylord Community Schools saw
an increase in the number of kindergarteners, the district's
enrollment is still down by about 40 students. The Vanderbilt and
Johannesburg-Lewiston Area Schools are also expecting slight
decreases in their student counts. Each of the districts is
concerned about how enrollment figures will affect their budgets,
the Herald Tribune reported.
"I really can't say what the impact to our budget will be until
we find out what the per-pupil amount is going to be. If it turns
out to be $225 less per student, then we are going to have to
make adjustments to our budget. We're just going to have to wait
and see," Gaylord Superintendent Cheryl Wojtas told the Herald
Tribune.
County private schools also are experiencing drops in enrollment.
Grace Christian Baptist School saw a decrease from 120 students
last year to 107 currently. St. Mary Cathedral School is
experiencing a similar decrease. Otsego Christian is the only
school in the county to see a significant increase in enrollment,
according to the Herald Tribune.
Tom Saporito, Principal at St. Mary Cathedral, said the economy
is the primary reason behind the drops in enrollment.
"There seems to be a direct correlation between economic
situations and enrollments," Saporito told the Herald Tribune.
"In the 1990s enrollments at private schools were up, and since
2001 they have been going down, especially in Michigan, due, in
part, to the poor economic situation here."
SOURCE:
Gaylord Herald Tribune, "Student enrollment down in northern
Michigan schools," Sept. 19, 2007
http://www.gaylordheraldtimes.com/articles/2007/09/18/news/top_stories/doc46f03419ab385541473293.txt
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Pupil Counts," in "A Michigan
School Money Primer," May 31, 2007
https://www.mackinac.org/8579
ROYAL OAK TEACHERS KEEP MESSA, CONTRIBUTE MORE FOR CO-PAYS
ROYAL OAK, Mich. — Royal Oak Public Schools will save at least
$400,000 a year after 90 percent of teachers agreed to contribute
more to their health insurance co-pays, according to the Royal
Oak Daily Tribune.
Under the new three-year contract, teachers will still receive
health benefits administered by the Michigan Education Special
Services Association, but will now have co-pays of $10 for
generic prescriptions and $20 for brand name drugs, the Daily
Tribune reported. MESSA is a third-party administrator affiliated
with the Michigan Education Association school employees union.
Teachers will also receive a retroactive pay increase of 1.25
percent for the 2006-2007 school year, as well as a 1.75 percent
raise for this school year. Salaries for teaching positions in
the district now range from $37,884 to $80,449. The contract
includes a clause allowing the district to re-open discussion of
salary and benefits at the beginning of the third year, according
to the Daily Tribune.
"With state funding and health care the way they are, we can't
lock into anything long term," Board of Education President Gary
Briggs told the Daily Tribune.
SOURCE:
Royal Oak Daily Tribune, "Teachers pay more to keep insurance,"
Sept. 18, 2007
https://www.dailytribune.com/stories/091807/loc_20070918002.shtml
FURTHER READING:
Michigan Education Report, "Growing number of districts seek
solutions to costly health insurance," Dec. 15, 2005
https://www.educationreport.org/pubs/mer/article.aspx?ID=7479
METRO DETROIT PARENTS UPSET OVER DISTRICT DRESS CODES
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. — Parents in Metro Detroit are resisting school
districts' new dress code policies, according to The Detroit
News.
Southfield, Redford Union and Harper Woods schools have either
revised or rewritten their dress code policies. Most districts
have some sort of dress policy, which usually consists of banning
revealing or offensive clothing. But students in Southfield and
Harper Woods are now prohibited from wearing denim, stripes,
plaid or certain colors, like green. They are required to wear
solid-color shirts, dresses, skirts or dress slacks, The News
reported.
"We're giving them the idea that when you go in to work, you
can't always dress the way you want to because there is a dress
code in the business world," Bruce Kefgen, superintendent of East
Detroit Public Schools, told The News. "Going to school is their
job right now. Britney Spears can wear what she wants. They
can't."
Almost 250 parents protested at a Redford Union school board
meeting, and administrators decided to back off their strict
enforcement proposal. Some experts say that dress codes alone do
little or nothing to improve student achievement, according to
The News.
"I'm all for rules and setting standards," Gary Fenstermacher,
professor emeritus at the University of Michigan School of
Education, told The News. "But it would be so much more valuable
to get them discussing these things. Teachers will ban something
without having a discussion with students about what they want to
accomplish."
SOURCE:
The Detroit News, "Parents take schools to task over strict dress
codes," Sept. 18, 2007
https://www.detroitnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070924/SCHOOLS/709240348/1003/METRO
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Increased Regulation Has Not
Improved Education," July 24, 2000
https://www.mackinac.org/2970
NEGOTIATIONS BETWEEN MARQUETTE SCHOOLS, UNION FOCUS ON MESSA
MARQUETTE, Mich. — Contract negotiations between the Marquette
Area Schools and the Michigan Education Association are focusing
intensely on health benefits, as the district attempts to reduce
health insurance costs, according to The Mining Journal.
The district spends about $2.5 million annually on health care
benefits for 205 teachers, or about $14,428 per teacher. Currently, teachers contribute nothing to their health insurance
plans, which are administered by the Michigan Educational Special
Services Association, The Journal reported. MESSA is a third
party administrator affiliated with the MEA school employees
union.
District officials have offered two options during negotiations.
The first includes continued coverage under the MESSA Choices II
plan, with no increase in pay. The second consists of a 2 percent
raise and a monthly contribution by teachers to their health
insurance premiums. All other employee groups in the district are
now making contributions to their health benefits, according to
The Journal.
SOURCE:
The Mining Journal, "MAPS teacher union talks set for Oct. 11,"
Sept. 19, 2007
http://www.miningjournal.net/stories/articles.asp?articleID=20279
FURTHER READING:
Mackinac Center for Public Policy, "Selective Moral Outage,"
Sept. 24, 2007
https://www.mackinac.org/9003
COMMENT AND ENTER TO WIN AN IPOD
MIDLAND, Mich. — Go to
https://educationreport.org and post a comment for a chance to win one of three iPods.
MICHIGAN EDUCATION DIGEST is a service of Michigan Education
Report (
https://www.educationreport.org),
a quarterly newspaper
with a circulation of approximately 150,000 published by the
Mackinac Center for Public Policy (
https://www.mackinac.org),
a
private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research and educational
institute.
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