Whitmer signs historic K-12 education spending bill that will help Manchester Community Schools

Last week, Gov. Whitmer signed into law more than $4.4 billion in COVID-19 relief funds to be distributed to Michigan’s school districts, including Manchester Community School District. 

By Julia Forrest

The federal funding coming from the COVID-19 relief will increase per-pupil funding by 7%, or $8,700, per student in most school districts across Michigan. The funds will ensure equal-based funding and close school funding gaps, a goal the state legislature has been working to achieve since 1994. 

The COVID-19 relief funding will tack on to another $17.1 billion education spending plan passed by the state House and Senate. The $17.1 billion education spending plan will be a boost of $1.5 billion in funding after this year’s budget being totaled at $15.5 billion. The $17.1 billion in funding will also help schools with year-round calendars, ensuring $8,961 in funding per-pupil and eligibility to apply for $75 million of one-time grants to improve schools.  

$300 million of the $17.1 billion in funding passed by the Senate will include scholarships for elementary reading support. Literacy programs are something that will be a key focus for Manchester Community Schools superintendent Dr. Bradley Bezeau moving into the 2021-2022 school year, according to an interview with the Manchester Mirror. 

Bezeau and Manchester Schools have already begun utilizing the federal COVID relief funds to offer additional learning loss programs in schools within the district. He said the funds are also funding a new curriculum as well as a reading progress monitoring tool to measure where students are at in their learning as they move into a post-pandemic school year. 

“We're making a real investment here in our children,” Bezeau said. “So I think that that will always be a priority, and it should be a priority, giving our students the best opportunities.’

In an interview with the Manchester Mirror, Michigan House Minority Leader Donna Lasinski (D-Scio Twp.) discussed that the federal relief funding funneling into education spending will ensure that Manchester has the dollars to meet the needs of students in the community, including getting students more access to broadband and high speed internet to expand learning opportunities. 

“I'm so proud that we were able to pass a bill that makes sure that we have strong historic investment in public schools,” Lasinski said. “In Manchester, the schools really are the heart of the community. We've had struggles in Manchester, we've had struggles across the state, over school funding ... and so for us to be able to make this large investment in our public schools is historic.”

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.