Manchester Community Schools
Educational Excellence in a Caring Community
March 22, 2010, E-Newsletter
Special Edition
Community Meetings
Two community meetings are planned to provide district residents information regarding the two millage renewal proposals that will be on the May 4, 2010 school election ballot. The first of these meetings is tomorrow night, Tuesday, March 23. Information regarding 2010-2011 budget planning and critical legislation for schools now being considered in Lansing will also be provided at these meetings. For additional information regarding these ballot proposals please click here.
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Board of Education Meeting Room
Ackerson Building
410 City Road
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
7:00 – 8:00 p.m.
Board of Education Meeting Room
Ackerson Building
410 City Road
Meet the Candidates
Five persons will be on the ballot for the two school board positions. The Manchester Enterprise and Manchester Chamber of Commerce are co-sponsoring a “Meet the Candidates” night to provide the opportunity for district residents to be informed about the candidates.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
7:00 p.m.
Board of Education Room
Ackerson Building
410 City Road
A Special Message from Our School Board
Dear Community Members,
Manchester is a community that strives to provide the best possible education for its children. Your school board understands this; unfortunately your elected representatives in Lansing do not. Our elected officials have told board members that they are not hearing from their constituents that education is a priority. Manchester School administrators, board members and staff have all written to Lansing to express our concerns but since we are part of the system our voices do not carry as much weight as that of parents and concerned citizens.
The fact is that education in Michigan is hurting and the solutions are beyond the scope of what can be accomplished by your local Board of Education. Would you be willing to write our representatives and let them know you are concerned? What to include in your letter: most importantly your concern for the future of Manchester’s youth. Stress the importance that education plays in allowing children to choose their own paths and become successful adults.
There are several reform proposals under consideration in Lansing that could also impact Manchester’s finances:- Retirement System Reforms: The governor has proposed reforms to the retirement system. While bills have been introduced, no movement is forthcoming. Decisions need to be made in this area and soon. Teachers traditionally make their decisions regarding retirement in April. With such uncertainty in Lansing, teachers that may have been planning to retire might wait to see what develops. Why is this important? In Manchester over the last several years we have actualized savings by not replacing retiring staff or moving existing teachers into openings when class section reductions eliminated a position.
- School Employee Health Care: In Manchester our teacher and support staff unions have made concessions regarding their health care, we are working together for the benefit of the district. Once again this is a problem greater than what we can fix at the district level. There are proposals in Lansing. Our elected leaders need to hear that we want them to analyze the proposals and find a solution.
- Revenue Stabilization: We all understand what it means to live within a budget; do not spend more than you take in or you will use up your savings and end up in debt. The difficulty is when what you take in is constantly decreasing while expenses continue to increase. Manchester has been working diligently to decrease our expenses in light of our ever decreasing revenue stream. Over the past three years we have reduced the budget by $790,319. We are hearing projections that our per pupil funding could be decreased an additional $268 next year, a loss of $320,000 for Manchester. This is unacceptable. The Legislature needs to take a look at reforms to Proposal A that will create a consistent funding stream for public schools.
Manchester, I know you understand the importance of education. One of Manchester’s greatest strengths is her community groups that continue to support our children. I am grateful to live in a community that values education. Would you please help me get the message to Lansing by writing or emailing:
Senator Randy Richardville
205 Farnum Building
P.O. Box 30036
Lansing, MI 48909-7536
SenRRichardville@senate.mighigan.gov
Representative Pam Byrnes
Room 251, Capitol Building
P.O. Box 30014
Lansing, MI 48909-7514
pambyrnes@house.mi.gov
On behalf of the Manchester School Board I would like to thank you for your continuing support of our schools.
Sincerely,
Marlene Wagner
President, Manchester Community School Board of Education
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