June 7, 2011

Dear Parents and Guardians,

My purpose in writing today is to share some good news with you and answer some questions regarding the budget. 

The first piece of good news is one which you probably already know.  We have the pleasure of living in one of the finest communities with caring, active, and passionate citizens.  I’d like to thank you for writing letters, making phone calls, and sending emails to Legislators.  Berkley Schools’ parents and community members united around a common theme.  I was genuinely inspired at pickup time when I saw tables of parents writing notes to legislators.  This collective engagement is a continuation of the great support our District has always enjoyed, and I look forward to the future in that and other ways.

Though the now-signed budget “deal” does not align with our communities’ priorities, we need to move on.  Having been around the block a few times, I know enough to say with conviction that good things come from tough times.  So, a few points to consider:

• You are your child's first and most important teacher.  That does not change next year.
• The home is the single most important factor in setting a child's educational pathway.  It has always been and will remain so.  Much more than any other factor, you determine your child's destiny.  That does not change next year.
• At school, the most important factors in a child's life are the quality of the teacher and the building principal.  We will have great teachers and principals working with your child next year.  We remain committed to hiring, retaining and investing in quality teachers and building-level leaders.  That doesn't change next year. 
• Berkley High School will offer 21 Advanced Placement classes next year, compared to 7 at Shrine, 21 at Detroit Country Day, 9 at Roeper, and 14 at Cranbrook.*
• BHS Class of 2011 garnered over $4,000,000 in scholarship dollars.
• 89% of MSU applicants (64) were accepted.
• 63% of UM applicants (52) were accepted this year.  This number was reduced from last year due to UM entering the “common app” pool and the university oversubscribing last year – thus, a larger talent pool with fewer spots.
• 100% of applicants (13) at Kalamazoo College were accepted.  This is the third year in a row that 100% of applicants were accepted at the most selective private college in the state.
• BHS students were accepted at the finest in- and out-of state institutions including Bowdoin, Tufts, Brandeis, Harvard, Duke, Notre Dame, Earlham, Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Case Western Reserve, George Washington, and Oberlin, to name just a few.
• BHS counselors have been receiving and will continue to receive the finest professional development for college admissions possible.
• BHS, again recognized as a “public elite” and ranked #13 of 687 high schools in the state, will remain our “flagship” for all these reasons.

We know you have questions regarding the budget.  Before I begin to answer those questions, allow me to provide some facts about next school year.

• Many of our current 45 laid off teachers will return due to a separation incentive, voluntary layoffs, some additional state aid, and other factors. 
• Our lower elementary numbers will remain between 18 and 22. 
• Elementary specials will be reduced but classroom instruction will remain largely as it was last year.
• At our high school, life will be different as our students will go from selecting eight classes to six.  That means that some students will have to make some choices or adjustments.  That said, we expect to see BHS students continue their outstanding performance.

Finally, I would like to answer your questions regarding the budget decisions made in Lansing.  They are significant and should be of great interest to you as a public school supporter.

 

Q: Will Berkley High School remain a “Public Elite”?

A: As a district, we have become much more sophisticated and successful at gaining advantages for our students in the college application process.  Colleges look at several factors when considering applicants:

• Class rank
• ACT scores
• What curriculum was available, what was taken, and how the student did.

In addition, as outlined above, BHS will once again offer a vast array of AP (Advanced Placement) courses.  This offers our students an “unfair advantage” to begin college at a higher than Freshman level. 

Q: Can you provide a simple and short explanation of Proposal A?

A: Proposal A was passed by the voters in 1994.  Here are some facts on the changes made with Proposal A.

• Until 1994 when Proposal A was passed, local property taxes paid for each local school district’s schools. 
• With Proposal A, local property taxes were eliminated as the source of local schools' dollars. 
• Since that time, you have contributed to what was supposed to be a "dedicated" pot of money at the state level called the School Aid Fund (SAF) in two significant ways.  You pay:
  • a six mill property tax levy on your home and
  • 1/3 of the 6% sales tax you pay goes in the SAF (sales taxes were raised from 4% to 6% in 1994). 
• In sum, the voter-approved constitutional amendment called Proposal A cut local property taxes roughly in half and added other taxes to compensate (like the additional 2% sales tax you pay at the checkout line).  Those new taxes, as written into the amendment itself, were supposed to be "dedicated to school revenue".

Q: So, if there’s a “dedicated” pot of money, why are there cuts?

A: Because school funding was not the priority.  Other things were.  Here's what the Governor and Legislature did with the money in the School Aid Fund for this coming school year’s budget:

• $195.9 million went to community colleges.
• $600 million went to higher education.
• Berkley’s portion of that $795.9 million would have been $2,500,000.  That is 2.5 million dollars of your Berkley School District’s “dedicated to schools” dollars which were sent to colleges and universities. 
• Importantly, this isn’t a one-year cut.  This is 2.5 million dollars year after year your school board will not get to spend on programs and people to support your students.
• Offered one-time dollars of around $100 per pupil if your local school board does what the state tells it to do called "Best Practices".  (Again, this is one-time money which may or may not ever be seen in our budget.)

 

Q: I have a student who will be attending college in the near future.  Is the sharing of School Aid Fund dollars good or bad for their college costs?

A: If you are sending a student to college in the near future, you get hit doubly hard.

• Your “dedicated” tax dollars do not pay for what they were supposed to pay for in K-12.
• Higher education, despite getting School Aid Fund money, also had its funding reduced but has an incentive to not increase tuition by any more than 7% per year.  Importantly for you, your child’s college costs compound annually.

 

Q: If Proposal A was in place to have “dedicated” revenue to schools, how was any of this possible?

A: Elected officials found a way to circumvent the constitutional amendment and to use your dollars in a way they saw fit.  Is that legal?  Maybe.  Does it pass the smell test?  Not by a long shot.  Your dollars were supposed to fund your K-12 schools and are now used to pay for lots of other things. 

Q: What will happen for 2012 – 2013?

A: The Governor who said he didn't want to "kick the can down the road" has chosen to give schools one-time dollars.  That is the definition of kicking the can down the road.  Schools will continue to share their pot of money unless this decision is reversed. Your state elected officials got great headlines touting a "budget compromise" while your local school board is left holding the bag on what to cut and how.

Q: What can I do?

A: As a parent and community member, there are several things you can do:

• Contact your legislators and let them know how you feel about the decisions they made.
• Support your children’s interests.  Help them delve into things that they find fascinating.  Talk to your children every day about school, friends, homework assignments, and whatever they find interesting.  Taking an active role in your children’s education is crucial to their success.
• Visit the Berkley Schools website: www.berkleyschools.org and click on “BUDGET: 2011-2012” to learn more about these important issues.
• Hit “reply” to this email if you have questions and we’ll do our best to answer them in a timely fashion.
• Visit: www.berkleyschools.ideascale.com to share your opinion and give us feedback on our district.

 

*Information for Advanced Placement Courses was derived from either the schools’ websites and/or course catalogs.

 

 

Sincerely,

 

 

Michael V. Simeck

Superintendent