Cheating Kids: How Michigan Plays Unfair

I was happy to open Sunday’s Traverse City Record-Eagle and find a clear and forceful editorial on the shameful inequitable funding of Michigan schools.
http://www.record-eagle.com/ourview/local_story_262200513.html
In case you’re not familiar with this, Michigan communities such as Southfield and Birmingham receive over $12,000 per student from the state to educate our kids, while Traverse City and many northern Michigan communities receive the state minimum of $7316. The editorial, “Michigan can’t allow equity gap to remain” prompted this letter to the editor from me.

Dear Editor:
Thank you for the Record Eagle’s strong editorial on fixing the per pupil funding gap in Michigan schools. With all the shrill partisan din coming out of Lansing and Washington these days, and in an era when genuine bi-partisanship is a rare thing indeed, our two local state representatives, Dan Scripps, D-Leland and Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City have reached across the aisle to co-sponsor the new caucus working on this problem.

Rightly, they decided this is not a Republican or Democratic issue – it’s a fairness issue. As former Representative Howard Walker’s leadership was critical to winning the “2X” formula that narrows the gap between the richest and poorest districts, Scripps’ and Schmidt’s bi-partisan leadership is incredibly important to improving the financial health of northern Michigan schools. Politics sometimes has a bad name, but politics at its best is the art of getting things done. As a parent and TCAPS board member, I applaud Scripps and Schmidt stepping up to the plate to get this right. Their task will not be easy.

Gary Appel
TCAPS Board of Education member