The education community is frustrated, but I know that as business officials, you are especially frustrated and weary, performing triage in the trenches as we all fight the School Aid funding battle for Michigan’s children. It also seems that there are times that, although we are working toward the same goal with good intentions, we sometimes allow our impact to be mitigated by others as we labor in the fight to enhance the dwindling resources the state allocates to public schools. We are simply not always on the same page as an education management community.
MSBO, MASB and MASA have joined together to address the needs of our respective members and K-12 education as a whole as they relate to the present and looming funding crisis in public education. We see many benefits of a collaborative approach including:
- Strengthening a cooperative working relationship with MASB and MASA
- Creating a single voice and common messages for responding to the financial crisis, reducing confusion among members and presenting a united response
- Avoiding duplication of efforts
- Assuring that a high level of activity and focus are devoted to responding to the financial crisis and assisting school districts and members of the respective organizations
This special task force–the SOS Task Force–Save Our Students, Save Our Schools, Save Our State – will help districts weather the storm. We have retained Tom White to help us coordinate these activities and we will work with him to provide direction to the task force.
The task force of stakeholders will identify and address the needs of schools and members of our respective organizations. It will be a “working” task force, in which the needs of school districts are identified, with members of the task force accepting responsibility for assisting in meeting those needs. We anticipate the task force will meet on an as needed basis. The task force begins work this month and continues through June 2010.
Tom’s expertise as a long-time education advocate will be to coordinate activities of the task force and help craft a consistent message. He will spearhead meetings with key sub-groups and/or individuals to obtain input and support for these activities. Not only do we want to create a more unified message but we also hope to provide useful resources, training, and policy development.
The SOS Task Force will focus on:
- Developing materials for an online resource center for districts to use in responding/coping with the financial crisis.
- Developing and maintaining media contacts for the purpose of providing information and/or directing the media to people within the education community who can, “tell the story” of what is happening to schools as a result of cuts in funding.
- Creating message points and materials that will be made available to schools for dealing with their local media and community.
- Creating or otherwise generate newsworthy information to help the public understand and appreciate the financial situation facing schools.
- Coordinating training programs to assist members in managing the financial crisis in their district.
- Assisting in development of policy solutions and options, providing short-term assistance and long-term solutions for assuring stable and adequate funding for public education.
- Assisting school districts to build grass roots networks through the use of social media and other mechanisms to support and advocate for better funding for Michigan's schools.
This is a tremendous endeavor. We will need the expertise and passion of members in each of the three associations to make sure we are successful. If there was ever a time to share your expertise for the greater good, it is now. Use the tools that will be provided and help get our message out concerning the school funding crisis in our districts and around the state. Help us Save Our Students, Save Our Schools, and Save Our State. It’s time to be a part of the solution and help future generations of Michigan’s students.