Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Desperate Times Part VI

Education reform:

51. Adopt a constitutional amendment authorizing a universal tuition tax credit of up to half of the state's per-pupil spending allotment to support the education of a child attending the school of his or her family's choice.

52. Require school districts to contract school transportation, food and custodial services through open and competitive bidding.

53. Place new school employees under a defined-contribution, 401(k)-type pension plan, rather than a defined-benefit system.

54. Require districts to offer school employees health savings accounts along with conventional health insurance plans.

55. Remove obstacles to expanding charter schools and other school choice options for families in "first class school districts."

56. Other than those grants required by the courts or federal law, eliminate all "categorical grants" for state-specified school spending items, use that money to increase unencumbered per-pupil foundation allowances.

57. Eliminate intermediate school districts.

58. Expand public school choice programs to allow all students in all districts, not just those students within a certain proximity, to attend public schools outside their district.

59. Adopts a "Michigan Teachers' Bill of Rights" that frees individual teachers from standardized union contracts and gives them the choice to be judged and compensated based on their performance.

60. Repeal teacher certification requirements.

61. Revise the Michigan Teachers' Tenure Act to allow school districts to adopt a full-fledged teacher merit-pay system.

62. Eliminate the cap of 150 on the number of charters schools that can be authorized by state universities.

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