PLEASE READ: THE iPETITIONS.COM SOFTWARE MAY ASK FOR A DONATION. A DONATION IS NOT REQUIRED FOR YOUR PETITION TO COUNT! EMAIL ANY QUESTIONS REGARDING THE PETITION SOFTWARE TO WEBMASTER@BLOOMFIELD.ORG -THANK YOU Bloomfield Hills Schools is collecting signatures to protest the recent funding reductions to our District. Please sign the petition! By now you know that Governor Jennifer Granholm has used her line item authority to veto Section 20J of the School Aid Act, sent to her upon approval of both the House and Senate. Her action to cut Section 20J targets about 40 districts in a $52 million reduction of our foundation grants. (Section 20J provides money that has enabled these 40 districts to get the same annual funding increases that other districts get throughout the state.) For BHS, that amounts to about $119 per student, or over $600,000 per year. The rest of the School Aid Act already provides for $165 less per student, or nearly $900,000 per year. And, in her veto message, she anticipates an additional "proration" (reduction) of another $165 per student. All told, then, BHS would experience over $2.4 million in reductions this year alone. The one action for which she is solely responsible is her veto of Section 20J. Let her know that targeting the highest achieving districts in the state is calculated to hurt our students, not help them. Let her know that targeting our highest achieving students will hurt our state's economic recovery, not help it. Let her know that, if this is some cynical ploy to force revenue increases, using our schoolchildren as pawns is unacceptable. Let her know that you're already paying an additional 7 mils of school taxes every year, in addition to the 6 mil statewide property tax that all Michigan residents pay, because you care so deeply about our students' education. Let her know that your district has cut over $10 million in expenses in the last two years alone. Once again, I ask that our community mobilize in opposition to an irresponsible action, the impact of which falls squarely on the shoulders of our children. I must also report our absolute determination, as a school district, to preserve those instructional values you cherish most. We will continue to seek cost reductions, alternative revenue sources, and political solutions to ensure that the quality of education in BHS meets your expectations. And, while budget planning for the 2010-11 school year is in its earliest stages, rest assured that even these draconian reductions will not impact our students during the current school year.

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