Friday, September 14, 2018

November Bond Proposal


Dear Parent(s) and Community Member,

On behalf of the Vestaburg Board of Education, I am writing to inform you of an upcoming bond proposal. As a result of the 2009 bond, we were able to update and add to many of our facilities, which have provided a richer educational experience for our students. As part of our responsibility to our students and our community, the district is committed to being good stewards of the resources we have been so generously provided. With this commitment in mind, on November 6, 2018 voters in the Vestaburg Community School district will be asked to vote on a bond proposal to continue addressing our facility needs.

Bond Overview
A school bond election is a bond issue used by a public school district to finance a building project or other capital project. These measures are placed on the ballot by district school boards to be approved or defeated by the voting public. The bond funds can only be used for the purposes expressed on the ballot.
The upcoming proposal comes as the result of many years of hard work by the Board of Education and staff creating a long-term strategic plan identifying current and future needs of district facilities. Upon reviewing the results of our survey, it has been decided to address immediate, essential needs for our schools. Therefore, the Board of Education is asking voters whether or not to increase 1.6 mills that would generate approximately $2,180,000 to pay for these district needs.

Facility Improvement Scope:
The bond will pay for the following needed improvements across the district:

·        Roof Replacement - Most of the facility’s roof is beyond its life expectancy and needs repair and/or replacement to resolve current leaking issues. Additionally, the most recently updated sections are nearing their 10 to 15-year warranty expiration and will need to be updated in the next five (5) to 10 years. After a cost analysis, it has been concluded that it is most effective to support an extended warrantied roof that will serve the facility for the next 40 or more years.

·         Upgraded Transportation - Currently, we have a fleet of eight (8) buses that are in use daily, with the newest addition in 2008 and reaching the end of their useful life period. The bond funds would be used to purchase up to four (4) new school buses to update our fleet.

·         Upgraded High School Gymnasium Bleachers - The current bleachers are the original wood, which is degrading thus requiring us to replace several boards each year costing hundreds per board. Additionally, they are not up to the current American with Disabilities Act standards.

·         Additional – If funds permit, updates may be made to the bathrooms and classrooms in the older sections of our building.

Tax Impact:
As many of you are aware, school funding is always an issue. Not every district is funded at the same level, nor are all communities blessed with the same level of resources. Some schools are funded at a higher per student rate than others, and the funding generated through taxes is dependent on the size and structure of the district.
If approved by voters, the upcoming district’s bond will create an expected annual increase of $1.60 to each $1,000 of your home’s taxable value. See tax impact formula below:

Home Taxable Value / 1000  X  1.6  = Annual Increase

Example for $100,000 home value:
$50,000 taxable value/1000 X 1.6 = $80.00/year or $6.60 a month.

In the coming weeks, I will communicate more information on behalf of the school district related to the specifics of the bond proposal. We want to make sure everyone understands the needs and the financial impact of meeting those needs. We welcome you to stay tuned for further information on the upcoming bond, welcome your comments and questions and look forward to you voting this November.

Sincerely,

Brandon Hubbard
Superintendent

Vestaburg Community Schools

Tuesday, August 14, 2018

Welcome Back 2019!

August is a unique time of year.  On one hand, the "summer" is winding down and with that, there is always some sadness.  However, on the other hand, there are still some fun family time and vacations planned. Lastly, it is filled with the excitement of school clothes shopping, seeing friends and classmates, and of course all of the outstanding learning opportunities that come with a new school year.  For educators, it is the opportunity to get back to doing what we love and that is working with and educating our children. Although for many, students and staff alike, the alarm clock starts going off at what seems like an impossibly early time, this is one of the best times of the year.  As with any school year, we assuredly will experience many highs and lows, conflicts, and struggles.  However, as long as we face them with an open mind, respect for all involved, and as a team, there is nothing that we will not overcome.   WE ARE VESTABURG!

This past year the district was able to continue to improve our school safety. We are continuing to add features and security updates to our system. We are anticipating the full SmartBoot system with the Bluetooth notification program to be up and running. To see a quick demo please visit our Facebook page at Vestaburg Community School or our webpage at www.vcs-k12.net. We are extremely proud of our advancements. We are one of only a couple of schools in the State of Michigan with this system and we are a national example. While we can never 100% predict the future, please know that we are doing everything possible to keep our students and children safe!

Furthermore, we are working hard to continue to implement the objectives as set forth by the Strategic Plan that was created last spring.  We will be continuing to expand our one to one technology initiative that will include grades 3-12 with each student assigned a Chromebook for the year.  We are expanding our service to at-risk students, approximately 1500 students, in our virtual program throughout the state of Michigan. Another area of focus continues to be the area of student behavior and discipline processes, as we strive to provide all of our students the best learning environment possible.  As part of this focus, we have added an Elementary Dean of Students and are working to implement the Miblsi literacy and behavior initiative. In addition, we continue welcoming new staff, as well as, having current staff in new positions.  Please stay tuned for more information as the staffing changes and new hires are still taking place.

Lastly, it is a goal of all levels of our school district to invite and participate in meaningful two-way collaboration and communications with all of our stakeholders including, students, parents, staff, and community
members and organizations.  Some of you may have heard me say our school is our community and our community is our school.  I truly believe that we need to be a strong team and to support each other in order for both the community and the school to grow and thrive.  Neither one can maximize its potential without the other.  Thus, we will continue to seek input from all and to look for ways to increase opportunities for input and collaboration.

Here is to a great school year!  I look forward to working with everyone and watching our school continue to grow.  WE ARE VESTABURG!

Thursday, January 18, 2018

School Funding: Changes Need To Be Made.

You may have seen recent article's pertaining to the recommendations and findings of the School Finance Reform Committee.  "The study ... is the most comprehensive study of K-12 school funding in Michigan in at least 50 years," said Mike Addonizio, a Wayne State University professor and school finance expert (as reported in the Detroit Free Press on January 17, 2018).  Here are a few highlighted findings of the 358-page report, as provided by the Michigan Association of School Administrators presented:


  • The base per-pupil cost to educate a regular education K-12 student in Michigan is $9,590, which does not include transportation, food service or capital costs, and only includes pension costs at 4.6% of wages.
  • Charter and traditional public schools should be funded equally.
  • It costs $14,155 to educate a preschool student age 3 or 4.
  • In addition to the base per-pupil cost, a percentage of the base cost should be provided for special education, English Language Learners, students living in poverty and programs to provide Career and Technical Education.
  • Transportation costs should be funded at $973 per rider until further study can be carried out.
  • Because Michigan’s school district sizes vary widely and small districts lack economies of scale, district size must be taken into account, with funding increases provided for all districts under 7,500 students.

As you look at the recommendations, it is important to understand that many districts, including Vestaburg, is funded at a base of $7,631 per student not including some grants and federal funds that the school receives.  This includes things like transportation and food service.  In addition to most of the districts being underfunded, the funding levels are not equal. As reported by the Detroit Free Press on January 17, 2018, "Per-pupil funding varies widely in the state. In metro Detroit, for instance, a number of districts receive the bottom amount and the two highest-funded districts — Birmingham Public Schools and Bloomfield Hills Schools — receive slightly more than $12,000 per pupil."  

In addition to most of the districts being underfunded, the funding levels are not equal.  As Randy Liepa, superintendent of the Wayne Regional Educational Service Agency, the intermediate school district for Wayne County stated (as reported in the Detriot Free Press on January 17, 2018), "We’ve all recognized that the system which started in 1994 with a promise is now just stale, outdated and really needs to be corrected," referring to Proposal A, the current system for funding schools that was enacted that year."

Why should a student from Bloomfield Hills Schools cost more to educate than a student from Vestaburg?  Does a student from Birmingham Public Schools deserve a better education that one from Vestaburg, I think not! It is time that we as citizens demand that our legislators do what is right for our students, all of our students and fund education appropriately and equitably. 

The full report can be viewed at https://t.co/OQlfjQrpxG. Also, you can read full Detroit Free Press Article at https://www.freep.com/story/news/education/2018/01/17/michigan-school-funding-report/1039756001/