Utica Community Schools Applies for State's Additional $100 Per Student Grant

The Utica Community Schools says its financial house is in order and it will meet Michigan’s "best practices" guidelines in order to qualify the district for an additional $2.9 million from the state.

The UCS Board of Education voted unanimously Monday to approve a resolution that demonstrates compliance with state financial accountability standards, qualifying the district for an additional $100 in per pupil funding offered to Michigan schools that reach the state’s defined "best practices" standards.

UCS Spokesman Tim McAvoy said the resolution is essentially the district’s application for the one-time funding.

“We have always tried very hard to manage what resources we have had available to us,” Board Treasurer Dr. Robert A. Ross said. “This puts those efforts into a formal tone in an agreement with the state.”

In June, Gov. Rick Snyder signed an amendment to the Education Omnibus budget which appropriates $154 million in state aid to K-12 school districts that meet 4 of 5 “best practices” designated by the State Aid and School Finance Office of the Michigan Department of Education.

UCS said it has already met the following four “best practices:”

• A service consolidation plan has been developed and implemented.
• Competitive bids have been received for non-instructional services.
• The district is the policy holder for its employee medical benefit plans.
• A dashboard or report card with specific indicators is available on the UCS website.

The funding for UCS is dependent on approval of the district’s application from the State of Michigan. McAvoy said if approved, the additional $2.9 million funding would be for this school year, but it’s unclear when the money would be allocated into district’s general fund.

"Utica Community Schools is able to take advantage of this opportunity as a result of a long history of fiscal best practices," said Superintendent Dr. Christine Johns. “We are committed to ensuring our district continues to meet academic goals and provide opportunities for all of our students.”

The best practices resolution follows several state and national recognitions regarding fiscal accountability for UCS. Over the past year, the state’s second largest district has received a favorable credit rating for its financial practices, received strong grades on its annual audit, and has been recognized for the educational return on the community’s investment in its schools.

According to UCS, in February, The Center for American Progress, a non-partisan research group, found that UCS attained a high level of student achievement for the amount of dollars spent on education. The center spent a year studying testing data and expenditure information to determine educational productivity in the nation’s schools.

Prior to the report, UCS was awarded a AA credit rating by Standard and Poor’s as part of its successful $14.2 million bond sale to fund construction projects. The credit rating reflected strong fiscal practices by UCS during a struggling economy.