State of Education
State of North Central Michigan College
By Cameron Brunet-Koch, PhD, President
North Central Michigan College
North Central Michigan College, celebrating the 50th anniversary of its founding this year, is playing an increasingly important role in the future of northern Michigan and the people who live here.
Enrollment for the semester just started is at a record 2,901 students. That is certainly good news for the college, but is due in part to people who have come to us in search of new skills following a layoff, a plant closing or other unfortunate occurrence in their lives. Fortunately, we have a dedicated group of faculty and staff who put students first and truly want them to succeed. Because the cost of studying here is very low, our graduates can enter or return to the workforce without a crippling load of debt. More than 200 industrious high school juniors and seniors are dual-enrolled here to get an early start on their college careers. Some of these hard-working and forward-thinking students should be able to go directly from high school to the University of Michigan or other institutions with all of their first-year college requirements completed and paid for.
North Central recently signed an agreement with Lawrence Technological University that will allow students to earn a bachelor’s degree in Information Technology right here in Petoskey. Students can start out at North Central, earn up to 75 credits (and an associate’s degree if they desire) with us, and transfer to Lawrence Tech. All of their Lawrence Tech classes will be offered right here in Petoskey.
The agreement is ideal for, but not limited to, North Central students who are already working toward an associate of applied science degree in either Computer Information Systems or Computer Networking.
To help students get a head start on their bachelor’s degree in IT, Lawrence Tech will offer two upper-level courses on the North Central campus in Petoskey in September 2008. These courses will have no pre-requisites and will be open to anyone including recent high school graduates, whether or not they are enrolled at North Central.
Businesses need skilled and creative IT professionals to help them compete locally, regionally, and globally. This new bachelor’s degree through Lawrence Tech will give students in our community an efficient way to become top candidates for those jobs.
Finally, we are anxiously awaiting word from Lansing on a capital outlay request that will transform our campus. We are proposing a $16.3 million University and Science Center project that, when completed, will have the facilities to train more nurses and others seeking a career in health care and the sciences. More space will be available for our four-year university partners who offer bachelor’s and master’s degree programs to our community. This project is essential to our community. We are determined to see it succeed soon.
State of Petoskey Public Schools
By John Scholten, Superintendent
Petoskey Public Schools
The Public Schools of Petoskey continue to be a very good school system that is striving for greatness through continuous improvement. The district has most recently routed its resources and professional development toward curriculum that is aligned with state expectations and presented consistently across the district; that the curriculum is being paced appropriately; and that our assessments effectively monitor student progress.
All public school systems within the state are rated by the same measure: the Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) and are expected to make adequate yearly progress (AYP) under the federal measure which is a part of the “No Child Left Behind” legislation. Petoskey continues to score well above average on the state tests and once again made adequate yearly progress in every one of our buildings. The federal government expects all districts to have all children reading and computing at grade level by 2014. Through our efforts at prescriptive teaching and determination, we feel our district is well on the way to meeting this goal.
We are assessing our students more frequently and utilizing better tools to be certain that our students are mastering what they are expected to learn. We are truly becoming more data driven when attempting to meet our student needs. With good data in hand, we are able to intervene more quickly and effectively to ensure that fewer students fall behind. We administer an online assessment up to three times per year and have found our students to be scoring above national averages in all tested areas. The nearly instantaneous results from this test help our teachers more quickly identify and address the needs of their individual students.
Though the results of our recent MEAP assessments at the elementary and middle school level have yet to be publicly released, they demonstrated a large improvement in our writing scores as well as an improvement in our math scores. These core curriculum areas are part of our current district goals and will be measured again in the fall of 2008. (Our high school students will be assessed in March.) Results like these are a true reflection of the hard work and dedication put forward by our students and staff and serves as tangible evidence supporting our journey toward greatness.
Finances will continue to be a struggle for all public school systems. We were grateful that pupil funding increased by 1%, but must unfortunately continue to look for ways to trim as expenses continue to outpace revenue. We also continue to be grateful for our sinking fund support, which has helped us maintain and improve our facilities. We recently completed renovation of our high school auditorium and will put future focus on building security, new doors/windows and other energy savings upgrades.
There is positive momentum within our school system. With your support, the Public Schools of Petoskey will continue on a positive trajectory toward greatness.
State of the Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District
By Mark Eckhardt, Superintendent
In spite of unprecedented school finance problems, K-12 public schools in the Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District service area have continued to make strides in student achievement. As community residents, we should be proud that our public schools outpace state and national averages for student achievement.
For example, Michigan high school students took the Michigan Merit Exam (MME) for the first time last spring. The test is primarily composed of the ACT, ACT WorkKeys, and other test items from the Michigan Curriculum Frameworks. Our area high schools students scored above the state average in all the content areas of that test. The 2006-2007 MEAP tests for grades 3-8 were even more impressive, with regional students scoring well above the state average in every category. Locally, 83.8% of our students were classified as “proficient” in English Language Arts as compared to 76.7% statewide, and 82.3% were proficient in Math compared to 75% statewide.
As you can see our schools continue to reach high achievements, despite financial pressures.
Like other area businesses, schools in the region have also experienced significant job loss and budget cuts. In the past four years, more than 165 jobs have been eliminated from schools in Charlevoix, Emmet and northern Antrim counties. Additionally, 70 more positions have had wages, hours, and/or benefits reduced. These cuts have removed nearly $10 million in payroll from local economies. Revenue shortfalls have also forced schools to reduce the purchase of goods and services from local vendors by another $5-8 million, placing even greater stress on the local economy.
I am sure we would all agree that schools are the core of our communities. Try to picture what Petoskey…or Pellston…or Harbor Springs would be like without its school. Often, it is the school that gives a community its image, its vitality, its actual sense of community.
School and Charlevoix-Emmet ISD staffs work collaboratively with parents and community partners to meet the educational needs of students in our area. By pooling resources and providing services regionally, Char-Em ISD provides important programs and services to 14 elementary schools, 6 middle schools, 9 high schools, 2 K-12 schools, 3 public school academies and 7 nonpublic schools within the 1,100 square miles of our service area. Additionally, the ISD operates or serves community-based, hearing impaired and early childhood special education classrooms, 2 schools for students with disabilities, 6 alternative education programs, and 5 preschool classrooms. Daily, these 11,000 students and families are instructed, comforted, hugged, and guided by the most talented and caring teachers, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, administrators, coaches, secretaries and other staff members I am proud to call my colleagues.
So, if asked about “The State of” schools within Char-Em ISD, I will tell you that truthfully we are struggling financially and will continue to do so until we get true relief from the Michigan Legislature. But, because of the strong relationships our schools have among families, businesses and their communities, we will weather these challenges we face and continue to prove that all children can learn and become productive members of our community.
But, the question is at what point will it become impossible to continue helping students achieve if we keep cutting the staff necessary to instruct them.
