2015 Kids Count Report: Poverty Increases. 524K MI kids in #poverty. 751K kids parents no full time job. #hunger.#propoor. #csr.

Gongwer News Service reported the following on July 22, 2015:

Michigan Last Among Great Lakes States In Child Well-Being

The 2015 Kids Count data book released Tuesday shows Michigan ranked 33rd overall and last among its fellow Great Lakes states in child well-being, with more children living in poverty in 2013 than in 2008, the last full year of the recession.

The report ranked the state in three other areas: education, where it was 37th; economic, family and community, where it was 29th; and health, where it was 23rd.

The report showed 524,000 children are living in poverty and 751,000 children have parents who lack full-time employment.

The report, released by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, also showed one in every two African American children and nearly one in every three Latino children in the state are living in poverty. And those children living in high-poverty neighborhoods - where poverty rates are more than 30 percent - increased, from 14 percent in 2006-10 to 17 percent in 2009-13.

The number of children in single-parent families also increased, from 32 percent in 2008 to 36 percent in 2013, accounting for 767,000 children.

On the education front, from 2011-13, 54 percent (127,000 children) were not attending preschool, compared to 53 percent in 2007-09. The report also shows 69 percent of fourth graders are not proficient in reading.

Some improvements shown in the report include an increase in eighth-grade math proficiency, though only slight. In 2013, 70 percent of eight graders were found to not be proficient, compared to 71 percent in 2007.

On the health side, the state improved in all four categories.

Low birth-weight babies decreased from 8.6 percent in 2008 to 8.2 percent in 2013; children without health insurance decreased from 5 percent in 2008 to 4 percent in 2013, and teens who abuse alcohol and drugs decreased from 8 percent in 2007-08 to 6 percent in 2012-13.

The Michigan League for Public Policy said recent initiatives in the state should help improve some of the education ranking the state saw in the report, but noted that the amount of children in poverty is telling.

"The economic recovery clearly has not reached everyone," Gilda Jacobs, president and CEO of the group, said in a statement. "Michigan's unemployment rate may be at the lowest it's been in the past decade, but many of these new jobs are low-wage and too many families continue to struggle to make ends meet to care for their children. This report proves that Michigan is losing ground while other states prosper and this is not the direction we need to go."

The League recommends a variety of changes to improve child wellbeing in the state, including:

  • Investing in two-generation strategies that improve access to opportunities for parents, such as increased funding for adult education and training, which ideally would lead to higher-wage jobs with benefits and regular schedules;
  • Continuing a strong investment in education with a particular focus on early childhood initiatives, such as home visitation and Early On;
  • Supporting a tax system that includes the state Earned Income Tax Credit, along with making key provisions of the federal EITC and Child Tax Credit permanent before they expire;
  • Investing in strategies to reduce the 8.2 percent of Michigan babies born too small, particularly in communities of color; and
  • Strengthening the safety net programs that provide temporary relief to families experiencing economic hardship by removing asset limits and truancy policies.

New American Families Data: #Poverty and Heads of Households. #change. #impact.#propoor

5 million US children being raised without a mother in the household.  15 million US children being raised with a father in the household.  

11% of two parent families live in poverty.

60% of US children with a single parent in the household live in poverty.

Are our educational institutions working with the new household demographic?  Are our social service providers working with this new demographic?

We need better public strategies to work with children living in poverty and living in different types of households.  We should not be using policies and programs that assume that everyone lives in a two parent household.

Admirals, Generals & Veterans So No To Trump: Not Qualified To Be Commander In Chief

As a veteran myself I was shocked and appalled to hear the Trump comments about former POW and now US Senator McCain,but I was more more shocked and appalled because of his attack with those same comments  on ALL veterans by GOP candidate Trump.  

We currently have two candidates for US President, one in each party, who are veterans of our nation's armed forces:  Senator Lindsey Graham and former US Senator Jim Webb.  There might be one or more now in recent days who have some military service.  Candidate Webb is a highly decorated Vietnam veteran who served under President Reagan and President Clinton in high level Pentagon positions.  He was the Secretary of the Navy and an Assistant Secretary of Defense.  Senator Graham until recently was a reservist in the Judge General Advocate's office. and has a long, honorable military record. 

We should all want to know about candidates for President and their domestic and foreign affairs   public policy positions.  We should also want to know their experiences in life and also very importantly, have they served their nation in the military.  That service should count for a lot.  Both Mr. Graham and Mr. Webb deserved credit for their service and it should be a major asset as voters make their minds up in their respective state primaries in coming months. 

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/20/retired-admirals-torpedo-president-trump.html?via=newsletter&source=DDMorning

MARQUETTE BELOW FORTY GROUP: The Future

This is group of amazing people below the age of forty who are amongst some of the most innovative, bright and entrepreneurial people in our community and in the nation.  They are employed all over our region and making huge contributions to our community, region and state.  If you have not taken a look at who they are and what they do you should do so real soon.

I am not sure why they are a "sub group" or "sponsored by" the Lake Superior Community Partnership (LSCP), but they are part of that organization.  I would think as important as this group is and their individual members are to the future of our community that they should have more representation on the LSCP Board of Directors.  If they are to remain within LSCP seems to me that the Below Forty membership would be invaluable in greater numbers on the Board.  Maybe every committee ought to have a below forty person as co-chair or why not make the Board Vice Chair someone from that demographic.  It would be great board development and an excellent legacy plan for the organization.

As you think about it maybe every organization in our community ought to have a plan to have  below forty individuals on their boards of directors.  Hopefully the Governor would think about that as he makes appointments to the various statewide university boards.  The NMU Board of Trustees is a perfect place to take advantage of the "below forty" demographic--they would add to the innovative and entrepreneurial environment needed on any campus campus.  Same for Michigan Tech and the other 10 state universities.  

Which of our community organizations already has under forty representation on the boards?  Congratulations to them--good futuristic thinking.  For those that do, they serve as good role model and examples of best practices.

Final note--maybe it is time for the Marquette Below Forty organization to be a stand along organization.  

SO MUCH FOR STAYING IN SESSION TILL ROAD ISSUE RESOLVED

Remember all the talk about in Lansing about staying in legislative session until the road tax solution is resolved--well that is long forgotten in Lansing.  The legislature has left for the summer or until called back by their leadership. 

Seems like the public is starting to lose patience with this practice of not resolving issues like this one.  All the polls say they want the legislature to work together to get solutions.  The legislature views these long legislative breaks (two, four and six week breaks) as a chance to get back to their districts and visit with voters to take their pulse.  Voters seem to view them as little more than "vacations" or "work avoidance".  One west Michigan voter told me she was most steamed about all these break times and especially two weeks for deer season.  She said: " Who gets two weeks for deer season?"  Don't know,  but this issue of legislative breaks and legislative gridlock is getting to be more and more of a concern to voters.  Somewhere in between the two extreme views is the truth, but it does not help when we have an issue like road repair and road revenue/tax that does not seem to get completed or takes toooooo long.  The problem here is that everyday the public are driving on deteriorating roads and feeling their cars get banged around on their way to work, to play, to worship--everyday, everywhere.  

So hopefully legislators will spend time during this potential six week break to hold town forums with real voters and not just special interests, where they can explain what is going on and what makes this issue so difficult to resolve.  The the voters back home can respond to that information and tell these lawmakers what they think.  The dialog is important and useful.  All sides need to use this time wisely and effectively if we are going to resolve this road funding issue.

Bridge Magazine has a good article on the road issue and the negotiations :

http://bridgemi.com/2015/07/state-roads-legislation-getting-bumpier-than-the-roads-that-need-fixing/

 

 

New Book by CEO of American Enterprise Institute

The think tank chief concludes his book with “Seven Habits of Highly Effective Conservatives,” a 38-page self-help manifesto for how lawmakers should talk so that real people will listen. Here is a summary of his key points—

  • Be a moralist. “Instead of championing low-wage Americans, conservatives sound like tax accountants to billionaires,” Brooks writes. “When we cheerlead entrepreneurship, for example, we usually heap praise on rags-to-riches outliers who are now multinational executives.” In explaining their opposition to a higher minimum wage, he urges conservatives to “stop laboring to explain inflation cycles, consumption patterns, and the laws of supply and demand.” Instead, he says, “lead with your heart and offer a statement of principle.”
  • Fight for people, not against things. Using a word cloud from Ronald Reagan’s 1980 RNC convention speech in Detroit, Brooks points out that “people” appeared more than anything else. He argues that the Great Communicator never got bogged down in wonky specifics.  Brooks writes. “Economics runs quietly in the background, like your computer’s operating system … Republicans today have become like a bunch of computer geeks talking about ‘bits,’ ‘algorithms,’ and ‘binary values.’ Most people don’t understand that stuff or much care about it.”
  • Get happy. “How often did you see Ronald Reagan truly angry? … His jokes were more devastating than any fire-and-brimstone words could have been,” Brooks recalls. “Thin skin and a hair trigger make us look like an angry political minority.”
  • Steal all the best arguments. “Make the arguments for empathy and compassion,” he writes. “Trait-trespassing is the right thing to do and it’s the only way to win nationwide.”
  • Say it in 30 seconds. “Each of us has ancient regions in our brain that make us decide if that politician on TV is a friend or foe,” writes Brooks. “If our brain says he or she’s a friend, we’re going to keep listening.”

Community Colleges Offering 4 Year Degrees

 

This past week we saw in Michigan another university go above the legislatively imposed tuition cap.  It gave up a million dollars in state aid for eight or ten times as much gained from a tuition increase.  Lots of hand wringing by policy makers about what to do with this development and the hand wringing will get worse as more universities make this choice.

At the same time Michigan we have a legislator re-introducing legislation to allow community colleges to offer some four year degrees that have up to now been the exclusive of four year universities.  

Over all of this of course is the issue of the cost of getting a two year and/or a four degree.  The cost to the student is getting higher and higher and leaving students with more and more student loan debt.

The debate is important about tuition costs and student debt.  The debate is important about loss of state aid to universities and the cost of offering a university curriculum, student services and construction of new campus buildings.  The debate is important about what is the scope of education that should be provided at a community college and should community college tuition be free..

Maybe the discussion between the legislators and community college and university presidents should really be between college and university trustees who approve these tuition hikes, who approve the expanding programs, who approve new buildings, etc., etc.. Maybe they should be asked why and what they are doing?  They are the policy makers in higher education and they approve all policies and procedures.

Maybe we need a discussion at a statewide level about higher education governance and cost.

Bridge magazine has an excellent overview of this issue in its recent edition.  http://bridgemi.com/2015/07/turf-war-community-colleges-want-to-offer-more-4-year-degrees/

 

Leaders Must Have Strategic and Operational Focus

"All leaders need to be direct, open and enabling.  They need to have a strategic and operational focus. This is the how and why of leadership. "Strategic leadership is is looking ahead and positioning the organization for the future.

"Operational leadership is getting results in the short term."

The More People Voting in the Public Square the Better, Says SOS. Yup Indeed.

Johnson: The Time Has Come For No-Reason Absentee Voting Michigan (from Gongwer News Service. 6.16.15)

The state has spent the last few years cleaning up its elections process and is ready to add no-reason absentee voting to the system, Secretary of State Ruth Johnson told the House Elections Committee on Wednesday.

"I believe Michigan is ready to offer this service to accommodate the busy schedule of hard working people," Ms. Johnson said. "Michigan has led the nation in modernizing processes and systems. ... Because of all the work we have done, the time is right for secure no-reason absentee voting."

*

She urged committee members to support HB 4724 to bring the state in line with 27 other states that offer no-reason absentee voting, but "with Michigan's stamp of security."

The bill, introduced by Rep. Lisa Posthumus Lyons (R-Alto), chair of the committee, would retain the traditional reasons allowing absentee voting. It would also allow a person to go to the local clerk to apply for a no-reason absentee ballot.

At the time the person is applying, he or she would have to follow the same rules as when receiving ballots on Election Day. Currently, the bill requires the person to show identification, but the committee discussed adding the current affidavit process.

The bill, which would take effect January 1, 2016, would also prohibit campaigning - beginning 45 days before the election - if an office was open and receiving applications for no-reason absentee ballots.

Ms. Johnson said no-reason absentee voting is an option the people want.

The committee did not vote on the bill, although there was no opposition presented. Ms. Lyons said she is giving the committee time to study the bill.

"It's a big change," she said.

Ms. Lyons said the issue has been politicized, but she said it's important to take partisanship out of elections as much as possible.

"Any time you are talking about changing how you do elections, I believe there is certainly a political component to it because that is the job of the parties," she said. "But I don't work for the party, I work for the people and we really need to look at what we can do to make sure our elections are fair, they're secure and helping ensure we have as much voter participation as possible."

Mary Hollinrake, the Kent County Clerk, said if the state approves a ban on straight ticket voting, then no-reason absentee voting would be crucial in preventing long lines at polling places.

Ms. Lyons said she is very interested in looking at an elimination of straight ticket voting.

"We don't vote for parties, we vote for people," she said.

Rep. Gretchen Driskell (D-Saline), minority vice chair of the committee, expressed some concern that a person voting no-reason absentee would be required to continuously apply in person to get a ballot, even after the state has validated his or her identity.

Rep. Jeff Irwin (D-Ann Arbor) said those opposing no-reason absentee voting often point to it as an avenue to increased fraud in elections. He said those most likely to vote absentee for no reason are the ones who don't want to "fib even a little bit" in voting absentee under current law.

"What we're doing here today, what we're talking about doing, isn't going to make life easier for the fraudsters," he said.

Chris Thomas, the director of elections for the Department of State, said there is no apparent increase in fraud in other states after the enactment of no-reason absentee voting.

Ms. Lyons said she is comfortable with hearing opposition to the bill, but wants to hear reasons. She said if someone says there will be an increase in fraud, she wants to hear how.

"No-reason opposition is not good enough. No-reason absentee, if it is secure, is good," she said.

Are The University Watchdogs Watching? Accreditation Bodies and Boards of Trustees?

Who is watching the watchdogs is what policy makers should be asking?  We pay a lot of public money to these accreditation organizations and as this article below says we may not be getting much for our money.  What about elected and appointed university boards?  Are they watching?  Who holds them accountable?  At least the elected boards have to face re election but not many are ever removed from office? Who is performing evaluations, etc., on board members?  Will more transparency help?  Should we have more public involvement on who gets on these boards>  More on this later. http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-watchdogs-of-college-education-rarely-bite-1434594602

Resolution Making Universities More Transparent Moves

"Resolution Opening Up U. Board Meetings Could See Vote Next Week

A resolution that would change the Constitution to require the state's university governing bodies to be subject to the Open Meetings Act could be brought up for a vote in the House Oversight and Ethics Committee next week, its chair said Thursday.

*

The resolution (HJR O) would strip the word "formal" from the section of the Constitution governing university board meetings, and would require sessions of governing bodies of higher education institutions to be open as prescribed in the Open Meetings Act.

Rep. Ed McBroom (R-Vulcan) said he hopes to report the resolution when the committee meets next week. The committee did adopt a substitute offered by Mr. McBroom that strips language from the resolution pertaining to the Freedom of Information Act.

He said he felt the wording was redundant as there is already a section in the Constitution regarding FOIA.

Because of a Supreme Court case in 1999, university governing boards are able to hold deliberations in private and only "formal" meetings in public.

Mr. McBroom said he has been meeting with universities to find out if there are "specific issues" the OMA would create for the boards.

"As I see it right now, the Open Meetings Act would be adequate. It already provides for closed sessions, and for open sessions depending on specific information," he said.

Mr. McBroom said to him the resolution is common sense. He said it fixes a lack of clarity in the Constitution that led to the 1999 decision.

"The courts have determined again and again university boards are governing boards," he said. "I think we simply need to adopt this to clarify what, in my mind, is already in the Constitution," he said. "I don't think that is a heavy lift. ... We'll see. I am always a little bit of an optimist on the desire of open and transparent government."

The committee heard more testimony on Thursday from people mostly bashing the University of Michigan.

Douglas Smith, a former professor at the U-M, told committee members the university secretly hired an attorney after a student doctor was found with child pornography so that it could cite attorney-client privilege when asked about the incident and an investigation of the university that began afterward.

Patrick Clawson, a private investigator from Flint, said he once served U-M Regent Denise Ilitch with a subpoena and she screamed at him and acted like she was above the law.

While most who testified in committee Thursday were supportive of the bill, the Presidents Council, State Universities of Michigan was opposed." (Gongwer News Service).

Back To Top >>

Feds Aid To Higher Ed Grows While State Aid Declines/Slows

This development is very important to students and parents as they try to fund their child's higher education and not leave them with a school loan the size of their parents first home mortgage.  There needs to be more transparency on how University boards of trustees/regents set tuition rates and how they monitor salary creep. http://www.routefifty.com/2015/06/pew-higher-education-funding-states/115129/?oref=rf-today-nl