Dear Friend,

Today I signed my sixth balanced, bipartisan education budget which makes record-breaking investments to set our students up for success, build up our schools, and support our teachers.

As a parent, I know our kids are our number one priority. That?s why this year?s education budget puts students first by making historic investments to improve learning outcomes and delivers on goals I proposed earlier this year to help every kid thrive from pre-K through postsecondary.

Education is key to growth?economic growth, community growth, and personal growth. ?Whether you?re headed to trade school, starting a union-backed apprenticeship, or going to community college tuition-free, you deserve a fair shot at your dream and growing your life here in Michigan.

Together, we are putting our students first, supporting our teachers, and growing opportunity so that anyone can ?make it? in Michigan.

Check out the details below.

Sincerely,

Gretchen Whitmer

Governor

K-12 Students ? Helping Kids Learn

Every kid deserves a fair shot at a bright future and the best way to set them up for success is to invest in them and their classrooms. This budget:

• Continues our all-time high per-pupil investment?with over $10,000 per kid?and keeps the funding gap between schools closed.
• Increases per-pupil funding by 4% ? up $400 over last year. In total, we have increased per-pupil funding by 26% since I took office in 2019.
• Delivers additional resources for at-risk students, English language learners, rural districts, and special education students.
• Tackles our literacy crisis head-on, supporting our literacy coaches and offering more personalized academic instruction.
• Takes mental health and school safety seriously, with ongoing per-pupil investments in both that schools can use to hire more counselors, social workers, and campus resource officers.

Feeding our Students

Students should focus on learning, not worrying about their next meal.

• This budget continues providing every single Michigan public school student?all 4 million of them?free breakfast and lunch at school.
• Free meals save parents $850 a year, per kid, and valuable time every morning.
• We?ll keep feeding kids over the summer too. This budget keeps supporting ?Meet Up and Eat Up? programs, which offer any Michigander 18 and under free meals all summer long.

Supporting Educators

So much of our success depends on the teachers and staff who show up every day and fight for their students as if they were their children. That?s why this budget:

• Lowers costs by putting money back in the pockets of our teachers.
• Continues helping current teachers pay back their student loans.
• Supports students teachers on their path to the classroom by continuing to offer paid opportunities.
• Funds the MI Future Educator Fellowship, a tuition-free?program?for college students to become certified teachers.
• Funds a 15% rate increase for childcare and bonuses for childcare workers.

The Michigan Guarantee: Pre-K - Community College

Earlier this year, I proposed what I?m calling the Michigan Guarantee, a plan to give every kid access to a free, public education from pre-K through community college.

I am proud that in this year?s budget, we got it done.?

Free Pre-K

• In this budget, we are expanding access to free pre-K to every four-year-old, prioritizing families who need it most.
• Getting this done saves parents $10,000 a year and helps every kid arrive at kindergarten more ready to learn.

Free Community College

• This budget will allow every high school graduate from the class of 2024 and beyond to earn an associate?s degree or skills certificate at their local community college, tuition-free.
• This is a big deal. It?s a life-changing opportunity for nearly 20,000 young people annually, saving them up to $4,800 while putting them on a path to a better-paying job.

Supporting Higher Education

We are also doing more to support students pursuing their education at 4-year institutions and Michiganders who want to go back to school or switch careers. That's why this budget:

• Increases funding for the Michigan Achievement Scholarship to lower the cost of college by thousands of dollars a year?up to $27,500 over 5 years?for a majority of graduating high school seniors.
• Continues funding Michigan Reconnect, which offers anyone 25 and older a tuition-free degree or skills training at their local community college.
• Increases the Tuition Incentive Program and fully funding the Michigan Indian Tuition Waiver, two programs that open doors of higher education to groups too often left out or left behind.