Patricia Green, incoming superintendent of the Ann Arbor Public Schools, spoke during the AAPS board's March 30 meeting. She starts her job in July. (Photo by the writer.)

Green was in town for a brief visit to meet with members of the administration and will start her tenure here in July. Noting that she hopes to make one more visit before then, Green stated her commitment to connecting with the district and encouraging members of the community to reach out.

Wednesday’s meeting was highlighted by talk of how to deal with looming budget issues. The board discussed – then unanimously approved – a resolution opposing the transfer of some state School Aid Fund money, which has traditionally financed K-12 schools, to fund higher education instead. Trustee Andy Thomas called the proposed transfer “a rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul scenario, done in a very underhanded manner.”

Budget issues were also a key part of a report to the board by Brit Satchwell, president of the Ann Arbor Education Association, the teacher’s union. He said the union’s efforts are focused on educating the public about sacrifices the district would have to make to accommodate proposed cuts, keeping in mind concessions that have already been made.

Also during Wednesday’s meeting, the board voted to expand the district’s schools of choice program. They got an update about a partnership with the University of Michigan involving Mitchell Elementary and Scarlett Middle schools, and heard a report on efforts to reduce energy costs throughout the district.

Four people spoke during the time set aside for public commentary. Speakers expressed concern over the district’s scheduling of events in conflict with religious holidays, and objected to a proposed expansion of the parking lot at Haisley Elementary School.

Board Opposes Transfer of School Aid Fund

Trustees unanimously supported a resolution opposing the transfer of state School Aid Fund (SAF) money to institutions of higher education. A proposal being considered by the state legislature would divert some of the SAF funds, which are traditionally used to finance K-12 public schools.

The issue had been a rallying point at previous meetings, with trustees expressing their disbelief that the district’s surplus in SAF money could be lost due to the transfer of some of that money to community colleges and other higher education institutions.

The resolution, which has been circulating among public school boards in Michigan, was introduced and read by trustee Irene Patalan. [.pdf file of a draft resolution distributed by the Michigan Association of School Boards (MASB) and used by the AAPS board] The resolution cited several arguments against the transfer of funds. It noted that funding for public education has failed to keep up with rising costs, and pointed out that institutions of higher education can earn revenue through tuition increases, while K-12 districts can not.

The resolution also touched on how Proposal A, a 1994 statewide ballot initiative that shifted responsibility for K-12 funding to the state, was coupled with the understanding that these funds would be used solely for K-12 education.

Board members hoped that passing this resolution would help serve as a call to action.

“We recognize the need for (higher education) funding, but this is a rob-Peter-to-pay-Paul scenario, done in a very underhanded manner,” trustee Andy Thomas said.

Board president Deb Mexicotte agreed, adding that this transfer of funds would run contrary to what the public wanted the SAF to be used for.

“While we’re arguing the facts that the SAF was set aside and promised to K-12, this is also contrary to the will of the people as to how this money should be used, and how this is being used as an argument for an erosion of public education,” Mexicotte said. “I am in support of passing this resolution. We should speak out on this at every opportunity we get.”

Outcome: The board unanimously approved the resolution that opposes transferring state School Aid Fund money to fund higher education.

[For background on budget issues, see Chronicle coverage of the board's March 16, 2011 meeting, when interim superintendent Robert Allen gave the board an update on the district's budget.]

Association Reports

At each meeting, the board invites reports from six associations: the Youth Senate, the Ann Arbor Parent Advisory Committee on Special Education (AAPAC), the Parent-Teacher-Organization Council (PTOC), the Black Parents Student Support Group (BPSSG), the Ann Arbor Administrators Association (AAAA), and the Ann Arbor Education Association (AAEA), the teacher’s union.

On March 30, the board heard from the teacher’s union and the BPSSG.

Association Reports: Ann Arbor Education Association

Brit Satchwell, president of the Ann Arbor teacher’s union, echoed the same themes that the board expressed in opposing Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposals for reduced education funding. He updated the board on the AAEA’s efforts to fight those funding cuts.

Satchwell said the main thrust of the effort is to educate the public about the sacrifices the district would have to make to accommodate these cuts, keeping in mind the concessions that have already been made.

“We entered this year projecting a $7 million deficit, which was then upped to $15 million after the cuts from Snyder, and if the special education millage fails it will be $22 million,” Satchwell said, referring to a renewal of the 0.985-mill tax that is on the May 3, 2011 ballot. “The worse-case scenario for this year, plus the [$35 million] cuts of the last five years, would total to about one-third of an annual [city of] Ann Arbor budget, which is astounding.”

Satchwell closed by saying that the district would not be able to continue to cope with these cuts, adding that changes at the state level would be necessary for survival.

He argued that if the Michigan Association of School Administrators and the Michigan Association of School Boards could do at the state level what the local districts are doing, “we’d have a much better state and a brighter future,” Satchwell said. “If there is no success at that level, all our efforts here will be for naught.”

Association Reports: Black Parent Student Support Group

Brian Johnson delivered a report on behalf of the Black Parent Student Support Group. Johnson, a Pioneer High School graduate, told the board that the BPSSG would be making the closing of the achievement gap a top priority.

“We were battling the same issue when I graduated too many years ago,” he said. Johnson added that the organization appreciated the ongoing support of the board.

Schools of Choice Expansion

Jane Landefeld, the AAPS director of student accounting and administrative support, was on hand to discuss a schools of choice (SOC) proposal – board members had raised some questions about it at the previous board meeting, on March 16. Compared to the current school year, the proposal would open up 40 additional spaces for students outside the district – for a total of 190 openings – as a way of increasing enrollment and revenue. Trustees had questions about how the district would consider siblings of SOC students looking to enter the district in different grades or at a later time. [.pdf of schools of choice memorandum]

A year ago, AAPS opened 150 slots for its SOC program, but they were only able to attract 79 students. Administrators attributed this to the district’s limited number of slots in certain grades, which restricted the ability to bring in siblings of children who applied for the schools of choice program.

At Wednesday’s meeting, Landefeld said that state regulations allow siblings of a child enrolled in an SOC program to receive priority for admission. This extra consideration makes it easier for families who want to move all their children into the district, rather than just one child.

The window for applying for the SOC program is April 15 to May 15, with the district opening 60 seats in kindergarten, 60 seats in first grade and 50 seats in sixth grade classrooms. Twenty slots for grades 2-5 will also be opened, with each grade getting five openings.

Outcome: Board members unanimously approved additional schools of choice openings, as part of their action consent agenda, which also included a $5,000 gift from the Pioneer High School Booster Club for a fence near Holloway field, the minutes for the board’s March 16 regular meeting, and minor policy changes discussed at the board’s previous meeting.

Public Commentary: Scheduling, Haisley Parking Lot

Four people spoke during the March 30 meeting’s public commentary session, addressing two areas of concern: (1) scheduling events that conflict with religious holidays; and (2) the expansion of the parking lot at Haisley Elementary School.

Public Commentary: Scheduling Policy

Seth Goldstein, a junior at Skyline High School, and James Toy of Ann Arbor spoke about the district’s scheduling policy. Goldstein began by asking the board for help changing the date of an athletic event that conflicts with Yom Kippur, a Jewish holiday that this year begins at sunset on Friday, Oct. 7.

The district’s scheduling policy mandates that significant events such as athletic contests or major exams cannot coincide with holidays such as Yom Kippur. Goldstein said his family has been pursuing this since November.

“We should show an awareness of the importance of these policies to foster feelings of inclusion, not discrimination,” he said.

Toy, a well-known community activist, also spoke on the issue of discrimination, taking a broader view of the board’s efforts. He shared a story of his experience as a Chinese-American during World War II. Toy said he had to wear a sign around his neck every day that read “I am not a Jap” to avoid harassment. He went on to commend the board for their efforts to combat harassment and bullying, adding that he hoped they would continue to protect minorities in situations such as Goldstein’s.

“We need to work with each other as we labor for the human worth and dignity of all,” Toy said.

Public Commentary: Haisley Parking Lot

Theresa Schneider and Scott Sproat – two parents with children at Haisley Elementary School – spoke out against a proposal to expand the school’s parking lot. The expansion is intended to alleviate traffic problems.

Schneider and Sprote said that people such as Mary Anne Jaeger, Haisley’s principal, are framing this expansion as necessary in order to meet state requirements, when that is not the case, they said.

“Parking expansion is not a requirement. It is a convenient solution,” Schneider said. “We need to engage people about alternatives.”

Sprote added that Jaeger omitted items from the minutes of a March 21 meeting on the issue, such as not including a student who spoke in support of alternatives to expansion. Because of this, Sprote felt that someone else should take minutes at future meetings.

Both parents expressed their desire for a fact sheet detailing the situation, and their worry that there would be no vote on the issue.

Board Committee Reports

The board has two standing committees. The planning committee consists of Christine Stead (chair), Susan Baskett, and Irene Patalan. The performance committee consists of Glenn Nelson (chair), Simone Lightfoot, and Andy Thomas. Board president Deb Mexicotte is not a member of either committee.

Committee Reports: Performance Committee

All three of the trustees from the performance committee updated the board on items that they had discussed, including the district’s partnership with the University of Michigan, efforts to combat bullying and harassment, and updated policies for facility use.

Trustee Andy Thomas opened by discussing how the district is looking to grow the UM partnership, formerly known as the lab school, which involves Mitchell Elementary School and Scarlett Middle School. Thomas and the performance committee had been briefed on the project by Lee Anne Dickinson-Kelley, interim deputy superintendent for instructional services, and Mitchell Elementary School principle Kathy Scarnecchia.

Thomas reported that the district’s vision for the partnership would include a combined K-8 campus consisting of teachers, interns (the term for students from UM), AAPS students, parents and community members. There will be a continuation of some previously held initiatives, such as the Mighty Mustang math program and the Scarlett Math Assessment project. The partnership would be launched for the 2011-12 school year.

Teachers in both schools will be given the option of transferring if they are not interested in the partnership. Teachers who choose to stay will be asked to affirm that they are committed to the new approach, which includes employing culturally relevant teaching methods, partnering with families, and examining their own practices. Thomas said that an overwhelming majority had expressed interest in being a part of the new set-up, with a large pool of teachers in other schools eager to participate as well.

In addition, Thomas said that a balanced schedule is being considered for use during the 2012-13 school year. The specifics of a balanced schedule are yet to be determined, but the general structure would consist of an extended school year that includes intersessions, which are additional opportunities to take elective courses. A cost analysis will also be done, as well as a report on how the experience of a student at Scarlett or Mitchell will differ from students at other schools. [For additional background on this project, see Chronicle coverage of the AAPS board's Dec. 8, 2010 meeting.]

Thomas closed his portion of the presentation by stating the performance committee’s excitement for growing the UM partnership, giving it their endorsement.

Trustee Glenn Nelson was the next to present from the performance committee, talking about its focus on school climate – bullying and harassment. Some of the efforts he mentioned included district principals traveling to an anti-bullying conference to bring back effective techniques to address this problem, and an update on the progress of surveys being given to AAPS students regarding school climate.

Nelson added that Danny Brown, a youth coordinator from the Neutral Zone, was on hand at the performance committee meeting to give his input on effective ways to combat bullying through methods such as including elements of diversity in a student’s everyday curriculum.

Nelson concluded his update by praising the discussion they had, adding that they would continue to work on improving school climate. “We can look forward to more progress from surveys and our efforts,” he said.

Trustee Simone Lightfoot was the last member of the performance committee to make comments, giving a brief update on changes made to the district’s policy on facility use. Lightfoot said all the changes were being finalized and will be made public when that process is complete.

Committee Reports: Planning Committee

Trustee Christine Stead gave a brief report on behalf of the planning committee, which had also received a presentation on the UM partnership at Mitchell and Scarlett schools. Stead said she and other planning committee members were excited about the partnership and were looking to schedule community meetings to discuss a balanced schedule.

The planning committee was also visited by members of the community who are concerned about the Haisley parking lot expansion, she said. Stead reported that committee members – along with Randy Trent, AAPS executive director of physical properties – had discussed the issue at their meeting.

Interim Superintendent’s Report

Interim superintendent Robert Allen gave a report that focused on accomplishments by AAPS students. The update was highlighted by comments about the Bands in Review event, which had taken place on March 25-26. Allen said the performances were “wonderful as usual,” and he thanked the volunteers who helped make the event possible.

Allen also wished everyone a peaceful and restful spring break, which runs from the end of the school day on Friday, April 1 through Sunday, April 10.

Facilities Report: Energy, Forsythe Easement

Randy Trent, AAPS executive director of physical properties, delivered two reports to the board at Wednesday’s meeting: An update on the district’s energy and sustainability efforts, and a briefing on an easement request for property at Forsythe Middle School.

Facilities Reports: EASE Program

Trent began by updating the board on the district’s energy and sustainability efforts. The update centered on the Environmental Awareness and Sustainability Education (EASE) program.

The EASE program was approved in 2010 and will be slightly expanded this year. The goal is to reduce energy consumption at AAPS facilities by 4% per year over a four-year period. Reducing energy at that level would cut the district’s energy expenses by $324,000 per year.

Trent – assisted by Johnson Controls, which partnered with the district on this initiative – will be continuing to gather information about the district’s utilities usage. This information will be displayed on a soon-to-be-launched website and used to look for areas where costs can be reduced.

“We know every fan heater and fish tank – everything that’s plugged in,” Trent said.

To expand on these efforts, Trent said the district will now look to educate AAPS students about energy-conscious behaviors through a number of initiatives.

The new website, which will be available through the AAPS main website, will contain information collected by the EASE program. An educational booth will also be used, moving from school to school teaching students about the EASE program and a number of other sustainability measures.

Trustee Simone Lightfoot felt that educating students was a good idea, adding that students themselves could be consulted for insight about where costs could be cut.

Trent agreed, saying that there will be a phone number for people to call if they want to make suggestions, as well as a way to submit ideas online. Surveys will be provided to measure utility usage and awareness of the EASE program.

Trent said the efforts will not focus only on education. There will also be a report on how much money the district is saving thanks to these initiatives. Trent estimated the amount to be at least $324,000, continuing efforts of maintaining cost-effective utility service.

“To give you a perspective of where we are, when I started in 1984 we had a budget of $5.4 million,” he said. “We still have that today [despite increases in utility costs] and we’re looking to reduce it.”

Trent concluded by talking about how the many energy-friendly measures they could adopt would save the district money.

“The best energy is energy you don’t use,” he said. And that results in “more dollars to put toward the education of students.”

Facilities Reports: Forsythe Easement Request

Following his presentation on sustainability efforts, Trent – along with trustee Andy Thomas – gave a brief report on an easement request from a resident near Forsythe Middle School.

Mark and Elizabeth Perry live on Hillridge Boulevard, a property next to Forsythe, which is located at 1655 Newport Road. The Perrys are requesting that AAPS grant a temporary easement so that they can install and connect a drain line to an existing storm drain on the school’s property. An easement gives an individual or entity the right to use property that they don’t own.

In addition, the Perrys are asking for a permanent easement that would allow them to operate, maintain, repair or replace the drain line, if necessary. [.pdf file of easement request]

Trent and Thomas reported that the storm sewer near Forsythe occasionally has drainage difficulties, due to its surrounding topography.

The request will be back for more discussion and a vote at the next regular board meeting, on April 20.

Misc. Communications

Trustee Christine Stead had one update during the board’s agenda planning section, providing information on the work being done to organize a roundtable for state legislators. Stead said that some good ideas for how to combat the budget cuts proposed by Gov. Rick Snyder had been brainstormed, and the next step would be to find a date that would work for legislators to meet with school officials.

Wednesday’s meeting concluded with board members sharing their experiences at recent district events. Trustees lauded the performances at Bands in Review. They also expressed praise for the Neutral Zone‘s Wine, Word and Song event, Tappan Middle School’s performance of “Grease,” and the FIRST robotics district competition held at Skyline High School.

Present: President Deb Mexicotte, secretary Andy Thomas, treasurer Irene Patalan, and trustees Glenn Nelson, Simone Lightfoot and Christine Stead.

Absent: Vice president Susan Baskett.

Next regular meeting: Wednesday, April 20, 2011, at 7 p.m. in the fourth-floor conference room of the downtown Ann Arbor District Library, 343 S. Fifth Ave. [confirm date]

About the writer: Eric Anderson is an intern for The Ann Arbor Chronicle. Jennifer Coffman, who usually covers AAPS board meetings for The Chronicle, is taking a maternity break.

Allen told board members that the district faces a $15 million shortfall in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1. That figure assumes the special education millage, on the ballot for May 3, will be renewed. If voters don’t approve the millage renewal, the deficit could grow to nearly $21 million.

During the meeting, board members criticized Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed state budget, which calls for cuts to K-12 education. They cautioned that his focus on business tax cuts would undermine the quality of public education in the state. “I don’t think most people want education ravaged in order to fund a huge business tax cut,” trustee Glenn Nelson said. “We need to shout this story from the rooftops.”

Allen will be giving an expanded report on the budget situation to the public from 6:30-8 p.m. on Monday, March 21 at the Pioneer High School cafeteria annex. The board also discussed setting up a time to meet with state legislators, to discuss their concerns about the state budget proposals.

Also during Wednesday’s meeting, board president Deb Mexicotte reported that the district is close to wrapping up contract negotiations with Patricia Green, the board’s choice to become the district’s next superintendent. She hoped to provide additional details soon, including a potential start date.

Budget Presentation

Interim superintendent Robert Allen started his budget presentation by describing how public school districts in Michigan are funded. The state controls revenues for local school districts in two ways. First, it collects taxes directly from residential and non-residential property owners – 6 mills each, annually – and pools that money into the state’s School Aid Fund (SAF), which also includes revenues from sales and income taxes, state lottery revenue and other sources. Out of this fund, the state pays local school districts a per-pupil allotment – a variable amount set by the state legislature that can increase or decrease each year.

In addition, state law controls the amount of taxes that school districts can levy directly – those that are not pooled into the SAF. Beyond the 6 mills that go into the SAF, for example, there’s an additional tax on non-residential property owners, but the state caps that tax at 18 mills. Both the funding from non-SAF local property taxes and from the total School Aid Fund are factored into an amount called the per-pupil “foundation allowance,” which varies by district. For Ann Arbor, the current per-pupil foundation allowance is $9,336, with roughly 16,440 students in the district.

These revenue sources, along with grants and private donations from groups like the Ann Arbor Public Schools Educational Foundation, are what the district relies on for everything from employee salaries to mandated special education programs. However, since 1995 the district’s per-pupil funding allocation has only risen once. And if Gov. Rick Snyder’s budget proposal is adopted, per-pupil funding would decrease by about $700.

Allen described in more detail how the many budget changes proposed by Snyder will have an impact on public education funding. For example, the state’s School Aid Fund, which has been dedicated solely to funding K-12 districts, would be combined with the state fund for community colleges and other public institutions for higher education. Allen said this was unfair – it would create a deficit in the School Aid Fund, which had a surplus before higher education was included.

“I don’t think those two are on the same playing field,” Allen said. “[Higher education institutions] have options to raise tuition, whereas school districts have very few options.”

These funding changes drew some questions from the board about the legality of changes to the School Aid Fund. “If these sources of revenue were specifically legislated to fund K-12 education, what authority does the state have to redirect that to higher education?” trustee Andy Thomas asked.

Allen was as uncertain as Thomas was, but trustee Christine Stead had some insight. Stead said that there have been mixed reactions in Lansing to the notion that the state can use these tactics – in light of the fact that communities and school districts are in dire economic straits. ”There may be a constitutional challenge to what has been proposed,” she said.

Another challenge Allen touched on in his presentation is the growing cost of the district’s pension plan. Local districts are being required to make higher contributions to the Michigan Public School Employees Retirement System (MPSERS), which is managed by the state but covers local district employees. Those contributions have grown to the point where the district is paying for at least 20% of an employee’s pension. ”This is the fastest-growing and largest burden for the district,” Allen said.

He characterized the pension issue as contributing to a structural deficit. The current pension system is a defined benefit plan. Having a defined benefit plan is troublesome, Allen said. With growing health insurance costs and fewer employees to support the plan, the district’s mandated contributions to the system are increasing.

Allen contrasted the defined benefit approach to a defined contribution plan, a system used by most for-profit organizations and which has more controllable costs. [In defined benefit plans, retirees receive a set amount per month during their retirement. In defined contribution plans, employers pay a set amount into the retirement plan while a person is employed. The most common of these defined contribution plans is the 401(k).]

All of these issues contribute to a budget shortfall that Allen estimates at about $15 million for the upcoming fiscal year, beginning July 1, 2011. This figure assumes that the upcoming special education millage renewal will pass. [See Chronicle coverage: "AAPS Preps for Special Ed Tax"] It did not take into account new information received by trustees who attended a legislative meeting in Lansing earlier that day, where they learned that estimated education cuts proposed by the Snyder administration may be conservative. About the $15 million shortfall, Allen said: ”This is a best-case scenario.”

Allen will be giving an expanded report on the budget situation to the public from 6:30-8 p.m. on Monday, March 21 at the Pioneer High School cafeteria annex.

Budget: Strategies

After detailing the hurdles the district will have to overcome, Allen laid out some of the ways they can combat the projected deficit.

He said one of the biggest priorities for AAPS is to lobby the state for more local control of funding, and for changes in the distribution of state funding for public education. These structural and fundamental changes are necessary because, as Allen said, currently the district is addressing the yearly shortfalls with “band-aid solutions.”

“We identify a shortfall and come up with ways to meet that,” he said. “That is not a long-term solution.”

Allen also suggested increasing student enrollment, consolidation or collaboration with other organizations, and private donations as other possible solutions to close the deficit. [For additional background on possible AAPS revenue strategies, see Chronicle coverage: "AAPS Mulls Options to Increase Revenues"]

Budget: Strategies – Private Donations

Trustee Christine Stead took the opportunity to discuss private donations, a solution she felt could be lucrative. “I believe there is an opportunity for significant donations to AAPS,” she said. “I’d like to really think about this private giving in a paradigm-shift kind of way.”

Stead pointed out that many businesses in the community want to see the district succeed because that would make them successful as well. If a significant partnership was sought, she said, a donation in the millions was possible.

Even with a significant donation, trustee Andy Thomas reminded the board that private giving alone would not be enough to close the budget gap.

“If we were to get a large donation of $1 million, that would roughly cover one-tenth of the increase in just pension contributions for just one year,” he said. “This is a very difficult problem.”

Budget: Strategies – School of Choice

Increasing student enrollment by opening a school of choice program was another idea that the board felt could have a significant impact on revenue. The program opens up additional spaces for students from outside the district to fill. The application process includes listing a student’s top four school choices, which the district uses to fill available slots. A lottery system is used for schools with more applicants than spaces, and those who are not initially selected are put on a waiting list.

The district used this strategy last year, hoping to enroll an additional 150 students. However, they were only able to attract 76 79 more. According to interim deputy superintendent Lee Ann Dickinson-Kelly, this was due to the district’s inability to bring in siblings of children who applied for the school of choice program. A number of students were lost because their family had other siblings looking to enter different grades, but there were no available openings.

To deal with this, the district is allowing for more flexibility in the amount of school of choice students it can enroll. The district will be opening 60 spaces in kindergarten and first grades for a total of 120. Twenty spaces will also be evenly distributed for second- through fifth-grade classrooms in the district, with each grade getting five openings.

While the district will be opening 140 spaces, they will allow up to 190 students to take advantage of the program. These extra 50 slots are included for increased flexibility, allowing families the opportunity to move all their children into the district without the limits they faced last year.

Liz Margolis, the district’s director of communications, said there will also be an increased effort on marketing the program, with advertisements running in area newspapers, flyers and other forms of publicity.

Dickinson-Kelly concluded the recommendation by proposing a window of April 15 to May 15 for families to sign up. The board will revisit the issue at its next meeting, on March 30.

Budget: Board Commentary on Snyder

The budget discussion led to criticism by some trustees of Gov. Rick Snyder’s view’s on public education funding.

Glenn Nelson opened the commentary, saying that the board can’t let the new budget proposals from the Snyder administration be framed as foregone conclusions. “Education in this budget has been put at the bottom of the priority list,” he said. “I don’t think most people want education ravaged in order to fund a huge business tax cut – we need to shout this story from the rooftops.”

Christine Stead followed Nelson’s point, and touched on the assumptions being made that Snyder’s commitment to tax cuts would create jobs. “The notion that job creation is the solution and that businesses will create jobs in Michigan is an assumption. If you look at Snyder, he didn’t do that,” Stead said, referencing Snyder’s tenure at the helm of the computer firm Gateway.

Stead continued by discussing the assumption that the jobs created would have well-paying salaries that can support a family, saying that this was unlikely to be true. She bemoaned the view that giving tax breaks to businesses would benefit Michigan, saying that business values and the mission of CEOs do not necessarily translate to a better community.

Board president Deb Mexicotte agreed with Stead and Nelson regarding Snyder’s budget priorities, as well as the poor state of public education funding over the past few decades.

“It is obvious to anyone who has been listening to the way this [budget] has been put together, and has been watching the drumbeat against public education for the last 30 years by the Republican party,” she said. “This isn’t new.”

Mexicotte added that, without opposition, the current trend against funding public education would continue.

Susan Baskett made the final argument for action, urging those who have supported education to show more than passive support, and saying that those who do not support education need to be identified and educated about the importance of public schools in the community.

“We have to stop being nice,” she said. “We know people will pay for what they value and we need to remind (legislators) of this. Who doesn’t value education? A business tax reduction over our children?”

Allen used the discussion on possible methods of closing the budget shortfall to segue into his presentation on the upcoming special education millage renewal. He re-emphasized a number of the points made during a presentation at the board’s regular meeting on March 2, given by representatives from AAPS Student Intervention and Support Services (SISS). From Chronicle coverage of that meeting:

By way of background, at its December 2010 board meeting, the Washtenaw Intermediate School District (WISD) voted to place before voters a renewal of an existing tax that supports special education in all school districts in Washtenaw County. It will appear on the ballot on May 3, 2011.

The funds collected through the millage support special ed services for students with physical, mental or emotional disabilities up to age 26.

First approved in 2004 at the rate of 1 mill, the six-year millage expired after the 2010 tax season. The proposed renewal of the special ed tax, at a rate of 0.985 mill, would extend another seven years – through 2017. A tax rate of 1 mill is equivalent to $1 for every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value. The millage appears on tax bills under the label WISD SPEC ED.

Allen expanded on the importance of this special education funding by detailing the district’s entire special education budget, totaling nearly $40 million. Much of this is covered through reimbursements from the state and federal government, though the district spent about $4 million in general fund dollars last year for special education. The special education millage provides about $6 million to cover remaining costs. Without the millage, that $6 million would need to come from the district’s general fund – adding to the projected deficit.

“This truly impacts the entire district,” Allen said.

Special Presentations

The meeting was opened with two presentations from students.

The Skyline Horn Trio, directed by Skyline High School’s band director, Jason Smith, opened the student presentations by performing for the board. Smith said he was very proud of the trio, as well as his entire music program, adding that the three musicians are “great individuals – they’re really very talented.”

After the performance, Larry Dishman, coordinator for the Hikone-Ann Arbor cultural exchange program, talked to the board about the program and introduced a group of middle school students who were at the meeting to report on their experiences.

The program gave students the opportunity to travel to Ann Arbor’s sister city of Hikone, Japan for about two weeks in late October and early November 2010, learning about Japanese culture and living with a host family. AAPS students and their families also hosted students from Japan for eight days, introducing them to an American way of life.

Dishman reported that he had been in contact with program representatives from Japan and he was happy to announce that they were not directly affected by the recent earthquake. “They are safe and sound,” he said. “Their only regret is that they aren’t getting as much information as we are.”

Students from the program then talked about different aspects of their experience. Topics included the classes they took prior to their trip to learn about the language and culture, as well as fundraising they did.

Trustee Glenn Nelson asked the group if there was anything they encountered that they did not expect. Students answered that they were surprised by some of the food they tried and by the affectionate style of interaction they saw – they had expected much more formality.

After the presentation, board president Deb Mexicotte expressed appreciation that the students had an enjoyable time, hoping that other students would be encouraged to sign up for the program.

Association Reports

At each meeting, the board invites reports from six associations: the Youth Senate, the Ann Arbor Parent Advisory Committee on Special Education (AAPAC), the Parent-Teacher-Organization Council (PTOC), the Black Parents Student Support Group (BPSSG), the Ann Arbor Administrators Association (AAAA), and the Ann Arbor Education Association (AAEA). At this meeting, the board heard from the Youth Senate, AAPAC, and the PTOC.

Association Reports: Youth Senate

Aoxue Tang, a junior from Pioneer High School, represented the Youth Senate by delivering the first report. Tang updated the board on the Youth Senate’s philanthropic projects focused on raising awareness about poverty through a series of presentations.

“Students have participated in varied service events and have decided to donate proceeds raised from the presentations to the Washtenaw Intermediate School District’s Education Project for Homeless Youth,” Tang said.

Tang also touched on the role of standardized testing, discussing recent developments that have made the Youth Senate question a test’s usefulness. The Michigan Merit Exam was the focus of this portion of the address, with Tang pointing out that, while the test does provide an opportunity to practice for the ACT, the revocation of the Michigan Promise scholarship makes the MME unnecessary.

Association Reports: AAPAC

Lauren Roland addressed the board on behalf of the Ann Arbor Parent Advisory Committee on Special Education. Roland began by reporting that her son, a fourth-grade student in AAPS with autism spectrum disorder, was doing very well, thanks to the structures and support in place from the district. This included her son’s participation in a field trip to see the Ann Arbor Symphony Orchestra, an event that required preparation due to the increase in sensory activity that would accompany the performance. Her son had a successful trip, she said, and according to one teacher, enjoyed the performance.

She also thanked board president Deb Mexicotte for attending an AAPAC meeting recently to discuss the upcoming special education millage renewal.

Roland closed her presentation by echoing the call for an Ann Arbor-based Young Adult Program (YAP), helping those with special needs transition into society. [The board heard a presentation about a possible YAP for Ann Arbor at their March 2, 2011 meeting.] AAPAC has been emphasizing this cause for months, and Roland reiterated that there is enough parent and community support to justify the creation of a program.

Association Reports: Parent-Teacher Organization Council

Martine Perreault delivered the final association report, on behalf of the Parent-Teacher Organization Council. Perreault opened by welcoming Patricia Green, the district’s next superintendent, before discussing the PTOC’s upcoming meetings.

Perreault highlighted the PTOC’s March 21 meeting, where effective fundraising strategies will be discussed. The meeting will start at 7 p.m. at the Balas Administration Building, 2555 S. State St. She added that the PTOC will be surveying district treasurers on their retail banking habits, hoping to glean the best practices.

Board Committee Reports

The board has two standing committees. The planning committee consists of Christine Stead (chair), Susan Baskett, and Irene Patalan. The performance committee consists of Glenn Nelson (chair), Simone Lightfoot, and Andy Thomas. Board president Deb Mexicotte sits on neither committee.

Committee Reports: Performance Committee

Nelson updated the board on the most recent meeting of the performance committee. He discussed the policy reviews they covered, as well as some of the strategies they discussed for increasing enrollment. He did not provide much detail about the numerous policy changes the committee was presented with at its March 14 meeting, saying generally that they discussed greater transparency and ease of use of district buildings.

Nelson added that he was impressed with how much impact the strategic plan was having with regards to providing a road map for the district and the board. The committee plans on continuing to review the policy changes.

Nelson also touched on the committee’s discussion about enrollment strategies, mentioning a number that were fleshed out during Robert Allen’s budget presentation [see above]. According to Nelson, administrators have suggested several good ideas, something he attributes to their familiarity with the subject matter.

“Administration people are the ones who live with these numbers,” he said. “They’re the experts.”

Committee Reports: Planning Committee

Stead reported on the planning committee’s meeting, touching on policy reviews, the upcoming special education millage renewal and the board’s continuing efforts to advocate for public education.

Stead, like Nelson, did not go into specifics about the policies that the committee reviewed. She said she was pleased to report that the committee would be following a suggestion from Baskett to require a hard copy of any documentation referenced during their review, which would result in a more efficient process.

With regards to special education, Stead had positive reports on some of the meetings she had been a part of to raise awareness about the upcoming millage, emphasizing its importance. “We want the community to be aware that this is an incredibly important millage for us,” she said. “It is one of the few things we can control at crucial at a time of massive cuts.”

Finally, Stead said there needs to be a commitment to educating legislators about the budget proposed by Gov. Rick Snyder’s administration, and its impact on school districts. “The budget proposal is packaged together so tight that it’s tough to break it apart into pieces,” she said, encouraging arming legislators with information on how to respond.

A strategy for response was also brought up later in the meeting, during the trustees’ closing remarks. Stead proposed inviting local representatives to a study session-type meeting to discuss funding issues.

The board decided to move forward with the idea by collecting information to present to the representatives and members of the public who attend, with the goal of educating the public on the issue and on where the legislators stand. Baskett added that taping or recording the session would help to increase awareness. A date for the session has not yet been set.

Interim Superintendent’s Report

Interim superintendent Robert Allen reported on several notable accomplishments in the district. Among those, he highlighted a partnership between the district and the Main Street Area Association that’s featuring local students’ artwork hung in the windows of downtown businesses. As part of that effort, a downtown art walk was held on March 13 – Allen said there was a large turnout of families for the event, which also included performances by the Pioneer High School choir. He added that the artwork will be on display until the end of March, and encouraged people to check it out.

Update on Superintendent Search

Board president Deb Mexicotte gave a brief update on the superintendent search. Mexicotte said the district has entered into negotiations with Patricia Green, the candidate selected by the board at their March 5 meeting. [See Chronicle coverage: "AAPS Superintendent Choice: Hard Decision"] According to Mexicotte, they were close to being able to bring a contract to the board for final review. At that point, she said, she would have more information about the contract and potential start dates.

Board Action

The only voting action the board took was to unanimously approve its consent agenda, which included the second-quarter financial report, delivered by Nancy Hoover – AAPS director of finance and interim chief financial officer – at the March 2 board meeting; board minutes from the March 2 and 5 meetings; and a gift of Shakespeare plays given by Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church.

A number of policy reviews came up later in the meeting for the board’s first briefing.

The board discussed the district’s policy on homeless students, elementary reclassification-retention, and local wellness. No changes were made, although the local wellness policy may have to be changed in the future due to legislation currently being proposed. This was the first hearing for the policies; no action will be taken by the board until the second briefing for these items at a future meeting.

Board Notes

The board concluded the meeting with general communications from trustees. The remarks were highlighted by trustee Andy Thomas discussing the district’s funding situation and announcing that the Ann Arbor Public Schools Educational Foundation has kicked off its 2011 fundraising campaign with the goal of raising $1 million.

Continuing on this topic, Thomas discussed a piece of legislation introduced by state Sen. Jack Brandenburg that would cap the amount of fund equity a district could accumulate. [The proposal is to cap a district's "rainy day" fund at 15% of its annual operating expenses.]

“This has to rank as the single dumbest idea I have heard anywhere,” Thomas said. “The districts that were responsible would get money taken away to be driven back down. The only explanation is that Brandenburg doesn’t understand the concept of fund equity. It’s not a rainy day fund. This is another opportunity to write to a senator to let them know what a bad idea this is.”

Present: President Deb Mexicotte, vice president Susan Baskett, secretary Andy Thomas, treasurer Irene Patalan, and trustees Glenn Nelson, Simone Lightfoot and Christine Stead.

Next regular meeting: Wednesday, March 30, 2011, at 7 p.m. in the fourth-floor conference room of the downtown Ann Arbor District Library, 343 S. Fifth Ave.

About the writer: Eric Anderson is an intern for The Ann Arbor Chronicle. Jennifer Coffman, who usually covers AAPS board meetings for The Chronicle, is taking a maternity break.

Kirk Profit of GCSI – a Lansing governmental consulting firm – talks with commissioner Leah Gunn during a break at the March 2, 2011 Washtenaw County board of commissioners meeting. (Photos by the writer.)

At his presentation to the board a year ago, Profit foreshadowed that a change in leadership at all levels in Lansing would affect the county. On Wednesday, he outlined more details of that impact, specifically related to the state budget recently proposed by Gov. Rick Snyder, the Ann Arbor Republican who was elected to office last November.

Responding to GCSI’s presentation, commissioners expressed concerns on a range of topics, including legislation giving broader emergency financial management powers to the state, potential changes to collective bargaining, and K-12 education funding. Leah Gunn made the most direct plea, asking Profit to convey a message to legislators: “Just send us money!”

Aside from the state budget update, commissioners dispatched the rest of their agenda with little discussion. Included in their actions was approval of a resolution allowing the United Way of Washtenaw County to secure a necessary state gambling permit for the nonprofit’s March 9 Power of the Purse fundraising event. The permit is needed so that United Way can auction off gift baskets.

The board also approved changes to its annual calendar that eliminated all future administrative briefings from the board’s meeting schedule. The decision to eliminate the administrative briefings – informal meetings that have been held the week prior to the board’s regular meetings, to review the upcoming agenda – was made at their final briefing on Feb. 26. There was no discussion of the issue on Wednesday.

During public commentary, Tom Wieder returned to address the board about per diem payments for commissioners, an issue he originally raised five months ago. He said he couldn’t quite believe that some commissioners still hadn’t repaid the amounts that an independent audit had determined they owed.

The audit showed that nearly all commissioners needed to reimburse the county for some per diems or mileage that they had inappropriately claimed. The amounts ranged from $25 to $14,385 – an amount repaid by former commissioner Mark Ouimet, who was elected to the state House last fall. All but board chair Conan Smith and Barbara Bergman, and former commissioners Jessica Ping and Ken Schwartz have repaid the amounts they owed as determined by the audit.

Lansing Update

For about 90 minutes during Wednesday’s meeting, lobbyist Kirk Profit of Governmental Consultant Services Inc. – along with his colleagues Ken Cole and Adrian Hemond – briefed commissioners about current budget talks and proposed legislation in Lansing, and answered questions about how state actions might affect the county. Profit had served as a state representative for 10 years, from 1988 through 1998, representing District 54 on the county’s east side.

Profit began with the state budget proposal, which Gov. Rick Snyder had recently unveiled. [.pdf file of Snyder's budget for 2012 and 2013] It’s balanced with no new revenues, he noted, and several major areas – including corrections, Medicare reimbursement rates and community colleges – are protected from cuts. However, there are some big losers under this proposal, he noted, including K-12 education, higher education and local governments.

Another major area of attention is the tax code, Profit said, which doesn’t work by any measure. Snyder’s proposal calls for a 6% flat business tax, to be levied only on C corporations. Other businesses – including LLCs, sole proprietorships and partnerships – would pay only personal income tax. The change would eliminate $1.8 billion in business tax revenue, to be offset by several different measures. Income from pensions, which are currently exempt from the state’s income tax, would be taxed at the proposed 4.25% rate, raising about $900 million. The earned income tax credit would be eliminated, bringing in another $350 million. There could also be significant adjustments to the homestead property tax credit.

Moving on to the topic of collective bargaining, Profit said that’s on the mind of every legislator in the Republican majority, and probably on the minds of the minority as well. Legislation might be introduced to eliminate collective bargaining completely, he said. Act 312 – which calls for binding arbitration of labor contract disputes between public safety employees of police and fire departments – is unlikely to be repealed, Profit said, but will likely go through a major overhaul.

Public employee compensation – including healthcare and pension benefits – is obviously a huge issue for state policymakers, Profit said. State officials will also be watching closely to see how local governments are handling the same issue.

Structural reforms are also being debated in Lansing, primarily as it relates to emergency financial management, Profit said. Snyder is expected to lay out details of the structural reforms he’ll seek in a speech slated for March 21. In general, the governor is encouraging officials at all levels to find ways to collaborate and consolidate – approaches that are considered best management practices, Profit said.

Profit pointed out that there are three members of the legislature’s Republican majority whose districts include parts of Washtenaw County: Rep. Mark Ouimet in District 52, Rep. Rick Olson in District 55, and Sen. Randy Richardville of District 17. They’ll be in positions to respond to Washtenaw County’s interests, Profit said.

In addition, Democrat Sen. Rebekah Warren of District 18, which covers Ann Arbor and a large portion of the rest of the county, is well-positioned on senate committees, he said. [Her committee assignments include health policy; natural resources, environment and Great Lakes; finance; regulatory reform; and the reforms, restructuring, and reinventing committee.] Profit noted that other local Democrats – Rep. Jeff Irwin of District 53, a former county commissioner, and Rep. David Rutledge of District 54 – are also quickly immersing themselves in their work.

Yet obviously, it’s the majority party – currently the Republicans – who are in a position to call more of the shots, Profit said. Olson, he noted, was appointed to lead a work group of the House transportation committee, which will address how to deal with declining Dept. of Transportation funding levels. The state’s gasoline tax is the primary source of revenues for transportation, and as demand for gasoline declines, so do those revenues.

Ouimet chairs the House committee on local, intergovernmental, and regional affairs, which Profit said had already dealt with the emergency financial management legislation. That committee will also likely see much of the legislation dealing with structural reforms, he said.

One thing noticeably absent from all the dialogue in Lansing is what to do about revenue streams for local governments, Profit said. When the legislature eliminates statutory state revenue sharing, he said, the issue of local tax revenue needs to be addressed. GCSI will encourage Ouimet and other legislators to take up this issue, he said.

Ken Cole then briefed commissioners on budget issues related to public health. Starting at the macro level, he said the current proposal calls for allocating $2.7 billion in general fund dollars for the state’s Dept. of Community Health in fiscal 2012 – an increase from its current $2.4 billion budget. That $2.7 billion would account for 40% of the state’s $7 billion general fund budget, he said. Increased costs from that department stem in part from growth in the number of Medicaid cases, to about 1.8 million, with 3.2% growth expected next year. It’s a sign that the “Great Recession” is wreaking havoc in the state, he said. Between 2001 to 2010, Washtenaw County had the seventh-highest growth rate in Medicaid caseloads statewide – nearly doubling during that period to almost 40,000 cases.

Proposed cuts to the state’s community mental health budget would translate to a loss of $200,000 for the Washtenaw Community Health Organization (WCHO), Cole said. Snyder has also proposed a 5% cut to public health spending, though it’s unclear if those will be across-the-board cuts to all local public health departments, he said. And proposed cuts to graduate medical education could reach $67 million – locally, that would affect the University of Michigan, Cole said. UM would face a 40% funding cut for physician training programs next year, if the proposed budget stands.

Adrian Hemond spoke next, focusing on the budget for human services. Snyder’s proposal – calling for a 48-month lifetime limit in benefits from the Family Independence Program, which gives financial aid to low-income families with children or pregnant women – would result in 12,500 people coming off that aid as of Oct. 1, 2011. Some of those people will likely turn to their local governments for help, Hemond said.

The budget proposal would reduce the child care subsidy rate paid to unlicensed aides and relatives caring for low-income children from $1.60 an hour to $1.35 an hour, Hemond said. And a proposed closure of one of the state’s juvenile justice facilities – the Shawono Center in Grayling – would leave only two such operations in the state – including the W.J. Maxey Boys Training School in Whitmore Lake. In addition, there’s a proposed reduction of 20 beds at the Maxey facility.

Snyder’s proposal calls for keeping funding essentially flat for state reimbursements to county jails and community corrections programs, Hemond said.

Profit wrapped up the presentation, saying that in fairness to state policymakers, “the challenge before them is incredible.” In part, that’s because the state is bringing in dramatically less revenue than when he served in the legislature during the 1980s and ’90s. Profit encouraged commissioners to let state legislators know what the county is already doing to curtail employee costs – both in terms of the number of employees, as well as changes to their compensation packages. “You need to tell that story,” he said, so policymakers will understand what local governments are already doing to deal with the economic crisis.

Profit concluded with some positive news, pointing out that legislation allowing the Detroit Region Aerotropolis to move forward had passed at the end of 2010 – Washtenaw County is a partner in that economic development project. He also noted that the area had successfully brought in state funding for special projects, including money to repair the East Stadium bridges – a project of the city of Ann Arbor – and funds for bike paths in the county, secured by the Washtenaw County Parks & Recreation Commission. He congratulated Bob Tetens, the county’s parks and recreation director, for making that happen.

After GCSI’s formal presentation, commissioners had several comments and questions. For this report, their remarks are organized by topic.

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Pensions

Leah Gunn began by observing that she and her husband wouldn’t mind having their pension taxed. “It’s only fair,” she said. However, it would be good to indicate some kind of “circuit breaker” that would exempt lower-income seniors, she said.

Wes Prater said he disagreed about taxing pensions. According to county health department estimates, about 35,000 residents in Washtenaw County lack health insurance, he said. Prater was especially concerned about long-time retirees on a fixed income – taxing their pensions would be a hardship, he said, and it’s unfortunate that the state government would give tax breaks to others while balancing the budget on the backs of the poorest people.

“Personally, I can handle it,” he said. “But there’s a lot of people out there that can’t.”

Profit said that a lot of legislators seem to agree with that view. Especially in the state senate, the plan to tax pensions doesn’t appear to have support.

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Revenues

Noting that most of the focus is on tax cuts, Gunn wondered if there’s any discussion about raising revenues. Not really, Profit replied – the talk now is about making the budget revenue-neutral. Perhaps they should be making the case that a revenue-neutral approach shouldn’t be sacrosanct, he said.

Gunn also noted that the governor has proposed rewarding municipalities that collaborate with others. The county has been doing that for a decade, she observed, and she’d hate to see them penalized for having done that work previously.

Profit pointed out that former county commissioner Mark Ouimet – now a Republican state representative who chairs the House committee on local, intergovernmental, and regional affairs – is very aware and sensitive to that issue. There should be some accounting and recognition of previous collaborative efforts, Profit said, adding that he believes Ouimet will be front and center in making sure that happens.

Gunn concluded her remarks to Profit by giving him a message for legislators: “Just send us money!”

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Collective Bargaining

Yousef Rabhi noted that instead of kicking the can down the road, the state now seems to be picking up the can and throwing it at the poor and elderly, and at local communities. It seems like they all should be picking up the can together and recycling it, he said.

Rabhi praised Snyder for saying that the labor dispute in Wisconsin shouldn’t be repeated in Michigan, but noted that there’s rumblings in the legislature about getting rid of collective bargaining. How do those two conflicting views between the administration and the legislature mesh? he asked.

Profit indicated that he doesn’t think the views do mesh. There are certainly some legislators who want to eliminate collective bargaining, he said. That’s probably not the majority view, he added, but they’ll be vocal.

Given the current national climate, Rabhi said he appreciated a Republican governor taking a more moderate stance and showing that kind of leadership. It was very respectful, he said, and supportive of the view that workers aren’t the enemies.

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Emergency Financial Management

Kristin Judge expressed concern over legislation regarding emergency financial management (EFM). “I am scared by this, to put it bluntly,” she said. Some versions of the proposed legislation had called for appointing a consulting firm to take charge of a municipality in financial duress, taking away the powers of elected local officials, and giving the consultant authority to sell property and change the terms of contracts, among other things. Judge said this doesn’t reflect the democratic process or the country we live in. She noted that many cities under financial distress have large minority populations – and she couldn’t imagine these measures being acceptable in places like Oakland County, for example. She wondered whether anyone in Lansing was standing up and saying that this legislation is ridiculous.

Ken Cole responded, saying that many local officials from across the state have been trekking to Lansing to challenge the legislation, and changes are being made. The provision that would allow a consulting firm to take over had been stricken, for example.

Cole explained that the legislation is a package of five bills: HB 4214 through HB 4218. The bills started out in the House committee on local, intergovernmental, and regional affairs, which is chaired by former county commissioner Mark Ouimet. After moving out of the House, the legislation is now being considered by the Senate: SB 157 and SB 158. In the process, changes are being made, Cole said. An original provision, for example, would have nullified elections and prevented officials from running for office for 10 years. That time period was later changed to six years, and ultimately the entire provision was taken out – meaning that legislation currently being considered would allow elected officials to remain in office and run for re-election.

The provision giving the emergency financial manager the power to sell local assets has been modified, and now calls for final approval by the state treasurer, Cole said. But the provision allowing the manager to nullify existing collective bargaining agreements so far remains in place, he said.

Washtenaw County commissioners Kristin Judge and Conan Smith at the March 2, 2011 board of commissioners meeting.

Judge replied that with all due respect to the governor, saying that he doesn’t want to eliminate collective bargaining while at the same time supporting this legislation seemed disingenuous. Cole assured Judge that she was not alone in her view.

Rabhi asked how the current emergency financial management powers compare to those that are proposed.

The intent of the bills, Cole said, is to neuter the powers of local elected officials. The idea is to impress upon local governments the importance of making tough decisions, he said. The state is sending a message that if local governments don’t get tough with labor, the state will pass legislation giving that authority to the emergency financial manager. But there are also provisions to take these steps in increments, Cole said. Currently, there is a set of triggers that puts in motion a preliminary review, then an official review, then the potential for negotiating a consent agreement with the financially stressed entity. Similar steps are outlined in the proposed legislation, too. It provides the chance for the local unit to devise a plan that explains how they’ll resolve the fiscal emergency.

Cole said he hadn’t yet done a side-by-side comparison between the existing EFM and the proposed legislation. It’s expected that the House and Senate will try to hammer out differences between their respective versions of the legislation sometime next week.

Conan Smith described the EFM legislation as complex and necessary – hundreds of governments are on the brink of insolvency now. There are definitely bones to pick with it, he said, but many provisions are similar to what exists under current law, like the ability to renegotiate labor agreements. Smith pointed out that the person who’ll be overseeing the EFM is “our own Roger Fraser,” the Ann Arbor city administrator who’ll be leaving that job in April to become deputy state treasurer for local government services. He has extensive experience at the local level, Smith said. Above him is state treasurer Andy Dillon – Smith noted that Dillon is a Democrat and former House speaker.

The legislation that’s ultimately enacted will probably contain some things that he’ll abhor, Smith said, but he believes it will be implemented fairly. It’s a time of economic crisis for all local governments, he said, and some are closer to the precipice than Washtenaw County is. [The county is grappling with a projected two-year, $20.9 million deficit for 2012 and 2013.] The previous state administration didn’t deal with it, he noted, and in fact made things worse in some cases – by passing unfunded mandates, for example.

Adrian Hemond noted that one of the provisions would allow the emergency financial manager to shift retirement packages from defined benefit plans to defined contribution plans, which is now considered best practice. [In defined benefit plans, retirees receive a set amount per month during their retirement. In defined contribution plans, employers pay a set amount into the retirement plan while a person is employed. The most common of these defined contribution plans is the 401(k).]

Wes Prater commented that as baby boomers grow older and retire, they’re beginning to realize that there aren’t sufficient funds in their 401(k) plans to sustain them through retirement – in a short time, those funds are depleted. People don’t seem to be getting adequate advice to allow them to self-manage their defined contribution plans, he said. As time goes on, he predicted there will be more issues related to this type of plan, and that this type of plan won’t be able to meet the basic needs of retirees. He said he didn’t believe shifting retirement plans was a good move.

County administrator Verna McDaniel indicated that the board will receive more information about the county’s retirement plans at an upcoming working session. [The county's largest retirement plan is the Washtenaw County Employees’ Retirement System (WERS) – a defined benefit plan with 1,001 members, 24 deferred members, and 727 retirees or beneficiaries.]

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Schools

Conan Smith noted that the state has used federal stimulus money to cover budget gaps in recent years. Local school systems have done the same, he said. Part of the reason that schools have needed stimulus dollars relates to the budget timeline in Lansing – the state budget, which includes K-12 funding, isn’t passed until October, after the school year has started. [The state's fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Many school districts, including Ann Arbor's, have fiscal years that begin July 1.] Smith wondered if there was any talk about changing that timeline at the state level.

Profit replied that he thinks the governor and legislators are working hard to finish the budget in May – he said people are less optimistic that they can finish tax code reform by then.

Smith said he’s interested in keeping pressure on Lansing to change the funding timeline, especially for schools – that would go a long way toward stabilizing things at all levels. It’s important to push people to think strategically, he said.

Later in the discussion, Rob Turner – a former trustee for the Chelsea School District – thanked Smith for mentioning K-12 funding, which Turner said is near to his heart. Promises that were made when Proposal A was passed in 1994 didn’t occur, he said. [Proposal A shifted K-12 school funding away from local districts and created a system whereby local tax dollars are funneled to the state, which in turn redistributes the funding statewide. Among other things, it puts a cap on how fast a property's taxable value can increase. That cap is 5% or the rate of inflation, whichever is lower. For a detailed view of how Michigan's public schools are financed, see Chronicle coverage: "Does It Take a Millage?"]

Given the way schools are funded, Turner said, it’s difficult for districts to be good fiduciaries. Is there any discussion in Lansing about finding a better way to handle K-12 funding, to give districts better ways to forecast the budget one or two years ahead? Turner also said districts are dealing with rising teacher pension costs – is there any talk at the state level about helping districts with that?

The short answer is no, Profit said. The problem is that there are simply insufficient dollars for K-12. Profit – who was a state representative when Proposal A was enacted – said the law was initially meant as a first step to school finance reform, not the final answer. But over time, and as term limits resulted in the exodus of veteran legislators, that initial intent was lost, and Proposal A became viewed as the final answer.

The measure did narrow the funding equity gap between districts in high- and low-income areas, Profit said, but adjustments in the school funding process still need to be made. Between Proposal A and the Headlee Amendment – which limits property tax revenues that a taxing jurisdiction can collect by rolling back the millage rate so that property tax revenues don’t outpace inflation – revenues at the local level have diminished dramatically, Profit said. However, he added, addressing this issue doesn’t seem to be on anyone’s agenda.

In response to a question from Wes Prater, Profit said that the question has been raised as to whether it’s constitutional to take money previously set aside for K-12 schools – in the state’s School Aid Fund – and use it for higher education, as has been proposed. “Yes, the envelope’s going to be pushed,” Profit said.

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Personal Property Tax

In response to a question from Rob Turner, Profit said that the state’s personal property tax system is a huge concern, but the governor doesn’t want to overhaul it while dealing with the budget and business tax reform – though some legislators would like the issues to be handled at the same time. Profit said that county administrator Verna McDaniel and deputy administrator Bill Reynolds had been in Lansing the previous day meeting with legislators, and had done a good job in describing the impact that the current system has on local governments.

The challenge will be in figuring out how to replace the current personal property tax system, Profit said. Legislation has been introduced to eliminate it, and separate legislation was introduced that would simply reduce it. If a flat-rate business tax is adopted, the pressure will increase to change the personal property tax. The current business tax includes a 35% industrial personal property tax credit.

It’s not yet clear how all this will shake out, Profit said.

Lansing Update: Commissioner Comments – Urban vs. Rural

Dan Smith asked about the impact of the proposed state budget on rural areas, noting that many commissioners represent rural parts of Washtenaw County.

Profit said for communities that don’t receive statutory revenue sharing, their constitutional portion of revenue sharing will be increasing about 4%. It’s also possible that those rural communities would be allowed to compete for the proposed $200 million that will be available to replace the statutory revenue sharing portion. In that respect, rural areas are treated better than the urban cores in this budget, he said. The rural communities still need to look for opportunities to consolidate services and cooperate with other local governments, he said – that’s a priority for Snyder’s administration.

Hemond pointed out that the upcoming census data will have an impact on the amount of constitutional revenue sharing funds that a community receives. Though the overall “pot” for the constitutional share will increase about 4%, if a township’s population decreases, for example, then their revenue-sharing funds could also drop. [The state formula for calculating revenue-sharing funds also includes factors beyond population, depending in part on the services it provides.]

Earlier in the meeting, Conan Smith had asked about how restructuring at state agencies like the Michigan Economic Development Corp. (MEDC) and the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) might affect state investments that are already in place for urban areas like Ann Arbor.

Profit said he assumed Smith was talking about things like the proposed elimination of brownfield tax credits. [Several local projects have been granted brownfield status by the state, which makes them eligible for tax credits related to environmental cleanup, or allows them to apply for Michigan Business Tax credits or use tax increment financing to recoup some of a project's cost.]

The flip side of the proposed 6% flat business tax is that many of the state’s other economic incentives, such as tax credits, would be eliminated. Profit said state treasurer Andy Dillon has assured him that projects with incentives already approved would keep those incentives, even if the tax code changes.

Profit added that Washtenaw County is well-positioned – he said he can’t recall any other time in his life when this area had so many people in state leadership positions, including the governor, MEDC chief Mike Finney, and now Roger Fraser as deputy treasurer. Profit expects Finney will want to give more authority and responsibility to local economic groups like Ann Arbor SPARK, which Finney previously led.

Public Commentary: Per Diems

During public commentary, Tom Wieder returned to address the board about per diem payments – he had first raised the issue five months ago, at the board’s Oct. 6, 2010 meeting, when he called for an investigation into per diem spending by then-commissioner Mark Ouimet.

Saying he was surprised to be back, Wieder told commissioners that he can’t quite believe the per diem issue hasn’t been taken care of yet. He said he knows all three of the commissioners who haven’t yet paid: Barbara Bergman, Wes Prater and Conan Smith. [Bergman did not attend Wednesday's meeting; Prater later clarified that he had recently paid the amount in question.]

Tom Wieder, left, is interviewed by WEMU's Andrew Cluley following the March 2, 2011 Washtenaw County board of commissioners meeting.

Wieder noted that he was accused of making a partisan attack when he first came to the board with this issue. [His initial focus was on Republican Mark Ouimet, who at the time was a county commissioner running for state representative in District 52 against Democrat Christine Green, whom Wieder supported. Ouimet won that election in November 2010.] While it might have been initially prompted by the campaign, Wieder said, it remains a substantive issue.

An investigation has been paid for by the county, he said, but some commissioners still aren’t meeting their responsibility. Wieder told Prater that he should at least pay the amounts that are clearly owed, and could hold off on the rest until the matter was adjudicated. As for Bergman, Wieder said he’s known her for years and was appalled to read her quote [in an AnnArbor.com article] indicating that the issue was between her and the county. It’s the taxpayers’ money, he said, which makes it the public’s business.

Directing his remarks to Conan Smith, Wieder said it was amazing to hear Smith’s excuse – that he was too busy to take care of it, and that other things took priority. “Maybe you need a less demanding job if you can’t find a minute to write a check,” Wieder said.

Wieder concluded by urging commissioners to pay what they owe and restore some integrity to the board.

Responding to an a follow-up request from The Chronicle on Thursday, the county’s finance office provided the latest status of repayments. Two current commissioners (Barbara Bergman and Conan Smith) and two former commissioners (Jessica Ping and Ken Schwartz) have not yet paid the amounts that the audit report determined they owe:

UNPAID
Barbara Bergman       1,875.33
Jessica Ping          5,002.68
Ken Schwartz          1,054.60
Conan Smith             591.39

PAID
Leah Gunn                25.00
Jeff Irwin              100.00
Kristin Judge            25.00
Mark Ouimet          14,385.88
Wes Prater            1,834.91
Rolland Sizemore Jr.     65.52

-

Per Diems: Commissioner Response

Prater said he wanted the public to know that he always intended to pay what he owed, but there were questions about some of the findings of the auditor. He submitted a check on Monday, Prater said, but would address the remaining issues at his own pace. He said he wasn’t enjoying the public scrutiny, and found it embarrassing. None of the commissioners intentionally took money that wasn’t theirs, he said.

Later in the meeting, Kristin Judge suggested that the board’s updated monthly budget could be included in its meeting packet as public information. It might be a way to address some feelings of distrust that have arisen over the past year, she said, adding that it was just an idea for people to think about – not a formal proposal.

United Way Request

Commissioners passed a resolution recognizing that the United Way of Washtenaw County is a legitimate local nonprofit, and authorizing the county clerk to complete a form from the state’s charitable gaming division. The resolution is required from a local government entity by the state’s Bingo Act in order for the United Way to hold a charitable fundraiser that includes gambling.

There had been some discussion of the resolution at the board’s Feb. 26 administrative briefing, with some questions about why it was needed. At Wednesday’s meeting, Kristin Judge said that in looking at the application to the state, it didn’t seem as though there were any limit to the amount of money that could be raised from a charitable gambling event. Saying she wasn’t a proponent of using gambling to raise money for human services, she asked for more information about the event.

County administrator Verna McDaniel clarified that United Way needed permission in order to raffle off gift baskets at its March 9 Power of the Purse fundraising event. [Sandy Rupp, executive director of the United Way of Washtenaw County, attended part of Wednesday's meeting, but did not speak during public commentary.]

Outcome: The resolution recognizing the United Way of Washtenaw County as a nonprofit operating in this county passed unanimously.

Board Calendar Changes

The board approved a revised annual calendar that eliminates all future administrative briefings from the board’s meeting schedule. The decision to eliminate the administrative briefings – informal meetings which have been held the week prior to the board’s regular meetings, to review the upcoming agenda – was made at their final briefing on Feb. 26. It followed a lengthy, animated debate at the board’s Feb. 16 meeting. Some commissioners, most notably Ronnie Peterson, have objected to the briefings, saying they are too far out of the public eye – even though they conform to the Open Meetings Act.

Outcome: Without discussion, the board approved a meeting calendar change that eliminates future administrative briefings.

Other Actions: Job Training Grants, New Job for Vets Office

The board passed several resolutions as part of its agenda, with little discussion.

Other Actions: Veterans Relief Job

The board gave final approval to create a new full-time position – a veterans relief program specialist – as part of a minor restructuring in the county’s veterans affairs department that includes downgrading an administrative assistant position to office coordinator. The moves are expected to result in about $20,000 in structural savings for the department. The board gave initial approval to the change at their Feb. 16 meeting.

The new position is estimated to cost $75,000 and will be funded from the Veterans Relief Fund, which gets proceeds from a dedicated millage and has a fund balance of $250,000. The job will entail coordinating the county’s veterans relief efforts and doing public outreach activities.

Other Actions: Job Training Funds

The board gave initial approval to accept federal funding for job-related programs that are administered by the county’s Employment Training & Community Services (ETCS) department:

• $141,409 from the federal Food Assistance Employment and Training Program, to provide employment services to adults who receive federal food assistance.
• $1,161,692 in federal funding from the Jobs, Education, and Training (JET) Plan, to provide job training services.
• $148,532 in federal funding from the Workforce Investment Act (WIA) American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Statewide Activity Program, to provide job training services.

Other Actions: Appointments

The board approved several appointments during the March 2 meeting.

• William Wagner, Northfield Township director of public safety, was appointed to the county’s 800 MHz project oversight committee, for a term expiring Dec. 31, 2012.
• The following people were appointed to the county’s community action board (CAB), for terms expiring Dec. 31, 2011: Faye Askew-King, Deloisteen Brown, Howard Edelson, Myles J. Romero, Adam Zemke, Eric Copeland, Derrick Jackson, Cynthia Maritato, Brenda McKinney, Joseph Dulin, and Annie Robinson.
• Howard Edelson, Conan Smith and Charles Penner were appointed to the county’s workforce development board (WDB) for terms expiring Dec. 31, 2011. In addition, Elliot Forsyth, Diane Keller, Mary Kerr, Jon Newpol, Don Wolf, Steve Girardin and Cynthia Maritato were appointed for terms expiring Dec. 31, 2013.

The CAB and WDB both oversee programs administered by the county’s Employment Training & Community Services (ETCS) department. The boards are currently revising their bylaws – the terms of most appointments are set for the end of this year, to give the boards some flexibility for future appointments as they make their bylaws revisions.

The mention of changes to the bylaws prompted some questions from commissioner Ronnie Peterson. He wanted to know how it was being handled – this was the first time he’d heard about the changes, he said. Patricia Denig, ETCS interim director, explained that both boards have committees that are working with staff on the changes. She expects they’ll be finished in six to eight weeks.

Peterson said he wanted to hold a working session on the changes. Further, he wanted to make sure it was clear the board of commissioners would need to authorize any changes to the bylaws.

Other Actions: Bylaws

Without discussion, the board approved revisions to bylaws for two county groups: The Washtenaw Community Health Organization [.pdf of revisions to WCHO bylaws] and the Criminal Justice Collaborative Council [.pdf file of CJCC bylaws]

The WCHO is a collaboration between the county and the University of Michigan that focuses on providing services to children and adults with mental or emotional health disorders, substance abuse problems or developmental disabilities. The CJCC is a group of 17 county officials – both elected and staff – who work in the criminal justice system, plus two appointed members of the public. Its mission is to develop strategies to alleviate jail overcrowding, and to make recommendations to the county board of commissioners about how to implement and fund those strategies.

Misc. Communications

Several commissioners had reports and communications at various times throughout Wednesday’s meeting.

Kristin Judge, who arrived a few minutes late to Wednesday’s meeting, explained that she’d been at a ceremony honoring Lloyd Powell, Washtenaw County’s public defender. Powell was given the annual Bernard J. O’Connor Award for his significant contributions to social justice through peaceful conflict resolution. The award is given by the Ann Arbor-based Dispute Resolution Center.

Later in the meeting, Judge reported that she and Yousef Rabhi were among the 300 or so people who attended the March 1 Local Food Summit. She commended county staff who participated, including Jenna Bacolor of the county’s public health department, and Jennifer Fike, executive director of the Food System Economic Partnership. A lot of great ideas were floated during the event, she said, including plans to develop a local food policy council. Judge encouraged anyone who’s interested in getting involved to contact the county’s public health department.

In another food-related communication, Judge highlighted a program called Double Up Food Bucks, which provides coupons for fresh food to people who get food assistance benefits. She hoped that in the spring, people from the program – which is administered by the Fair Food Network, an Ann Arbor-based nonprofit – can come to the board and provide more details.

Wes Prater told commissioners that the financial subcommittee of the Police Services Steering Committee (PSSC) has been meeting, with some new members on board, including Leah Gunn. The group is working on a recommendation for setting the price to be charged by the county for a police services unit – the sheriff deputies that some local municipalities pay for to patrol their jurisdictions. Several issues need to be worked through, he said, but eventually there will be a good report to bring back to the board for a vote. [For additional background on this issue, see Chronicle coverage: "What's Next for Washtenaw Police Services?"]

Gunn said she’d like to see a report from the county administrator about the cost and scope of work on an internal audit that the county is planning to conduct. In addition to the monetary cost, Gunn wanted to see how much staff time is spent, noting that she believes it would be considerable. She suggested perhaps doing only one department initially, rather than the entire county operations.

Eunice Burns, left, talks with county administrator Verna McDaniel during a break at the March 2 board of commissioners meeting. Burns, a longtime Democratic Party activist, was attending the meeting with her grandson as part of an assignment for his Skyline High class.

Ronnie Peterson asked one of the students in the audience to introduce himself. Jamie McGowan came forward and told commissioners he was a student at Skyline High School, attending the meeting for a class assignment.

Peterson then asked who was attending the meeting with him. His grandmother, McGowan replied. And what’s her name? Peterson prompted. “Eunice Burns,” McGowan said. Peterson allowed that several of the commissioners might know her – Burns has been active in the Democratic Party for decades. Among other roles, she previously served on the Ann Arbor city council and as a board member for the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority.

Misc. Communications: Public Commentary

Other than Tom Wieder, whose remarks are reported earlier in this article, the only speaker during the four opportunities for public commentary was Thomas Partridge, who spoke three times. His remarks all contained similar themes, calling on the commissioners and residents of Washtenaw County to stand up against discriminatory and unnecessary budget cuts at the state and federal levels. Michigan needs to reverse its attitude, he said, and start taxing the state’s wealthy businesses and individuals, which would wipe out the deficit and create funds for social programs.

There’s been a resurgence of progressive Democratic movements in other states and throughout the world, Partridge said, from Wisconsin to Libya. People are putting their lives on the line, he said, and Michigan residents should do the same in protesting the destructive right-wing thinking of Gov. Rick Snyder and Republican administrations in other states. Partridge criticized Conan Smith for accepting some of the proposals of Republicans in the state, including some supported by state Rep. Mark Ouimet, a former county commissioner. These people live in a “country club fantasy land,” he said.

Present: Leah Gunn, Kristin Judge , Ronnie Peterson, Wes Prater, Yousef Rabhi, Conan Smith, Dan Smith, Rob Turner.

Absent: Barbara Levin Bergman, Alicia Ping, Rolland Sizemore Jr.

Next meeting: The board’s next regular meeting is on Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. at the county administration building, 220 N. Main St. The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting. [confirm date] (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

Jeff Irwin, representative for District 53 of the Michigan state House of Representatives, met with constituents at Espresso Royale in downtown Ann Arbor last Saturday. (Photos by the writer.)

In each of the first two months of his term, Irwin has held meetings for constituents in local Ann Arbor coffee houses – Cafe Verde and Espresso Royale. On Saturday, Feb. 26, The Chronicle caught up with Irwin after his talk with constituents and spoke with him for about an hour. The conversation included a discussion of Gov. Rick Snyder’s proposed budget overview. [.pdf of budget overview]

In presenting the interview below, The Chronicle’s conversation with Irwin has been reorganized and edited in some places to achieve greater coherence and focus.

Last Saturday, Rep. Jeff Irwin (D-53rd District) entertained questions and concerns from constituents on a variety of topics, including local interest in the future use of the top of the underground parking structure, which is under construction on the city-owned Library Lot between Fifth and Division streets.

Three blocks east from Irwin’s conversation with constituents, a constant parade of concrete mixers on Division Street headed south across Liberty to the east edge of the Library Lot construction site. They dumped their loads into a pump, and through the course of the day, workers poured around 6,300 cubic yards of concrete. Coincidentally, in his subsequent conversation with The Chronicle, Irwin introduced images involving concrete and construction – he was drawing an analogy between teacher contracts and construction contracts.

We’ve chronicled this conversation in a Q&A format, divided into seven sections: (1) a budget bright spot in Medicaid; (2) education as an area of concern; (3) a lack of sufficient, specific goals associated with the budget; (4) labor relations in general; (5) labor relations in Washtenaw County; (6) Irwin’s relationship with former fellow county commissioner Mark Ouimet, a Republican who’s also now a state rep; and (7) a partisan imbalance in committee appointments.

Budget Bright Spot: Medicaid

AAC: In terms of sound, Espresso Royale is really poor for eavesdropping. I was just trying to hang out on the periphery [of your conversation with constituents], and I was basically just able to identify general topics.

But I did hear you say there is one bright spot in the governor’s budget. Which is?

Irwin: Oh, you didn’t hear what I said about that? Basically it’s related to Medicaid. There was a question that came up about Medicaid funding and what the direction was on that. And everything that I have seen in the governor’s budget so far is that he is not looking at hitting Medicaid – which is really good for a number of reasons.

It’s good obviously for the health care community. It’s good for the folks who are receiving the benefit, and it’s also good because every dollar we spend on Medicaid … usually Washington D.C. is sending you two or three dollars to match that. Conversely, every dollar that we cut out of Medicaid, means instead of losing one worker, we are losing three workers. …

Budget: Why Reduce Education Allocations?

Irwin: [The proposed budget] actually has more than a 15% cut [in higher education].

AAC: I thought it was 15%.

Irwin: I have heard an even bigger number recently, but the number I understand is actually 22%. The way they get to the 15% is that it’s a 15% flat cut to everybody, period. Then there is another 7% cut to add up to the total of a 22% cut. The other 7% cut is being put into a best practices thing – sort of like with the local government business. So if you do certain things at the university, you get access to that 7%.

AAC: And when you say the “local government business,” you are talking about taking the statutory state shared revenue, eliminating it, and replacing it with …

Irwin: … a competitive something that no one knows what the details are, yet. Right. And they’re doing the same thing in the university setting with that other 7%. So there is really a 22% cut. Now, the other day I heard a 26% number, but I don’t know where that comes from yet. But truth be told, I’m still trying to make sure that I understand these numbers and what they really mean, because …

AAC: … so it’s too soon to be trying to figure out, “All right, let’s not cut higher education and instead do something else”?

Irwin: Not necessarily. At the big level of talking about the concepts and not getting into the level of detail about this precise dollar, there has been some thinking put into that. … If you are going to bring in $1.5 billion in revenue – $1 billion in new taxes on pensions and another $330 million in new taxes on the working poor – then there is plenty of money to not cut education.

The reason why the governor’s budget has to cut so deeply in education, even with all that new tax increase, is because he also wants to give a huge tax increase to the corporate community.

So what I would say …  my initial counterproposal is: How will that we fix the Michigan Business Tax in a revenue-neutral way? How do we make it a simpler tax – that’s a good idea. But let’s do it in a way that is revenue neutral. That way we don’t have to pay for it with a $1.5 billion tax cut for the corporate community, and we can use that money to invest in what is really going to drive economic development and jobs in Michigan, which is education. … [Gov. Snyder] campaigned on the idea that we want to create a climate for economic growth, we want Michigan to be a more prosperous place …

AAC: … Michigan is  open for business …

Irwin: … right. We want to create this fertile environment for people to be prosperous, right? And then his first major proposal is to cut the heart out of what is the single most important element of prosperity and economic growth, which is a good education system!

Nobody wants to move to a place, and nobody wants to bring their company to a place, where they are not going to be able to attract talented workers, and where they are not going to have their kids be able to go to good schools and that sort of thing, right?

Now, that’s not true of every industry. There are some industries where a lower tax rate is the only thing. And there are some industries for whom recruiting top talent is the most important thing. Interestingly, I would say that we as a state, our strategy should be to go after as many of those business development and economic opportunities at the end of the scale where top talent is their priority. Because those are the best jobs, and the longest-lasting jobs, and jobs that really relate to the knowledge-based economy and all that kind of stuff, right?

Whereas some of these folks, who care only about what your tax rate is, those are the lowest paying jobs, with the least economic spinoff, without the health benefits – it’s like mining or something where they just want to be able to suck that rock out of the ground at the lowest possible rate, pay the lowest possible royalties, and the lowest possible taxes, and then head back to wherever Rio Tinto’s [a mining company] headquarters is.

AAC: At the Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority’s economic development committee meeting last week on Wednesday, Jennifer Owens from Ann Arbor SPARK gave a presentation to the committee, giving them an overview of what SPARK does. And one of the things they do is they make recruiting visits to convince companies to expand their operations to Ann Arbor.

[Note: In 2010 four such trips were made, which resulted in four companies deciding to expand operations to the Ann Arbor area, which translates into 170 jobs, according to Owens. In addition to the four expansions due to recruitment trips, SPARK also counts an additional 10 expansions to the Ann Arbor area as a part of its recruitment program. ]

And someone asked her, “What is the thing that is the tipping point? What cinches the deal for Ann Arbor, when we manage to cinch a deal?” Her answer was: availability of talent.

But Ann Arbor is way different than the rest of Michigan. … I’m just trying to suggest that perhaps what is self-evidently a good public [education] policy for the Ann Arbor region may not be the best public policy for the entire state.

Irwin: I totally disagree, and here’s why. Because it’s not just about higher ed and universities, it’s also about K-12. People want to live somewhere where they know their kids are going to go to good schools. The decline of Detroit is all wrapped up in racial acrimony and other issues, industrial disinvestment and all that stuff – there’s a lot of things going on in the decline of the city of Detroit. But one of the big things is as you try to attract young professionals back into the city, it’s really hard, because if they want to ever have kids, they don’t want to send their kids to a school district that has the worst statistics in terms of achievement.

I don’t know if you’re familiar with the gentleman named Myron Orfield, who was a Minneapolis state senator …  he did some groundbreaking research about 20 years ago. He wrote this book called “Metro Politics” about the Minneapolis-St. Paul region, and he tried to make the argument – very successfully, I think –that schools drive economic development. I think that’s true for K-12, and K-12 is all over the state.

And the other thing is, we’re talking about macroeconomics right now, right? And the goal of the state on one level should be to try to create this macroeconomic climate for growth in Michigan and help everybody be more prosperous, maximize our gross state product – I mean, that is a macroeconomic statement.

But there’s also the microeconomic side of it, right? The state is supposed to be working for the people of the state of Michigan, all of the people of the state of Michigan, and if we provide the people of the state of Michigan individually with education that gives them the training and the skills and knowledge to be successful individually in their lives – both in the job environment and in the home environment, and in every other environment in which they may seek to operate – that’s a benefit to those people individually. … So that’s my argument.

Better Budget Metrics

Irwin: What I think [Snyder] should have done as governor would be to say: “I’ve analyzed the situation in the state of Michigan, and here are our goals, here’s what we’re trying to accomplish, here’s what we think success looks like for the state of Michigan. So as we measure all these metrics that I like to talk about, here’s what’s that is all supposed to add up to.”

He didn’t do that. And I think that if he had done that, he would have been forced to reckon with the value of education in driving prosperity and the value of things like arts and culture.

ACC: When you say “goals,” what are some examples of the kind of goals you mean?

Irwin: … We want to graduate X-percent of our people from high school, we’d like to graduate this percent from college and we would like them when they graduate from high school to have this level of proficiency in these basic areas.

AAC: Hasn’t he done that with this budget proposal? Every section has metrics and scores, right?

[Irwin pulls out the budget proposal document. Leafing through it, AAC and Irwin identify the kind of pages mentioned by AAC. Irwin clarifies that 1,2,3 in the lefthand column are not scores, but rather keys to the types of measures: 1 = effectiveness measure; 2 = efficiency measure; 3 = quality measure. The trend arrows indicate a measure that is stable (horizontal, double-ended arrow), going the opposite of the desired direction (downward arrow), or improving (upward arrow).]

Example of metrics included in Gov. Snyder's 2012-13 budget proposal overview. (Image links to .pdf page of Dept. of Corrections metric detail.)

So for each of these items … for the things that are headed in the right direction, I think that implicit in this proposal is that we want to keep those things headed in the same direction. For anything that has performance stable, the goal is to make it better, and for those areas where performance is going down, the goal is to reverse that trend, like this – average cost per prisoner per year, $34,600 …

… so didn’t he already do what you are saying he should have done?

Irwin: What’s missing here is the number of people who are incarcerated. What’s missing here is the number of violent crimes going down. I feel that [Gov. Snyder] picked just a few things for these gigantic issue areas. There could be 200 metrics on this page, easily.

Of course he’s got to pick less than that, because that’s just insane, so he cherry-picked ones that he thinks are going to be easy to demonstrate progress with, rather than picking the important ones. Are these really the most important metrics for prison operations? I don’t think so. Cost is going to be one of the top ones … that’s one of the core ones. But … we’re talking about .07 escapes per 1,000 prisoners? This is not one of the top-line metrics for state government, in my opinion.

[reading aloud] “Prisoners past their earliest release dates who are on waiting lists for assaultive or sex offender therapy programs.” I guess that’s a fine metric, but is that the only quality measure that we’re going to look at?

Maybe they picked this one, because it’s a negative trend and they think they can turn it around by focusing on sex offender therapy programs, which is a tiny part of the budget. We should be talking about reducing recidivism. Reducing recidivism – I mean, that is the game in corrections. The reason why our corrections costs are insane, blowing the budget, is because we have two big problems – it’s not that there’s more crime, it’s not that there’s more violent crime, it’s not that there’s more people entering the criminal justice system. It’s that people stay in the system longer – average length of stay is way up – and the recidivism rate is way up.

So we have the same people revolving through and through for longer and longer. That is the core problem, and it’s not even recognized on his metrics – that’s what I’m talking about. And I think the same thing is true in a number of other areas.

… The metrics that, to me, are the most important in terms of effectiveness in education should be about student achievement, student graduation, class sizes, quality of teachers – if there’s a good way to measure that. Those are the kinds of things we need to measure.

And when you look at his proposal, I don’t see any result – given the money that’s being appropriated to K-12 – other than larger class sizes, and less attention being given to individual students. It’s been proven in study after study that the most important input to student achievement that the government has influence over is the quality of the teachers.

And the Republicans are in open warfare on teachers, across the board.

So this budget proposal is just one manifestation of that. I think that’s backwards. I think the state should be trying to work with teachers, lock arms with them and say, “How can we work together on making our kids be more educated and more successful people as they grow up?”

From Teachers to Labor in General …

AAC: When you say “open warfare on teachers,” what do you mean specifically?

Irwin: There are a number of things. One is gigantic cuts to education, which is going to mean more teachers will lose their jobs.

Two, the emergency financial manager bill, which has the effect of allowing the state to take over a school district, cancel all the union contracts, carte blanche.

Item number three is they’re trying to obviate the collective bargaining agreements, by legislatively requiring public employees in certain areas, including schools, to make certain contributions to their health care or their pension.

For instance, here’s a scenario for you. You and I are teachers. We have negotiated with the Ann Arbor Public Schools district for a certain rate, total compensation that includes benefits, wages, and all the fringes, work conditions, etc. And say it’s on a five-year contract. And then one year into the contract, the state legislature comes along and says, “Sorry, Dave and Jeff, we’ve determined outside of the collective bargaining agreement – that you just hammered out with your local school district – that you’re going to make an additional 20% contribution to your health care costs, because we think your health care costs are too high.”

That’s not a conversation that should be taking place in that way. It’s pulling the rug out from underneath collective bargaining agreements.

The analog to that would be to say if the state had a construction contract with Clark Construction to build a new building and they were submitting receipts to us, right? They build this building for us, and they finish, and they’ve got $1 million in outstanding receipts. And we say, “We don’t really think that concrete was worth $1 million. We think that concrete was worth $800,000, so that’s what we’re paying you, because we just passed a law after you built the building.”

AAC: That would save us a lot of money. [laugh]

Irwin: Wouldn’t it! But no one would ever think of doing that. Because breaking a contract in a private industry kind of relationship, that’s unthinkable.

AAC: … but as I understand the proposal, it’s to go into a collective bargaining contract and say, Okay from this point forward now, you’ll be paying more.

Irwin: Okay, the rest of your contract is void, we’ve replaced it, so a better analogy is …

AAC: … you go in and you say to Clark Construction, “Oh, the concrete you’ve already poured for $100 per yard, you will get paid for that. But for future yards of concrete that you pour, you get $80 a yard.” And Clark could say, “You know what? Screw that. I don’t want to be in this business anymore, or I’ll go pour my concrete someplace else in some other state.”

Irwin: We’ve already promised to pay them the same rate for the rest of the concrete, and we change the deal in the middle of the work?

AAC: Right. So that’s a better analogy than the one you sketched out. It’s one I think I can imagine people at least maybe arguing about, whereas the one you sketched out, you really just can’t argue about.

Irwin: Well, your analogy is better, so let’s use yours. We have a contract with Clark and it’s to pay them $100 per yard of concrete … I still think that there’s a strong analogy there. If we have a contract for $1 million to pour concrete, and they pour half the concrete, and then for the second half we say, “We’re only going to pay you $400,000 for that. You can stop in the middle if you want??”

AAC: Well, that’s not the way contract law works, as I understand it.

Irwin: No, of course not. But that’s what the Republicans are doing.

… and to Labor Relations in Washtenaw County

AAC: Okay, maybe that’s a knuckleheaded way of approaching it. But in the final analysis, the unions do need to make concessions, not just for the health of their unions, but for the health of the communities where they work.

Irwin: And they agree. And they do. Time and time again. That happened at [Washtenaw County when I was a commissioner]. And part of the reason that happened was that we had a respectful management-labor relationship and we said, “Look, the money situation has changed, so we need you to come to the table and renegotiate.” And you know what the unions do? They come to the table and they renegotiate. But when you tell them …

AAC: … in the county, perhaps they do. But in the city of Ann Arbor, I don’t know if you’re familiar with what they’re doing.

What the city is calling it – and I think it’s a fair label to put on their strategy – is to “align the budget strategy with the labor strategy.” They’ve said, “Here’s what we need. We need our open contracts to settle with no wage increases and with an additional contribution to the benefit plan, the same benefit plan that our non-union workers are on – and the same plan that some of our other unions have actually adopted. So we’re not asking you firefighters and police to adopt anything that others haven’t already accepted at the city. … So on that scenario, we still have a 2.5% reduction target.” So every department, their first task is to identify 2.5% in reductions. For departments that have workers not on the new city plan – which has increased contributions from workers to their health care – those departments are given an extra task, possibly up to a 4.0% reduction target. So police and fire … their reduction target is effectively 4.0%.

So that’s where it sits. And if I had to guess, those contracts would not be settled and signed before the city completes its budget process this year, and it’ll be settled by Act 312 arbitration.

Irwin: Probably.

AAC: What’s the difference between the city and the county? Did [recently retired county administrator] Bob Guenzel have a magic wand? And if so, did he hand it off to Verna McDaniel [the current county administrator]?

Irwin: Time will tell on that second question. Did he have a magic wand? No, but I mean, you probably know that before he was county administrator, he was corporation counsel and the lead person on labor negotiations. And before that he was a private attorney who was hired to do labor negotiations for various entities. So Bob came into the role of administrator keenly aware of the benefits of a positive labor-management relationship. And he worked very hard at that for 15 years in maintaining it.

Now will Verna be able to have the relationship with the union leaders? I think there’s a high likelihood of that. That was one of the biggest pluses that she brought to the table – that she had been human resources director, before she was deputy administrator, and she had a lot of experience with the labor-management piece and the human resources piece of the organization. And Washtenaw County, I think, has always had – at least the whole time I was there – a strong ethic of we’re-all-in-this-together, management and labor all work together to serve the people, and transparency and mutual respect.

When you maintain that transparency and mutual respect, when it’s real and not just stated, it makes a difference. Then when you go to a union and you say, “Our revenues are way down, we’re in a tough spot. There’s only so many answers – here’s what we think are the answers. Do you have any other potential answers you’d like to add to the list of answers? Because we’re eventually going to have to pick one of these, and neither of us really love any of these. So let’s work together.” … And after several months of doing that, sometimes you actually get to an amicable solution.

How Do You Have a Conversation?

AAC: So back to the budget, you’ve got 109 other [representatives in the state House] that you’ve got to have a conversation with, if you can. One of those is somebody you served on the Washtenaw County board of commissioners with. How many years were you and Mark Ouimet on the same board?

Irwin: Six.

AAC: So six out of the 12 years you were on the board?

Irwin: I was there for 11, actually. I came in on an odd year, in ’99. And Mark came along, I believe, in 2004.

AAC: So you have six years of experience working with him.

Irwin: And he’s right next door to me, too.

AAC: When you say “next door,” you mean …?

Irwin: Our offices in the House office building. They start out one, two, three all the way up to 110. So…

AAC: … so it goes 52 [Ouimet's district number], 53 [Irwin's district number] …

Irwin: … so we are right next to each other, yeah.

AAC: So if you need to talk to a Republican, there is one right next door, who will actually answer the door when you knock.

Irwin: Yes, he’s willing to have a conversation with me, usually.

AAC: Usually? [laugh]

Irwin: Well, yeah, I mean, sometimes people are busy!

AAC: So Mark is obviously not like an inside man for you in the Republican Party, but  he is somebody who is a Republican. And if there are bridges to be built or foundations to be built on, he would be a logical choice, yes?

Irwin: Yes, of course. Mark is a friend and he is willing to talk with me about these issues and that is valuable. That relationship has value to me.

AAC: Have you seen any ways in which that relationship has benefited citizens of Michigan already?

Irwin: That relationship? I’m not entirely sure, because it’s hard to evaluate, particularly this early. But there have definitely been some issues that we have talked about, where I have expressed some concerns about maybe the process, where I’ve expressed concerns about the details of certain bills that have been going through.

Did that alter his thinking about them? I’m not entirely sure – it’s hard for me to know exactly. But it certainly may have. And I think that one of the things that Mark brings to the table regardless of how he votes on issues and everything is sort of a culture of civility and decency to the loyal opposition. I don’t know for a fact, but I think that internal to his caucus, he’s probably saying, “Well, you know, we want to vanquish our enemies, but we do not need to burn down their villages and take their women.”

AAC: So on the Washtenaw County board of commissioners, he was the loyal opposition. [When Ouimet and Irwin served, Ouimet was one of two Republicans on the 11-member board.]

Irwin: I think that is maybe part of it too, that he knows what it’s like to be in the minority. And he knows that sometimes when you’re in the minority, but you have valid points to make, and when the majority actually listens to you and maybe takes some of those valid points, then maybe it’s good for the world, it’s good for public policy. Mark told me that when I was chair of the [Washtenaw County] board, he felt welcomed into the conversation and I certainly worked hard to welcome him into the conversation. Because I think that’s what a good leader does.

Do we still have that relationship? Yeah. Is the shoe on the other foot now? Yeah. Could the goodwill and a good relationship that I have built up with him be somehow helpful on a public policy concern? I certainly hope so. Has it already? I’m not sure that it has. But we have talked about some things.

AAC: Have any of those things been about the budget?

Irwin: No, we haven’t talked about the budget. That budget bomb dropped a week ago now. You know, the numbers themselves didn’t come out until midweek this week … I have not talked to Mark about it at all. I may have talked to him about it in passing, you know, “Holy Cow, the governor is really taking it out on education isn’t he?!” Maybe like the kind of passing shot like that, but no real conversation about that yet.

Stacking the Appropriations Committee

AAC: What is the breakdown of Democrats and Republicans on the Appropriations Committee?

Irwin: This is one of the dirty little secrets hasn’t really been talked about statewide…

AAC: … you can talk about it right now.

Irwin: That’s what I’m going to do! When the Republican Speaker [James "Jase" Bolger] assumed the power to populate the committees structure in this latest session …

AAC: … but, to be clear, this is an ordinary power, right? He’s not grabbing power, when he came into this role – it’s the power that anybody as Speaker has …

Irwin: … precisely. This is the normal role of the Speaker, to choose how many Democrats and Republicans are on each committee. And what the Speaker did was he pushed the envelope – further than I have ever seen it, at least, and further than the last Democratic speaker – pushed it in terms of what the balance of Democrats versus Republicans is going to be on all these committees.

So even though there are 47 Democrats and 63 Republicans in the House of Representatives – meaning that the ratio is not even 1.5:1 – the ratio of Republicans to Democrats on the committees across the board is much greater than that – they are often 2:1. So he pushed the partisan makeup of the committees, both in appropriations and elsewhere, to be even more heavily Republican than the actual body itself is.

AAC: But he could appoint only Republicans if he wanted to.

Irwin: I think he could. But I think that would look so bad that they wouldn’t do that. There may be something in the House rules that says you have to have at least one member – I mean, I have read the rules but I don’t remember all the details.

AAC: What is the breakdown [of Democrats to Republicans] for appropriations?

Irwin: The breakdown for the appropriations committee – I don’t know the total breakdown, we would have to look that up. I don’t know off the top of my head. [Note: For the 27-member appropriations committee, the breakdown is 17 Republicans to 10 Democrats. By way of another example,  the agriculture committee consists of 10 Republicans and six Democrats. .pdf of all standing committee assignments]

But on some of the subcommittees, the ones that are smaller, there will be only one Democrat, and usually three Republicans on some of the subcommittees. Now on some of the bigger subcommittees – like school aid, for instance – I think there’s probably like five Republicans and two Democrats, or like six and three, maybe.

But for the most part, Speaker Bolger pushed the envelope on partisanship with respect to committee assignments, and did almost a 2:1 partisan majority for Republicans on the policy committees and the appropriations committee – when really it should’ve been close to 1.5:1. It’s a huge difference, really.

And the other thing that they are saying very publicly: “If you Democrats want to make amendments, you’ve got to do it in committee. We’re not interested in hearing amendments on the floor – that’s too late. Introduce or amend in committees, that’s the way this process is supposed to work – where we have even a greater part of the majority and we can squelch your amendments even more easily!”

AAC: So the budget is essentially chopped apart at the subcommittee level in appropriations, which in a lot of ways makes it bite-sized chunks…

Irwin: … if your mouth really big…. They are still huge. The school aid budget is $14 billion or something like that.

AAC: But it’s a way of dividing things so that people can focus on, say, one or two or three issues as opposed to 12.

Irwin: Precisely.

University of Michigan graduate student research assistants and members of the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO) crowded the boardroom at Feb. 17, 2011 board of regents meeting. (Photos by the writer.)

They came to support four speakers during public commentary, who were advocating for better benefits and working conditions for graduate student employees. Also speaking during public commentary were five professors from the medical school, urging regents to support a flexible “tenure clock” that would give faculty more time to achieve that professional milestone.

The meeting’s main presentation focused on international aspects of the university – students from other countries who study at UM, and American students who study abroad. Mark Tessler, vice provost for international affairs, told regents that three-quarters of the UM students who study abroad are female – they’re trying to find out why male students aren’t as interested.

The presentation led to several questions from regents, who wanted clarification about why UM doesn’t offer an international program in Israel. They also cited the importance of finding incentives to keep international students in Michigan after graduation.

Regents also voted on several items, mostly without discussion, including: approving the next step in a major renovation of Alice Lloyd Hall; giving departmental status to the Center for Afroamerican and African Studies; and officially naming the new Law School commons in honor of Bob Aikens, a UM alumnus who donated $10 million to the project.

Another UM alum, Gov. Rick Snyder, had released his proposed state budget earlier in the day. Prior to the meeting, several university executives huddled with Cynthia Wilbanks, vice president for government relations, to get updated on the implications for their own budget – funding for higher education is among the many cuts Snyder has proposed. President Mary Sue Coleman also addressed that issue in her opening remarks.

President’s Opening Remarks

President Mary Sue Coleman began by acknowledging that Gov. Rick Snyder had released his state budget proposal earlier in the day. Clearly the state faces severe budget challenges, she said, and will require shared sacrifices.

The university has anticipated this day, she said, and for years has been preparing for a reduction in state funding. The university faces substantial cuts in the governor’s budget, she noted. “There’s no denying this will be painful, but we are fully prepared to do our part.”

Before the start of the Feb. 17 regents meeting, Cynthia Wilbanks, UM vice president for government relations, confers with other executives about the state budget that Gov. Rick Snyder had proposed earlier that day. From left: Tim Slottow, chief financial officer; Jerry May, vice president for development; and provost Phil Hanlon.

[Under the proposal, state appropriations for UM's Ann Arbor campus would be cut 19.4% from FY 2011 levels, to $254.9 million. If the university complies with tuition increases recommended by the governor, it would receive an additional $13.8 million. Under that scenario, the university would receive a total of $268.8 million – a cut of $47.5 million, or 15%, from the FY 2011 appropriation of $316.3 million. It would reduce funding levels to about the amount received in 1990-91.]

The university is committed to providing a world-class education that is accessible to Michigan residents, regardless of income, Coleman said. The budget proposal is the beginning of a conversation, and there’s much to review – including the impact on the University of Michigan Health System. They expect to be fully engaged, she said, adding that Snyder – a UM graduate – understands the importance of higher education to the state’s economy. She noted that they’d be able to demonstrate that importance the next day, when Snyder was scheduled to attend the Feb. 18 awards ceremony on campus for the Clean Energy Prize competition.

Coleman also highlighted some achievements of UM’s arts community. Michael Daugherty, a professor of music, earlier this month won three Grammy awards for his composition “Deus Ex Machina.” Daugherty won the award for Best Classical Contemporary Composition, and the album was awarded Best Orchestral Performance and Best Engineered Album in the classical music category. Also, Ken Fischer, president of the University Musical Society, received the Fan Taylor Distinguished Service Award from the Association of Performing Arts Presenters, which recognizes those whose outstanding service, creative thinking, and leadership have had a significant impact on the profession. “Ken certainly fits that criteria,” Coleman said.

UM president Mary Sue Coleman, left, goes over her prepared remarks with Kim Clarke, director of executive communications.

She pointed out that spring break begins soon – from Feb. 28 through March 4 – and she was pleased that 450 students are participating in alternative spring break programs, doing community service across the country. She commended them for giving up their vacations.

Finally, Coleman noted that next month’s regents meeting will be held in Detroit, on March 17, to highlight and celebrate the university’s partnerships there. UM was founded in Detroit, she said – it is the state’s most important city, and the university is committed to strengthening the community and its citizens. [The meeting will be held at the Westin Book Cadillac hotel, site of last year's Washtenaw Community College trustee retreat.]

Internationalization at UM

The main presentation at Thursday’s meeting was given by Mark Tessler, UM’s vice provost for international affairs. His talk focused on two aspects of international studies at the university: Students from other countries who study at UM, and UM students who study abroad. He began by noting that internationalization had been the focus of the university’s 2010 accreditation process.

About 5,200 international students are on campus, from 117 different countries. Of those, the mix is 70% graduate students and 30% undergrads. UM has the nation’s sixth largest international student population, he said. The number of international students has increased almost 35% since 2000, and is increasing as a percentage of the overall student population as well. In 2001, international students represented about 10% of the overall student population. Today, they make up 12.5%.

Having international students enriches campus life, Tessler said, and UM is looking for ways to deepen the relationships between U.S. and international students – many of whom will eventually become leaders in their respective countries.

Tessler said students are drawn to the university for many reasons, as a result of UM’s reputation, its partnerships with institutions in other countries, and its international network of alumni recruiters. One example is a student from Oman, he said, who won a scholarship to attend a U.S. university, and was advised by the country’s cultural affairs officer to pick UM. The student, an Arab, got involved in Judaic studies at UM, and is now back in his country active in political affairs.

Of the roughly 5,200 international students at UM, about 80% come from 10 countries: China (38%), India (20%), South Korea (18%), Taiwan and Canada (6% each), Malaysia (4%), and Singapore, Japan, Turkey and Brazil (2% each).

Turning to UM’s American students, Tessler said each year they send about 3,200 students to 85 different countries, including semester- or year-long studies and shorter summer programs. Most students still go to Europe, though proportionally that number is declining. They’re trying to develop more programs in Asia, Africa and Latin American. He noted that he had studied abroad two times as a student – in Israel and Tunisia – and described the experiences as life-changing. It’s important, as U.S. citizens, to develop “global competence,” he said, and the experience enriches life on campus when you return.

In the last five years, the number of students studying abroad has doubled, but they’re hoping to increase those numbers even more. Some of the reasons that students don’t go is a lack of financial aid, he said, or they have concerns that they won’t be able to graduate on time. So the university is offering a broader array of programs, including some that are shorter in duration. The university is also working with students to help them better plan for an international experience earlier in their academic career.

Tessler also pointed out that about three-quarters of the students who study abroad are female – it’s a national trend, he noted, but they’re trying to see what it would take to get more male students interested.

Internationalization: Regents Comments

Andrea Fischer Newman noted that Tessler had mentioned studying in Israel. There’s currently a student petition being circulated that advocates for UM to start a program there, she said. Though there’s no official program, UM students can study in Israel through programs at other universities, and transfer credits, Newman said. She asked Tessler to talk about why the university doesn’t have an international program in Israel.

Tessler said they have a lot of partnerships with institutions in Israel, but it’s a university policy to suspend programs in countries that are on the U.S. State Department’s travel advisory list, as Israel is. Students can go, he said, and it’s common for them to travel there through programs at other universities. There are also “non-regular” programs that UM faculty and students can create independently in countries that are under travel advisories – in that case, they sign a waiver before traveling.

Newman asked if it were fair to reconsider that policy. Tessler said it’s a fair question – some other institutions ignore the advisories, or ask students to sign waivers for their official programs. There are also universities like UM that take a more conservative view, and don’t feel they should substitute their own judgment for that of the state department. Ultimately, it’s not his decision to make, Tessler said.

At that, Newman turned to provost Phil Hanlon with a questioning look. Hanlon said it’s worth looking at the policy again, to see if it is still appropriate. Tessler noted that there are several other countries on the travel advisory list that they’d like to look at as well.

Denise Ilitch observed that regents had recently received an update on the status of UM students studying in Egypt, in the wake of the uprising there. Tessler said Egypt hadn’t been on the advisory list, but it would be now – a remark that elicted laughter.

Andy Richner asked whether Tessler had data on the number of international students who stay in Michigan after graduation. Tessler said he didn’t, but he imagined it would be a small number. Richner said he’d heard otherwise.

Larry Deitch said they might consider how to incentivize people to stay. Some of the innovation in Michigan has been driven by immigrants, especially those educated here. Richner noted that the governor has expressed interest in this as well.

Internationalization: Student Perspective

Two undergraduates who’ve been involved in UM’s international programs talked about their experiences.

UM undergraduates Grace van Velden, left, and Bianca Renae Lee chat before Thursday's regents meeting started. They both spoke to regents during a presentation on the university's international programs.

Bianca Renae Lee, who’s studying sociocultural anthropology and is graduating in April, described a wide range of programs she’s attended abroad, including studies in Ghana and Ireland. She also worked in New Orleans through UM’s Global Intercultural Experience program – because of that, she’ll be going back to Louisiana after graduation, as a Teach for America worker.

Lee said her international experiences allowed her to grow academically and spiritually, and to build many important relationships. “My life wouldn’t have been the same without these international opportunities,” she said.

Grace van Velden – a junior and president of the UM chapter of Sigma Iota Rho, an honor society for international studies – thanked regents for allowing her and Lee to represent the voices of their peers. Originally from South Africa, she moved here when she was in grade school, but returns in the summers to work in HIV/AIDS and malaria clinics outside of Johannesburg. She also has worked at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Van Velden said she’s grateful that UM pushes students and nurtures their desire to travel, both internationally and within the U.S. – she hopes those efforts will continue.

Michigan Student Assembly Report

Chris Armstrong, president of the Michigan Student Assembly (MSA), gave a brief report to regents, summarizing the student government’s recent work. On Feb. 19 they were co-hosting the Stand Up to Bullying event at the Ypsilanti District Library – speakers would include Washtenaw County sheriff Jerry Clayton and former state legislator Alma Wheeler Smith. The MSA is continuing to work with university administrators on an open housing initiative, he said, and is working on a campuswide campaign to solicit ideas about what to fix on campus. He reported that the MSA’s environmental commission had collected over 1,400 signatures to ban plastic bottles on campus. Armstrong also urged regents to strongly encourage negotiations between the administration and the Graduate Employees’ Organization as they discuss their upcoming contract.

CAAS To Become a Department

Regents unanimously approved reorganizing UM’s Center for Afroamerican and African Studies (CAAS), an institution founded in 1970, into the Department for Afroamerican and African Studies, part of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts. The new status aims to strengthen the undergraduate program, allow the unit to develop additional graduate studies, and aid in recruiting and promoting faculty.

No financial costs are anticipated as a result of the change, which would take effect on Sept. 1, 2011.

Law Commons Named for Aikens

Regents voted to officially name the new UM Law School commons in honor of Robert B. Aikens. A 1954 graduate of the law school, Aikens gave the university a $10 million donation for the school’s current expansion and renovation project, which includes the new commons. It’s the largest gift ever given to the law school by a living individual, according to Jerry May, vice president for development. May praised Aikens and his wife Ann Aikens as being lifelong supporters of many parts of the university, with previous gifts to the UM School of Art & Design and the athletics department.

Capital Projects: Alice Lloyd, School of Social Work

Several capital projects were unanimously approved by regents at their Feb. 17 meeting, with little discussion. They include:

• Authorization to seek bids and award construction contracts on a $56 million “deep” renovation of Alice Lloyd Hall, located at 100 S. Observatory. Regents had previously approved the project’s schematic design at their Dec. 17, 2010 meeting. The 176,000-square-foot dorm houses about 560 students. Construction is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2012.
• A $1.85 million renovation project at the School of Social Work. About 18,400 square feet in the atrium of the building – located at 1080 S. University Ave., at the corner of East University – will be renovated into a new clinical suite to allow students to practice and observe clinical approaches, and to accommodate expanded continuing education programs. The project is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2011.
• A $2 million renovation project on the fourth floor of the C.C. Little Science Building, located at 1100 N. University Ave. The roughly 10,600 square feet of renovated lab and support space will be used by recently recruited faculty for the Dept. of Geological Sciences. Construction is expected to be finished by the fall of 2011.

Bylaws Revised

Regents approved three revisions to their bylaws, with no discussion. [.pdf of bylaws revisions] Changes were made to:

• Reflect the fact that recreational sports programs are now overseen by the division of student affairs, not the athletics department.
• Delete the entire Chapter VII on student affairs, which refers to entities that either no longer exist or that are covered in other sections of the bylaws.
• Reflect a change in the reporting lines for the Museum of Zoology and Herbarium.

Conflict of Interest Disclosures

Regents authorized five items that required disclosure under the state’s Conflict of Interest statute. The law requires that regents vote on potential conflict-of-interest disclosures related to university staff, faculty or students. Often, the items involve technology licensing agreements or leases.

Items included: (1) a contract between UM and the Gladwin Center – a meeting facility on Liberty Road, just west of Wagner; (2) option agreements with Cardiavent LLC and Wolverine Energy Solutions Technology Inc.; and (3) licensing agreements with Omni MedSci Inc. and Atrial Innovations Inc.

All items passed unanimously, with no discussion.

Public Commentary

Public commentary occurs at the end of regents meetings. On Thursday, two topics dominated speakers’ remarks: a proposed flexible “tenure clock” for faculty; and issues affecting graduate student workers.

Flexible Tenure Clock

Five faculty members of the UM Medical School addressed the regents in support of a more flexible timeline for achieving tenure. The provost, Phil Hanlon, is considering extending the maximum allowable period to 10 years – the change would ultimately require action by the regents. The current maximum is eight years, though many units of the university set shorter timelines.

Timothy Johnson, chair of the department of obstetrics and gynecology, told regents it was the democratically right thing to do – faculty at the medical school have discussed it for more than a decade, and support it. Given their clinical duties, the medical school faculty are quite different in how they achieve scholarship, so a flexible tenure clock is required. There’s a great deal of uncertainty surrounding funding for staff – at the federal level, support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is changing, and health care reform will have an impact on reimbursement for physicians. These are turbulent times, he said, and people in Michigan are further stressed by the exigencies of this state’s economy. Having a tenure clock that’s shorter than their peer institutions puts them at a competitive disadvantage, he said.

John Carethers, chair of UM Medical School's department of internal medicine.

John Carethers, chair of the department of internal medicine, said he represented the medical school’s largest department, with over 640 faculty. Flexibility in achieving tenure is important for their ability to attract and retain the best faculty, he said, with diversity in race, gender and discipline. There are at least two dozen examples of faculty who had difficulty in achieving tenure over the past few years, and a disproportionate number of them were women, compared to the makeup of the overall faculty. There are many reasons for this, he said, including delays in getting NIH funding, the collaborative nature of their research, or health and child-related issues. He concluded by reading a letter from Maria Silveira, an assistant professor of internal medicine who practices palliative care. The letter described Silveira’s own health struggles, noting that she had to petition the dean to extend her tenure clock. Without flexibility, tenure is possible only for those who are privileged or lucky.

Toby Lewis, a pediatric pulmonologist and environmental epidemiologist, described her research, which addresses childhood asthma in low-income neighborhoods. The community-based approach is collaborative and interdisciplinary, she said, and is time- and labor-intensive. There are challenges in working with vulnerable communities, and a typical study takes five to seven years to complete. Lewis said she was giving regents this information because research like this needs to be done for intractable problems, and the university needs to embrace and promote faculty who are taking risks to do this work. Flexibility in the tenure clock is needed so that high-performing faculty have the time to complete their research.

Carol Bradford, chair of the UM Medical School's department of otolaryngology.

Carol Bradford, chair of the department of otolaryngology (ear, nose and throat), described her career path from the time she joined UM as an assistant professor in 1992. She listed many of the accomplishments she’s been able to achieve – she is president-elect of the American Head and Neck Society, the first woman to hold that role – but said that were it not for mentorship and some lucky breaks, she might not be here today.

Susan Goold, a professor of internal medicine, said that she’s an Ann Arbor native who also joined the medical school faculty in 1992 – she became the first tenured women in her division. She recalled that when she was a young resident, she had lunch with a national leader in her field. When Goold expressed admiration for another female researcher, he told her that the researcher wouldn’t have been as successful if she’d had children. Goold said that the pressure of a ticking tenure clock often coincides with the urge to have a family. More flexibility in the tenure timeline would help recruit more female faculty, she said. But it’s not just about women and pregnancy, she added – it would also help those who face illness, or whose research just takes longer to get rolling. She concluded by noting that some people are concerned about the potential for abuse – delaying tenure in order to keep salaries lower. That’s something to keep an eye on if they extend the tenure clock.

Graduate Employee Concerns

Four graduate students spoke during public commentary, but at least two dozen others attended the meeting, many of them carrying signs that lobbied on issues related to contract negotiations between the university and the Graduate Employees’ Organization (GEO).

Chelsea Del Rio, an officer in the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO).

Chelsea Del Rio, a GEO officer, thanked the university for meeting with GEO representatives, and said they looked forward to talking about issues like parents’ rights, health benefits and wages. She described the kind of work that graduate student instructors (GSIs) do – teaching classes, writing letters of recommendation, holding office hours and more – and said they do this because they’re invested in the success of their students and of the university. They’re asking for resources necessary to be the best possible employees that they can be, she said. They want a reasonable contract that will protect GSIs, she said. Del Rio described a recent situation when a professor pressured GSIs into staying late to grade papers, even though a blizzard was on the way. Another GSI had to sneak out into the parking lot to breastfeed, because there was no place else to do it – the university needs to provide clean and secure areas for this. She also noted that graduate student research assistants (GSRAs) aren’t protected by a union contract – they aren’t represented by a bargaining unit like GEO. Like GSIs, GSRAs contribute to the success of the university. “The University of Michigan works because we do,” she said. Del Rio concluded by saying she was confident they could reach an agreement.

Alix Gould-Werth, a graduate student research assistant (GSRA), described the type of work she does in studying the impact of unemployment insurance. Sometimes she prioritizes the work over her own studies, she said, but she likes it. She asked the university to recognize it for what it is: work. As a GSRA, she doesn’t have any say over her benefits or working conditions. Now, the GSRAs are talking about whether to join the GEO bargaining unit, and she asked the university to be neutral about it and not oppose the move, if that’s what the GSRAs decide to do.

Daniel Marcin, treasurer of the Graduate Employees' Organization (GEO).

Daniel Marcin identified himself as the treasurer for GEO and a graduate student in economics. The GEO certainly understands the university’s economic constraints, he said, and they know that budgets are tight. They’re asking for a 3% raise in each of the first two years of the contract, and a 6% raise in the third year. “We know that you understand compound interest,” he said, adding that this is a fair starting point for the negotiations. Graduate student instructors earn $17,200 per academic year – “We do deserve a little more,” Marcin said, “and that’s what we’re asking for.”

Denise Bailey said she represented two minorities: graduate students with disabilities, and graduate student parents. Both bring unique perspectives to the university, and she hoped the university would make strides in accommodating them and integrating them fully into campus life. For graduate students with children, she advocated for: (1) removal of the current work/study requirement that’s needed to get a childcare subsidy; (2) sufficient parental leave that wouldn’t result in losing medical benefits; and (3) private space where lactating mothers could pump breastmilk or nurse their babies.

Regent Martin Taylor responded to the public commentary, saying he strongly supported the rights of workers to organize. He said he understood the administration’s concerns, but hoped they could come together and allow students to organize. Regents Kathy White and Julia Darlow indicated support for Taylor’s comments.

Present: Mary Sue Coleman (ex officio), Julia Darlow, Larry Deitch, Denise Ilitch, Andrea Fischer Newman, Andrew Richner, Martin Taylor, Kathy White.

Absent: Olivia (Libby) Maynard

Next board meeting: Thursday, March 17, 2011 at 2 p.m. at the Westin Book Cadillac in Detroit, 1114 Washington Blvd., Detroit. [confirm date]

County commissioner Wes Prater, left, talks with Ypsilanti mayor Paul Schreiber before the start of Wednesday's county board of commissioners meeting. Schreiber came to speak in support of the county's land bank. In the background is deputy clerk Jason Brooks. (Photos by the writer.)

Commissioners also got an update from their lobbyist in Lansing, who spoke of upcoming transitions in state government that will impact the county. Kirk Profit said the turnover in the legislature, governor’s office and other administrative posts could lead to opportunities for the county. Several commissioners raised concerns over the state budget and state funding for local programs, and are worried that the situation will get worse before it gets better.

Wednesday’s meeting also included two official farewells to long-time county employees: finance director Pete Ballios and Trenda Rusher, director of the county’s Employment Training and Community Services (ETCS) department. Both received standing ovations from commissioners, staff and others in the boardroom.

Land Bank Authority Dissolved

Despite an appeal from Ypsilanti mayor Paul Schreiber to keep the county’s land bank, commissioners on Wednesday voted to dissolve the entity, which the board created less than a year ago. That decision led commissioner Ronnie Peterson to make a long, impassioned plea for help to aid communities with high foreclosure rates, especially on the county’s east side. Peterson represents District 6, which covers the city of Ypsilanti and part of Ypsilanti Township.

The land bank was championed by county treasurer Catherine McClary, who chaired the authority’s board. It was designed as a way for the county to take possession of tax-foreclosed properties, rather than auction them off to the highest bidder – often an out-of-state company. The intent was to rehab the properties and resell them to qualified buyers, or demolish the houses and use the land for other purposes.

Citing internal disputes and a lack of sufficient funding, some commissioners said they didn’t believe the land bank was an appropriate mechanism for the county at this time. They had discussed their intent to eliminate the land bank last week at a March 10 administrative briefing. [See Chronicle coverage: "County Board to Vote on Folding Land Bank"]

Speaking during public commentary at Wednesday’s meeting, Schreiber reported that the Ypsilanti city council had passed a resolution of support for the land bank. It’s a tool that both Ypsilanti and Ypsilanti Township need, Schreiber said, adding that in his neighborhood alone, there have been four foreclosures in the last three years. He said the land bank could be used in conjunction with the Washtenaw Urban County, which he described as a “fantastic resource.” [Schreiber serves on the board of that group, which is chaired by county commissioner Leah Gunn.] The land bank is another option to help stabilize neighborhoods, he said.

Commissioner Discussion

Conan Smith, who’s been a supporter of the land bank, said he was saddened that they’d reached this point – it was a detriment that they’d have one less tool in their toolbelt. Kristin Judge asked for clarification about the funding – what had the county been hoping to receive to make the land bank more viable?

Leah Gunn explained that the county had applied for a second phase of funding from the federal Neighborhood Stabilization Program, known as NSP2. About $5 million of those funds were to be used for the land bank, but the county did not receive the money. The land bank had also been allocated roughly $300,000 in NSP funds from a previous round that the county has already secured. Those dollars will now be used by the Washtenaw Urban County to rehab blighted properties, working with housing nonprofits like Avalon Housing and Habitat for Humanity.

County treasurer Catherine McClary, left, prior to the start of Wednesday's board of commissioners meeting. To the right is county commissioner Ken Schwartz.

Mention of the Urban County led Jessica Ping to note that her district wasn’t urban, and that from her district, only Bridgewater Township was an Urban County member. She wondered why other municipalities weren’t participating.

Gunn clarified that the Urban County is a partnership of the county, the cities of Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti, and eight townships. The “Urban County” designation allows the group to receive and allocate funding through certain federal programs, including NSP. The requirements for NSP stipulate that the funds must be used on certain designated low-income census tracts – locally, those are in southeast Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, Ypsilanti Township and Superior Township.

However, other federal funds – from the Community Development Block Grant and HOME programs – can be used throughout the county. Joining the Urban County allows local municipalities to be eligible for those funds. Gunn said they’d like for others to participate, and the group has contacted leaders in communities that aren’t now Urban County members, like the city of Saline, which is in Ping’s district. “We’re kind of wooing them,” she said.

Asked by Ping how much it cost to join, Gunn said there is no cost: “We give money away.”

Ping indicated that the name “urban county” was confusing.

The term is a federal designation. From the U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) website:

Urban county means a county that was classified as an urban county under 42 U.S.C. 5302(a) for the fiscal year immediately preceding the fiscal year for which emergency shelter grant amounts are made available. “(6)(A) The term “urban county” means any county within which- (i) is authorized under State law to undertake essential community development and housing assistance activities in its unincorporated areas, if any, which are not units of general local government; and (ii) either– (I) has a population of 200,000 or more (excluding the population of metropolitan cities therein) and has a combined population of 100,000 or more (excluding the population of metropolitan cities therein) in such unincorporated areas and in its included units of general local government … ” (42 U.S.C. 5302(a))

Returning to the topic of a land bank, Jeff Irwin said he too was disappointed, but that he would reluctantly support dissolving the lank bank authority. He said the board had lots of questions that went unanswered, and that they’d asked the county treasurer to return to the board with specific strategies for how the land bank would be used. That never happened, he said. When the funding fell through, the land bank’s viability as a tool became less clear.

Irwin said he’d encourage the treasurer to come forward in the future with strategies, and answers to questions like what metrics would be used to judge the land bank’s success, and how long would the county hold property that was put in the land bank.

Noting that he’d had a lot of questions about the land bank, Ronnie Peterson said he never questioned the treasurer’s motives in trying to help the community. He described the devastation that the economic downturn has taken on his district, saying that there are certain neighborhoods where you’ll find stretches of five to ten houses “sitting naked” because they’ve been foreclosed on and abandoned. The county is losing the stability of its neighborhoods, he said, and that stability depends on home ownership.

Both Ypsilanti and Ypsilanti Township had appealed to the board in support of the land bank, Peterson said, and he urged commissioners to table the resolution that would dissolve the entity. He said if they couldn’t work something out by June, he’d support the decision to dissolve it.

Gunn reiterated her point that the Washtenaw Urban County was working on the same issue – rehabilitating homes and working to find qualified buyers, not renters. “That is precisely what commissioner Peterson wants, and that is what we are doing,” she said.

Ken Schwartz weighed in, saying he’d been enthusiastic about the program when they approved it last July. [See Chronicle coverage: "Banking on a Land Bank"] But over the past few months, the board had difficulty working through things like who to appoint to the land bank authority’s board – no appointees were made. Schwartz described the situation as too much “taffy pulling,” but said that if they do more research and analysis, a land bank might be possible in the future, using a more coordinated approach with other tools to address similar problems.

Outcome: At the board’s Ways & Means Committee meeting, the resolution passed with dissent from Smith and Peterson. At the regular board meeting, which immediately follows Ways & Means, only Peterson voted against it – Smith and Schwartz were not in the room during that vote.

Report from Lansing

Kirk Profit – director of Governmental Consultant Services Inc., a Lansing-based lobbying firm – had been asked to give the board a briefing on state funding, which has a direct impact on programs and services provided by the county. Profit and two GCSI staff members – Ken Cole and Adrian Hemond – described some of the legislation they were tracking and attempting to influence, specifically as it related to funding for local municipalities.

Profit, a former state representative, described the situation in Lansing as challenging, though he praised the work of legislators representing Washtenaw County. He noted that the state faces a roughly $1.4 billion budget deficit. Gov. Jennifer Granholm has proposed closing that deficit with $500 million in cuts, $500 million in new revenue and $400 million in federal stimulus funds, Profit said, but both the House and Senate have said no to new revenues (tax increases).

Local governments have already seen an impact from the state’s budget crisis in the form of decreased state revenue-sharing and lower transportation funding for local roads, Profit said. With more cuts to come, he added, the state budget will encroach even more on quality-of-life issues.

Cole and Hemond both described work they’re doing to track legislation working its way through the House and Senate appropriations committees and subcommittees. There wasn’t much good news to share, with potential cuts in jail reimbursements, public health, the state police budget – which would affect local secondary road patrols – and other areas.

Kirk Profit, whose Lansing-based firm is a lobbyist for Washtenaw County, talks with county commissioner Barbara Bergman before the start of the March 17 board of commissioners meeting. Profit and two of his staff members gave an update on state legislative issues.

Profit mentioned a range of other projects that GCSI is pursuing, including legislation related to the Detroit Region Aerotropolis – the county is a partner in that project – and an effort to eliminate unfunded state mandates. He also said that outgoing county administrator Bob Guenzel will be working with GCSI on a project aimed a restructuring local government.

Though Profit described this year as a time to be engaged, he cautioned that because of the upcoming elections and a change in leadership at all levels in Lansing, it’s likely that a lot of issues won’t be resolved. There’s not much incentive for current legislators to make structural changes, he said. However, he added, “with a new government comes opportunity.” As a transition occurs and appropriations are made, it’s time to promote the county’s agenda, he said – or someone else will promote a different one.

Commissioner Discussion

Several commissioners had comments and questions for Profit and his staff. Leah Gunn called the news out of Lansing “very discouraging,” and said her concern is that the county doesn’t have many options in terms of raising revenue. She noted, for example, that Washtenaw County is the only one in the state that levies a tax to support indigent veterans. [The 1/40th of a mill is expected to raise $393,616 this year for services to indigent veterans.] There aren’t many options like that available to local governments, she said.

Profit said that Washtenaw County is the economic engine for the state. “We have political juice, we have political power,” he said – and now’s the time to turn it up a notch. The tax code needs to be restructured so that local governments aren’t stuck with capped property taxes, he said. There also needs to be changes to the gas tax – the roads are bad. Profit said he refused to accept the current situation, and expressed optimism that a change in government leadership could bring fresh ideas. But in the interim, it will be difficult, he acknowledged – especially in budgeting for next year, when things will be in flux.

Barbara Bergman asked about the impact of state cuts on the county’s public health budget, which could be as high as 20%. Dick Fleece, director of the county’s public health/environmental health department, came forward and said that as soon as they get the budget figures from the state, his staff would let the board know what their alternatives are. He said they hoped that grant funding might be available to offset state cuts.

On the issue of unfunded mandates – services that the state requires, but doesn’t providing funding for – Profit urged the county’s department heads to alert GCSI if there are any that “run afoul of the constitution.” There might be ways to challenge those mandates, he said.

Adrian Hemond also noted that there would be opportunities after the November election, in what he expects to be a “raucous” lame-duck session. “Literally everything will be up for dealing,” he said.

Profit also told commissioners and county staff that it would be helpful to hear examples of ways in which state funding decisions make a direct impact on county services. That’s useful in making a case to preserve funding, he said.

Ken Schwartz said it “sounds like this is the lost year of the lost decade.” He asked for details on state legislation related to the aerotropolis. A bill that would allow the aerotropolis to form a separate economic development zone has been stalled, Profit said, adding that they shouldn’t wait for state action. [A March 18 article in Crain's Detroit Business reports that executives in Oakland and Wayne counties have reached an agreement that could result in action in the state legislature.]

Kristin Judge asked for an update on indigent defense legislation. Profit noted that Washtenaw County’s public defender, Lloyd Powell, had been an advocate for state funding of trial-level public defense. [Powell outlined his position in a January 2010 column in the Washtenaw Legal News, outlining his position.] Profit said there’s a recognition that it would be very expensive, and that the debate hasn’t been resolved.

Jeff Irwin asked about the JPORT program – the county’s Justice Project Outreach Team, which provides mental health services for people in jail and after their release. The county had asked GCSI to check if the state would fund a pilot program, using Washtenaw’s efforts as a model. Irwin noted that Michigan is one of only five states that spend more on corrections than on higher education, and that programs like JPORT are one way to do something about that.

Profit said that his firm likes to “play offense,” and if the county wanted them to work on it, they would. Hemond pointed out that GCSI has made attempts in the past two years to get a pilot program started, but that wrangling between two different committee chairmen in the legislature had started to generate ill will, so they hadn’t pushed it further. However, the lame-duck session offered an opportunity to get something through appropriations, Hemond added. Profit cautioned against funding something that might be cut by a new administration, but Hemond said there might be creative ways to pursue it.

Public Health Update

The board heard two updates from county public health administrators on Wednesday.

H1N1 Update

Diana Torres-Burgos, the county’s medical director, reported on how the county responded to the H1N1 flu outbreak. She reminded commissioners that it was less than a year ago – in mid-April, 2009 – when the first cases of the flu were confirmed in California. Locally, the first outbreak peaked in June, with another peak in November.

This chart shows the geographic location of H1N1 cases in Washtenaw County, based on 80 residents who were hospitalized. Ypsilanti residents accounted for nearly half of all cases. (Links to larger image)

Torres-Burgos gave a roundup of Washtenaw County data related to the outbreak. There were 80 hospitalizations – of those, 49% were Ypsilanti area residents and 26% were from Ann Arbor. Looking at the cases by race/ethnicity, 69% were Caucasian and 19% African American.

Two adults in Washtenaw County died as a result of H1N1, Torres-Burgos said, but there were no pediatric deaths.

Torres-Burgos recalled the difficulty that the county had in getting adequate vaccines from the federal government. By mid-October, they had an extremely limited supply – an initial shipment of 3,400, all in nasal-mist form, out of a total order of 250,000. [See Chronicle coverage from an Oct. 28, 2009 briefing: "County Revamps H1N1 Vaccine Strategy"]

Based on limited supply, the county initially distributed vaccines based on priority groups. In October, the public health department held three clinics for first-responders, as well as a clinic for priority populations and a mass vaccination clinic. Six additional vaccination clinics were held in November and December. From October 2009 through January 2010, the county administered nearly 13,000 H1N1 vaccines. Through other health care providers, about 163,000 doses were given countywide, according to Torres-Burgos.

Vaccines are still available, she noted. There is no charge for getting them through the public health department.

In describing lessons learned from the outbreak, Torres-Burgos said it was clear that communication was crucial, both through traditional means as well as through social media like Facebook and Twitter. Partnerships were also critical, she said, with health care providers and other key stakeholders like Eastern Michigan University, which let the county use its convocation center for mass clinics.

Funding and staffing are challenges for emergencies like the H1N1 outbreak, Torres-Burgos said. Without federal stimulus funds and the collaboration with partners in the community, the county would have been unable to provide the response needed, she said.

Following her presentation, several commissioners praised the public health department’s response to the H1N1 crisis. Kristin Judge noted that while 400 schools closed throughout the state, there was only one school closing in Washtenaw County. She attributed that to the county’s response in averting a crisis. Barbara Bergman said that the department has laid a strong foundation for responding to future public health crises.

Washtenaw County Public Health Rankings

Dick Fleece, director of the county’s public health/environmental health department, gave a report on how Washtenaw County ranked in a recent study by the University of Wisconsin. The study looked at health outcomes and health factors in counties throughout the U.S. In the first category, Washtenaw ranked 7th in Michigan, looking at outcomes like mortality and morbidity, including low birth weight and quality of life.

Washtenaw County ranked 1st in the state in the health factors category, which measured health behaviors (including smoking rates, obesity rates, binge drinking and teen birth rates), access to health care, social and economic factors, and physical environment. Some highlights:

• Washtenaw ranked highest in the state for the number of primary care providers – 283 per 100,000 population.
• The county’s adult smoking rate is 13%, compared to a statewide rate of 23%. Fleece noted that new state ban on smoking in bars and restaurants takes effect May 1.

A chart of showing the number of grocery stores and restaurants per capita in Washtenaw County from 1950 through 2008. (Links to larger image)

• In the category of access to healthy foods, 58% of the county’s zip code areas have a grocery store, farmer’s market or produce stand, compared to a statewide average of 51%.
• The county has an estimated 15% rate of uninsured adults under the age of 65, compared to the overall state average of 12%.
• In Washtenaw, 46% of chronically ill Medicare patients were enrolled in hospice care within their last six months of life, compared to a state average of 38%.
• Measuring the birth rate to teen mothers, the county had 14 births per 1,000 females aged 15-19, compared to a state average of 36.

Fleece said that while the county is doing well in many regards and has much to be proud of, there are still problems – as well as areas of disparity. For example, the percentage of adults who smoke varies widely by region, from 9.8% in Ann Arbor to 24.9% in Ypsilanti. Obesity rates are significantly higher in the Ypsilanti area – at 24.9% – compared to 11.2% in Ann Arbor. And looking at adults diagnosed with diabetes, there are large disparities based on race and income, Fleece said.

Another area of concern is the county’s chlamydia rate, at 300 per every 100,000 people. Though it’s lower than the overall state average of 370, it’s far above the target goal of 50, Fleece noted.

The county has a 7.3% rate for low-birth weight – measuring the percent of live births for which the infant weighed less than 5.8 pounds. The state average is 3.7%. Fleece thanked the board for its approval Wednesday evening of a grant – $27,390 from the Genesee County Racial & Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) – that will be used to address that issue.

The full study results are available at the County Health Rankings website. [.pdf of report to commissioners]

After Fleece’s presentation, Conan Smith said that the ranking bodes well for both residents and for the economy. Having a healthy environment makes the county a place that people want to live and that businesses want to locate. It’s something to brag about, he said, to businesses that might want to invest here.

“And remember to invest in our department as we go forward,” Fleece quipped.

Contract Approved for Next Administrator

With no discussion, commissioners approved an employment agreement with Verna McDaniel to be the county’s next administrator, effective May 15, 2010 with a salary of $155,000. McDaniel, the county’s deputy administrator, was the only person interviewed to replace retiring administrator Bob Guenzel. Guenzel, who has been in that post since 1994, currently earns $159,424.

In addition to her salary, McDaniel will also be provided with a county-owned vehicle, health insurance, travel expenses and other benefits. The agreement states that she’ll be reimbursed for up to $3,000 in other job-related expenses, as needed. [.pdf of employment agreement]

McDaniel has worked for the county for 28 years, including 18 years as executive director of human resources. [For previous Chronicle coverage of McDaniel's selection, see "McDaniel Pledges to Lead Washtenaw."]

Regional Energy Office

Without comment, the board voted to join the Southeast Michigan Regional Energy Office, with commissioner Conan Smith abstaining. Smith had addressed a potential conflict of interest on the issue at the board’s March 3 meeting – he is executive director of the Michigan Suburbs Alliance, a Ferndale-based nonprofit that will be managing the energy office. [See Chronicle coverage from a Nov. 24, 2009 administrative briefing and Dec. 2, 2009 county board meeting.] Commissioners also had received a briefing on the energy office at their March 4 working session.

Present: Barbara Levin Bergman, Leah Gunn, Jeff Irwin, Kristin Judge, Mark Ouimet, Ronnie Peterson, Jessica Ping, Wes Prater, Ken Schwartz, Rolland Sizemore Jr., Conan Smith

Next board meeting: Wednesday, April 7 at 6:30 p.m. at the County Administration Building, 220 N. Main St. The Ways & Means Committee meets first, followed immediately by the regular board meeting. [confirm date] (Though the agenda states that the regular board meeting begins at 6:45 p.m., it usually starts much later – times vary depending on what’s on the agenda.) Public comment sessions are held at the beginning and end of each meeting.

Trenda Rusher, outgoing executive director of the county's Employment Training & Community Services (ETCS) department, gave an emotional speech after receiving a plaque of recognition for her nearly 30 years of service to the county. In starting her own consulting business in the Washington D.C. area, she promised to be the county's "little leprechaun" and help find "pots of gold" – referring to grant funding from the federal government and other sources.

Pete Ballios was recognized by county commissioners for 37.5 years of service to Washtenaw County. He retired as finance director at the end of 2009. To his right is his wife, Theanne Ballios. Commissioner Jeff Irwin said he appreciated the fact that Ballios was someone who could enjoy the "fun moments."

A memo dated Feb. 12, 2010 from the state Department of Education describes general plans to disperse the state library’s extensive collection. Parker noted that while the memo claims the state will support continued services, such as the popular Michigan eLibrary, there’s nothing that guarantees funding – and “without that, those resources are gone,” she said.

As part of an effort last year to balance the state’s budget,  Gov. Jennifer Granholm issued executive orders that abolished the Michigan Department of History, Arts and Libraries, of which the Library of Michigan is a part. The Library of Michigan was transferred to the state Department of Education, and that department was charged with downsizing operations. [See executive orders 2009-36 and 2009-43]

Many people fought hard against this move, Parker said. She praised the AADL board for taking a stand last year, characterizing the move as bold. The board unanimously passed a resolution in September of 2009 urging the state legislature to keep the Library of Michigan’s services and collections whole. The resolution also supported a $10 million level of funding for libraries – an amount needed to ensure matching federal funds – and asked the legislature to guarantee line-item funding for the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. [.pdf file of board resolution]

In addition, the board had endorsed Parker’s earlier efforts to lobby for support of the state library. In an Aug. 28, 2009 post on her director’s blog, Parker laid out the implications for the proposed changes. An excerpt:

It is not clear how abolishing the department dedicated to promoting Michigan history and the arts, and supporting all libraries in Michigan will result in significant savings; the Governor has indicated that there is an unfunded plan to move the collections to repurpose the State Library building. Library services, when separated or isolated from a larger system, and placed in a bureaucratic environment, will wither.

How will this proposed plan affect you? The State Library administers the services of the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. AADL is a sub-regional service provider and has been since February of this year. The plan as proposed moves the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped from the Library of Michigan to the Commission for the Blind. It is not clear if any funding will follow the move, and the Commission is facing the same cuts as all other state departments and agencies. If services from the Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped statewide are to remain stable and funded, the Governor, and our legislators, should be made aware that the proposed move is a threat to its existence.

The Library of Michigan also administers the group purchasing of databases that are made available to all libraries statewide for reduced costs. Any library cardholder or Michigan citizen with a valid driver’s license can access those databases from anywhere in the world. If the resources of the Library of Michigan are dispersed or eliminated, and if the State Aid to Libraries allocation is reduced, then access to these databases will disappear. Only the larger, most affluent communities will be able to consider locally funding these resources. Even at AADL, continuance of the currently available set of resources will not be possible.

In a follow-up post after Granholm amended the original executive order to retain the Library of Michigan by name, Parker thanks the governor and state legislators who had advocated for the library, but noted that funding remained an issue.

For example, the Feb. 12, 2010 memo states that the Library of Michigan will continue to administer the Michigan eLibrary, known as MeLCat, but it’s unclear whether there will be funding for that popular service. The statewide catalog system allows member libraries throughout Michigan, including AADL, to share materials. The service is primarily federally funded, but requires matching funds from the state – if the legislature cuts that funding, then the federal money can’t be tapped. AADL is both the largest MeLCat lender and largest borrower, with over 70,000 items going in and out annually.

Even though MeLCat and other the Library of Michigan services are supposed to continue, many of the physical collections will be dispersed. The Feb. 12, 2010 memo states that the Department of Education will work to identify “agencies or organizations within Michigan but outside of state government” to take over the genealogy collection and services, as well as the library’s regional federal depository program and federal documents collection. The library’s main general collection, Dewey collection and reference collections will be offered to other libraries in the state, according to the memo.

But there are few public libraries that have sufficient financial and staff resources to absorb these collections in their entirety, Parker said. The Ann Arbor library system could not take the collections, she said. Accessibility is also an issue – depending on which organization takes a particular collection or piece of a collection, the public might not be granted the kind of access they’ve had at the state library.

“This is really terrible,” Parker said about the changes, telling the board that she felt “punched.” She said it seems clear that the building in Lansing that housed the Library of Michigan collections “is wanted for some other purpose.”

Parker noted that libraries nationwide and across Michigan are struggling, citing specifically the recent news that the library system in Warren, Michigan, expects to close some of its branches. Though the Ann Arbor library is supported by a millage, Parker said that many rural libraries in Michigan rely on state funding to operate.

Board member Ed Surovell noted that he’s a trustee of the Library of Michigan Foundation, and that they now find themselves “a foundation without a purpose.” He said he shared the view that without the state library collections, “the rest will fall.”

Rebecca Head, AADL board president, echoed those concerns: “Unfortunately, I feel the worst is yet to come.”

Parker said she’s been asked if she’d be willing to testify before the state legislative appropriations committee, regarding funding for the Library of Michigan. She told the board she would testify, if called upon. If there’s a loss of state library services, she said, “our patrons will feel that directly.”

Strategic Planning Work Session

Monday’s board meeting was brief, but the group will reconvene on Thursday for a working session focused on strategic planning. It’s a continuation of a retreat the board held in September 2009. [See Chronicle coverage: "New Downtown Library? If, When and Where"]

At the board’s November 2009 meeting, board president Rebecca Head said that the development of strategic initiatives has focused on four areas: 1) the need for more space – and larger venues – in which to hold events, 2) the shift from print to non-print resources, and how to handle that transition, 3) how best to communicate with the public, and 4) how to make library accessible to variety of people in community.

Since then, library managers have been gathering input from staff to develop goals aimed at implementing the broader initiatives. At Thursday’s working session, which is open to the public, the board will review a draft of the strategic plan. The meeting will be facilitated by Sandra Greenstone, who also led the September 2009 retreat.

A final plan is expected to be brought to the board for a vote at their March 15 meeting.

Other Items

During Monday’s meeting, board president Rebecca Head noted that the agreement between the AADL board and the Friends of the Ann Arbor District Library ends on May 19. The agreement can be renewed for a year at a time, with board approval. Head asked that the liaison committee, chaired by Margaret Leary, meet with representatives from the FAADL to talk about whether the agreement needs to be altered.

Head also noted that because of a recent change in the board’s election cycle, the board’s bylaws need to be revised to reflect the changes. She asked that the policy committee, led by Jan Barney Newman, make recommendations for the board to vote on at a future meeting.

Also related to the policy committee, AADL director Josie Parker said that the library staff will be working with its legal counsel and the committee to develop whistleblower and conflict-of-interest policies for AADL staff. These policies are part of new requirements by the IRS, Parker said, and will be brought to the board for approval.

During her director’s report, Parker noted the retirement of Judy Calhoun, who has worked at the library for 40 years. She thanked Calhoun for her service, and described her departure as a loss for the library.

Parker also briefed the board on what happens to materials that are taken out of circulation. Much of it goes to the Friends of the Ann Arbor District Library, which sells the material to raise funds for AADL. But books and other materials are also distributed to local schools, community centers, jails, and homeless shelters, she said. As an example, last weekend the Bryant Community Center held a book fair, with materials donated by the library.

Present: Rebecca Head, Margaret Leary, Jan Barney Newman, Prue Rosenthal, Carola Stearns, Ed Surovell. Also: Josie Parker, AADL director.

Absent: Barbara Murphy.

Next meetings: The library board will hold a working session for strategic planning on Thursday, Feb. 18, 2010, beginning at 7 p.m. in conference room A, on the fourth floor of the AADL downtown building, 343 S. Fifth Ave. Regular board meetings are typically held on the third Monday of the month, with the public portion of the meeting starting at 7 p.m. in the library’s fourth floor board room, 343 S. Fifth Ave. The board’s next regular meeting is on Monday, March 15, 2010. [confirm date]

Michigan Student Assembly president Abhishek Mahanti, far left, points to Royster Harper, UM's vice president for student affairs. MSA leaders distributed "Go Blue – Beat OSU" T-shirts to UM regents and administrators at the Nov. 19 regents meeting. The T-shirts were not effective in ensuring a Michigan victory on Saturday. (Photo by the writer.)

University of Michigan Board of Regents (Nov. 19, 2009): Some media outlets that attended the Nov. 19 regents meeting didn’t get what they came for – namely, comments from UM president Mary Sue Coleman regarding the ongoing NCAA investigation of the university’s football program.

What they heard instead was a report on a five-year initiative to use UM’s physical space more efficiently, including its classrooms and labs. The meeting also included a brief report on the outlook for state funding, discussion of renovations to house the Museum of Zoology’s extensive specimen collection, a question about the band Jazz Pie Music.

President’s Opening Remarks

UM president Mary Sue Coleman typically begins each meeting of the board of regents with remarks highlighting university achievements over the past month. This month, she applauded UM chemistry professor Brian Coppola for being named 2009 U.S. Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. “This is a big deal,” she said, adding that it speaks volumes for the quality of UM undergraduate education. She also cited the fact that seven UM faculty and 28 students were awarded Fulbrights for 2009-10, leading the nation in a tie – with Michigan State University, she said, smiling.

Moving on, Coleman described going to the Ann Arbor office of Google recently, and asking how many of the employees there were UM graduates. About 80% raised their hand, she said. Many of them had left the state but returned for the job at Google – an example of how Google is enticing college grads to return to Michigan, she said.

Coleman also noted that UM was recently honored by the Ann Arbor Business Review’s Deals of the Year for its purchase of the former Pfizer research campus, now known as the North Campus Research Complex. The NCRC was recognized for its potential as a catalyst for innovation within the state, she said.

Coleman’s remarks were perhaps most notable for what she didn’t address – recent news that UM athletic director Bill Martin planned to retire next year, an ongoing NCAA investigation into UM’s football program, and results of a UM internal audit earlier in the week that revealed a lapse in mandatory reporting on the amount of hours that football players spend in practice. Her silence on that front actually resulted in a few news articles – several members of the media had attended the meeting specifically to report that issue.

Regent and board chair Andy Richner did address the topic, briefly, following Coleman’s opening remarks. After praising Coleman for her recent inclusion by Time magazine as one of the nation’s top 10 college presidents, Richner said that obviously the NCAA investigation had resulted in a lot of media interest and concern. He said that regents had been well-informed about the status of the investigation, but that they’d been advised by counsel not to comment at this time.

So they didn’t.

Space Utilization Plan

UM Provost Teresa Sullivan introduced a presentation about the university’s space utilization initiative by describing it as a five-year plan aimed at using current buildings most effectively. The project focuses only on general fund space – that is, buildings that are paid for out of the university’s taxpayer-supported general fund budget. That excludes athletics, housing, the health system and parking, she said.

Frances Mueller, the initiative’s project manager, gave a formal presentation, noting that the effort began in 2007 as part of a broader cost-containment effort. The goal is to limit the need for future expansion, make sure that the university’s best spaces are being fully used, and contribute to UM’s energy efficiency efforts.

The approach is to encourage a greater sharing of space, converting space that’s been under-utilized, and changing the culture on campus. In the past, Mueller said, space was considered a free good. Some people believed that once they were allotted space, it was theirs indefinitely. But in fact, it’s an institutional resource, she said, and should be used for the university’s highest-priority needs.

As part of the initiative, the university is developing processes and policies for space utilization. For example, units that request major expansion projects are required to provide analysis of their current space usage. Standard reporting procedures have been put in place to track the use of classrooms and research labs, as well as energy usage within buildings.

Mueller said the university has developed time utilization reports, which provide a detailed look at usage by day and by hour. The goal is to reach 70% time utilization, and 65% seat utilization – that is, to have a classroom occupied 70% of the time, at 65% occupancy within the room.

Another goal: By the fall of 2010, all general-purpose classrooms campus-wide will be shared and made available for scheduling between the hours of 8 a.m. and noon. Historically, Mueller said, individual academic units had control over their classroom space. The project is also looking at shared computing space as well as facilities for animals used in research, which might be consolidated, she said. Consolidation would free up space to be used for other purposes.

The university is also looking at ways to convert existing space into new uses. Mueller cited the examples of converting classrooms in the Dennison building on East University into office space, and renovating the former University Stores warehouse on Varsity Drive into storage space for the Museum of Zoology collection – a project discussed later in the meeting. The goal is to decrease lease costs by over $1 million and avoid construction costs in the tens of millions, she said.

Mueller said that their efforts have been able to slow the university’s average annual growth rate, as measured by square footage of general fund space. From 2000 to 2007, that rate was 1.84% – it has since slowed to 0.45%, she said. Mueller estimates that the university is saving $185 million in one-time construction costs and $7.5 million in annual operating costs, because of the slower growth rate.

Overall, Mueller said that the past two and a half years have been laying the foundation. “Those things are just starting to show results now,” she said.

Regent Libby Maynard asked what kind of pushback Mueller had received from faculty. “You don’t have to name names,” she joked. Mueller said that when she began this job, she held a lot of focus groups and quickly realized that “space is an incredibly sensitive topic” – a remark that drew laughs from regents and administrators. She said she’s worked hard to build relationships, and consults with a faculty advisory group. “They may not always like what we’re doing, but I think they understand it.”

Several regents asked questions about space utilization during off-peak hours, like evenings and weekends. Regent Larry Deitch asked Sullivan, “What happened to the 8 o’clock class?” Sullivan said that when deans approach her with requests for more space, they know she’ll respond by saying there’s lots of space available before 10 in the morning or on Fridays. As they build a database for central scheduling, it will be easier to figure out what space is available, and when, she said. For example, the use of space in the evening will likely increase because there’s high demand from student groups, but now it’s difficult to find out what rooms are open. With a central database, “that’ll be easy,” Sullivan said.

Report from Lansing

Cynthia Wilbanks, UM’s vice president for government relations, gave a brief report on state funding for higher education, in the context of other financial challenges that legislators in Lansing are confronting. Since her last report, she said, Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed the higher education budget for the current fiscal year, which allots $316 million for UM’s general fund, plus an additional $8.7 million in one-time federal stimulus funding.

State revenues continue to decline, Wilbanks said – that’s been the case for months. In addition, federal stimulus funding that at one point was expected to support higher educations funding through fiscal 2011 is now almost depleted, and either won’t be available at all or will be significantly lower than anticipated. To be eligible for federal stimulus dollars earmarked for higher education, a state must fund its higher education budget at a level at or above its funding in 2005-06 – a so-called “maintenance of effort” level. Wilbanks said it’s possible that Michigan will ask for a maintenance-of-effort waiver from the feds, meaning that funding for higher education could go below its 2005-06 level.

Wilbanks reported that departments within the state have been asked to cut their budgets by double-digit percentages. All of these are factors to consider as the university begins its planning for fiscal 2011, she said.

MSA President: T-Shirt, Anyone?

Abhishek Mahanti, president of the Michigan Student Assembly, began his monthly report to regents by talking about the funding situation in Lansing and the recent cuts to the Michigan Promise Scholarship. He said the vision in a quote by James B. Angell, UM’s longest-serving president – that the university’s mission is to provide “an uncommon education for the common man” – is slipping away. The MSA has been lobbying lawmakers, Mahanti said, and he thanked administrators for their support of a video project that allows students to record what it means to be a Promise scholar.

Mahanti noted that he was wearing a T-shirt rather than his usual suit and tie, “but I’m still dressed appropriately.” The shirts – with a “Go Blue! Beat OSU!” logo – were part of MSA’s warm-up to the football game on Saturday, and there were extra T-shirts for everyone who wanted one, he said. Part of the week’s festivities included a pizza-eating contest, and MSA vice president Mike Rorro – who also attended the regents meeting, had eaten six slices in a minute, Mahanti reported. “Was it Little Caesar’s?” joked regent Denise Ilitch, whose family owns that company. “No – don’t tell me!”

Construction, Renovation Projects

Jeff Hausman, director of the Detroit office of the architecture firm SmithGroup, gave an overview of the schematic design for renovations at a Varsity Drive warehouse – the new home for about 6 million specimens currently housed at the Alexander Ruthven Museums Building on central campus. That’s the majority of the “wet” collection – specimens stored in glass jars filled with highly combustible ethyl alcohol – from UM’s Museum of Zoology.

The $17.6 million project, originally approved by regents in late 2008, includes renovating about 46,000 square feet at the Varsity Drive building. The site previously was a warehouse for University Stores – the zoology collection will take up only a portion of the space, and will be self-contained with its own climate controls and fire protection system. The same building also houses the UM Herbarium, which has its own climate control needs.

Hausman told regents that the renovations will include a new road for better fire-service access to the collection, as well as areas inside the building for students and faculty to conduct research. The project also includes renovations to about 6,800 square feet in the Ruthven building, said Tim Slottow, UM’s chief financial officer. The project is expected to be finished in the summer of 2011.

The board approved the schematic design for this project. They also voted to approve several other projects, totaling an additional $13.8 million:

• $6.3 million to renovate 61,000 gross square feet on seven floors of the Wolverine Tower office building, located at South State and Eisenhower. The project will be completed in the fall of 2011. Slottow warned regents that this renovation only covered a portion of the 225,000-square-foot, 11-story building – he said he’d likely be back in the future for additional work. About 700 university employees from five different units – including the department that Slottow supervises – work in the building.
• $3.8 million for the 2010 information technology maintenance and replacement program. The project would include upgrading the data network between campus buildings as well as upgrades to the campus wireless network.
• $2.2 million to renovate four existing labs for the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department and the Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology Department, to be completed in the fall of 2010. The renovations would cover the first four floors of the Kraus building on North University Avenue, near the intersection with Thayer Street.
• $1.5 million to replace a steam absorption chiller in the chemistry building, also located on North University Avenue. The university estimates the new equipment will result in $300,000 in utility savings each year.

How Is a Jazz Band a Conflict of Interest?

State law requires that regents vote on potential conflict-of-interest disclosures related to university staff, faculty or students. Often, the items involve technology licensing agreements or leases. For example, UM athletic director Bill Martin is also owner of First Martin Corp., which owns office space that the university leases. These leases are required to come before the board for a vote.

In general, conflict-of-interest items are approved without comment, though on occasion regents will recuse themselves from voting if they have a connection with one of the parties involved. At their Nov. 19 meeting, however, regent Andrea Fischer Newman raised a question about one of the items. She wasn’t concerned about the conflict of interest – rather, she wanted to know why this particular item required regental approval. The item was a $900 payment to Jazz Pie Music.

Jazz Pie Music is a band that includes the musicians Roderick McDonald, Christopher Smith and James Dapogny – McDonald and Smith are also UM employees, and Dapogny is a professor emeritus. The UM Law School’s Office of Development and Alumni Relations wants to hire the band for a reunion tailgate party it’s holding. When a university employee stands to benefit from a contract that the university executes with an outside entity, these kinds of disclosures and approvals are required.

There is no dollar threshold that triggers the need for a conflict-of-interest vote, Tim Slottow, UM’s chief financial officer, told Newman. It’s the law. Regent Kathy White, an attorney and law professor at Wayne State University, agreed. “I just don’t think we have any discretion in this matter.”

The Jazz Pie Music item was unanimously approved, along with three additional conflict-of-interest disclosures. Regent Andy Richner recused himself from one of those items – a tech transfer agreement between the university and TruEnamel LLC, which is owned by Brian Clarkson, a UM professor of dentistry.

Public Commentary

Douglas Smith was the only person to speak to regents during the time set aside for public commentary. He had previously spoken at the regents’ Sept 17, 2009 meeting concerning an incident with the UM Department of Public Safety. This month his comments also were related to DPS. From the Sept. 17 Chronicle coverage of his remarks:

Douglas Smith, a UM alumnus, spoke about the treatment of Dr. Andrei Borisov, whom Smith described as a whistleblower who was beaten by campus police then arrested for assaulting police officers. Smith said Borisov had been a research assistant professor in the university’s pediatrics department when a tenured faculty member took control of – and credit for – some of his work. Smith described a chain of events that he said led to several UM administrators conspiring to fire Borisov and prevent him from getting other jobs at the university. At one point, DPS officers escorted Borisov to his office to retrieve his personal property, Smith said, and ended up arguing with him about the contents of a briefcase, ultimately pushing him against a wall and charging him with trespassing. Smith said that Borisov discussed this incident with Stephen Hipkiss, chair of the DPS Oversight Committee, but that Hipkiss discouraged Borisov from filing a complaint against the officers. This matter should be investigated, Smith said.

At the Nov. 19 meeting, Smith told regents that he was concerned about how the trespass warning is being used by campus police, particularly in how it’s being applied to students and faculty. The process, if abused, “can ruin careers and crush dreams,” he said. He asked regents to have the DPS oversight committee review the policies regarding the use of the trespass warning.

Following his comments, regent Denise Ilitch asked Smith how frequently trespass warnings are issued. Smith says that when it occurs, it’s devastating. The university needs to balance the individual’s rights with the safety concerns of the community. He said you don’t need to file a written complaint against a person – you just have to contact DPS. There’s no process by which to determine whether an individual is truly dangerous, he said.

Present: Mary Sue Coleman (ex officio), Julia Darlow (via phone), Larry Deitch, Denise Ilitch, Olivia Maynard, Andrea Fischer Newman, Andy Richner, Martin Taylor, Kathy White

Next board meeting: Thursday, Dec. 17 at 3 p.m. in the Fleming Administration Building, 503 Thompson St., Ann Arbor. [confirm date]

University of Michigan president Mary Sue Coleman chaired the Nov. 19 meeting of the UM Board of Regents despite the yellow cast on her left arm. In the foreground is regent Andrea Fischer Newman. (Photo by the writer.)

At Wednesday’s administrative briefing of the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners, county administrator Bob Guenzel said that staff had been making preparations to close in light of possible cuts by Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who had indicated she might veto MSU Extension funding in a budget bill passed by state legislators.

But on Friday morning, Granholm signed the budget – and spared MSU Extension funding.

“It’s been an interesting week,” Nancy Thelen, director of the Washtenaw MSU Extension, told The Chronicle Friday morning in a phone interview.

Funding Sources: A Complex Mix

The local extension receives funding from several sources, including Washtenaw County. For the proposed 2010 budget, the county has allocated $639,155 for Washtenaw’s MSU Extension. Every dollar of county funding, Thelen said, leverages another $1.89 from MSU, federal sources and grants. “We’re such an intertwined web,” she said, further describing the funding sources as legs on a stool. “Pull out one of those legs, and you’re gone.”

Twelve of the 18 people on staff locally are MSU employees, while six are employed by the county, primarily in office support positions. However, a portion of the salaries and benefits for MSU employees is paid for by the county.

Though state-level cuts threatened to close the entire program this week, local funding has also been in question in recent months, as the county struggled to deal with a projected $30 million deficit over the next two years. At one point, the county had considered cutting its extension funding completely.

At several meetings of the county’s Board of Commissioners earlier this year, residents who’ve used the MSU Extension programs turned up to speak in support of continued county funding. [See Chronicle coverage: "4-H Fans, Others Lobby County for Funds"] In 2008, about 70,000 county residents used the extension’s programs and services, Thelen said. Programs include 4-H, master gardening, foreclosure prevention counseling, support to local farmers, and educational programs related to food, nutrition, youth and families.

The proposed county budget – which commissioners are expected to vote on in November – maintains funding for the extension. However, like other agencies and nonprofits that receive county funding, the MSU Extension will see a 20% drop in general fund support in 2010, from $813,402 this year. Thelen said they’ll eliminate one job that’s currently vacant – a community development educator – as well as one temporary employee.

The county also plans to shift the extension’s funding source from the general fund to a new millage – though commissioners haven’t yet approved it. Known as Act 88, the millage does not require voter approval and would raise about $600,000 annually for economic development and agricultural-related programs. Of that, MSU Extension programs would receive about $100,000. [See Chronicle coverage: "Board Tables Economic Development Tax"]

Meanwhile, the local extension won’t be affected by cuts at the state level at this point. Funding for the overall MSU Extension program was cut by 44% in the budget bill signed by Granholm, but those cuts will be offset by federal stimulus funding, according to Laura Probyn, a spokesperson for the statewide extension program.

The Vandenberg Room at the Michigan League was packed for a state legislative hearing on funding for higher education.

The three presidents of institutions in Michigan’s University Research Corridor – backed by students and economic development leaders from each region – testified at a state Senate Higher Education Subcommittee hearing on Friday held in Ann Arbor, making a plea for additional state funding. But while legislators at the hearing acknowledged the importance of higher education, they also gave a bleak outlook for Michigan’s financial health, with one senator describing state revenues as “almost in a freefall.”

State Sen. Jim Barcia, a Democrat from Bay City, told the 50 or so people gathered at the Michigan League that a revenue estimate released earlier in the day was “worse news than anticipated.” The Senate Fiscal Agency estimated that revenues could be $2.1 billion lower than projected for the coming fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1. Even in the current fiscal year, the state faces a $1.3 billion deficit that has prompted another round of cuts. Despite that, Barcia said the students who testified on Friday – including a recent University of Michigan graduate who has launched a new company – gave him reason for optimism.

Following comments from legislators, including Ann Arbor’s state Sen. Liz Brater, the hearing began with testimony from UM president Mary Sue Coleman. [.pdf file of Coleman's opening and closing remarks] Mentioning initiatives at Michigan State University and Wayne State University (the two other institutions in the University Research Corridor), Coleman then described UM’s purchase of the former Pfizer research campus as an example of the university’s contribution to the local economy. The site will eventually include an incubator for the private sector and is expected to add nearly 3,000 jobs to the area over the next 10 years, she said.

State Sen. Liz Brater (D-Ann Arbor) is a member of the Senate Higher Education Subcommittee and attended Friday's hearing in Ann Arbor.

“As with many of our respective projects, not only will we broaden our contributions as a research university, we also will stimulate new business in region,” Coleman said. “We believe the two objectives go hand-in-hand.”

Testimony from MSU president Lou Anna Simon and Jay Noren, president of Wayne State, highlighted contributions that their institutions make to the state’s economy as well. Those remarks were followed by testimony from leaders of economic development agencies that work closely with the three universities: David Hollister, president of Prima Civitas in Lansing; Randal Charlton, executive director of TechTown in Detroit; and Mike Finney, CEO of Ann Arbor SPARK.

Finney recalled the history of his organization, which was founded in part with the backing of UM. He read an excerpt from an April 16 Detroit Free Press article, which described Ann Arbor as a hub for startups and venture capital, and which reported that UM and SPARK were the two most-cited reasons that entrepreneurs located in Ann Arbor.

Finney’s comments echoed remarks he’d made at a May 11 Partnership for an Innovation Economy forum hosted by UM. He said that the relationship between UM and SPARK is critical in four ways: 1) providing access to talent, 2) helping create and bolster entrepreneurial ventures, 3) helping work with existing businesses, and 4) assisting with business transformation, specifically in transitioning from an economy dominated by auto manufacturing to one that’s fostering emerging industries. He concluded by saying that you couldn’t separate the economic development agencies from the universities they work with and get the same same results. He urged legislators to support funding for higher education, and in particular for the University Research Corridor institutions.

Jeff LeBrun, a recent UM graduate, co-founded a company that's developing clean energy technology.

Three students, one from each of the URC universities, testified as well. Jeff LeBrun recently graduated from UM’s Erb Institute with an MBA and graduate degree from the School of Natural Resources & Environment. He described how a company he co-founded, Algal Scientific, recently won the Clean Energy Prize, a $65,000 award from DTE Energy to encourage the commercialization of clean energy technologies. Their company is developing treatments for municipal and industrial wastewater, with a byproduct that can be used for biofuels.

LeBrun said he didn’t come to UM intending to be an entrepreneur, but during his studies he encountered the kinds of resources and training that led him in that direction. He said he has his eye on the incubator site that UM plans to start in the former Pfizer campus. “That’d be a great place to set up shop,” he said.

The five senators at the hearing had questions and comments after the testimony. Sen. Bill Hardiman, a Republican from Kentwood, cited state revenues that were disappearing “almost in a freefall” and asked if online education was being considered as a way to curb capital outlays. UM’s Coleman told him that online education was not inexpensive, and that while all the universities have worked on ways to economize – and “gladly” take on economic development efforts – “none of this comes without cost,” she said. MSU’s Simon noted that Michigan is falling behind in building research lab space, and that’s an important capital outlay for the state.

In her remarks, Brater said that every dollar invested in higher education generates $25 in spinoff economic benefits. Noting that her spouse is a faculty member of UM’s English and theater departments, she said that investment in the arts and humanities also relates to economic development. She mentioned that John Warner, a pioneer in green chemistry, had recently spoken at the Ecology Center’s annual meeting, where he’d criticized science education for not teaching about environmental impact. She asked what the universities were doing in that regard.

UM president Mary Sue Coleman, center, listens to testimony given by university students at Friday's hearing. She is flanked by MSU president Lou Anna Simon and Wayne State president Jay Noren.

Coleman said that one of the Erb Institute’s principles was to look at the environmental impact of a product or building’s life cycle. That issue is coming to the fore across all disciplines, she said. MSU’s Simon quipped, “I’m always for green anything.”

Brater also asked for an update on how the URC is leveraging federal research dollars. Coleman said they’d be releasing their third annual report with details on that topic at the Mackinac Policy Conference later this month. (Coleman will be on a panel there, along with former UM regent David Brandon of Domino’s Pizza, titled “Changing the Environment in Michigan to Encourage Growth through Innovation.”)

Sen. Glenn Anderson, a Democrat from Westland, asked how universities were preparing for the inevitable likelihood of declining state support, at least over the next several years. He said that once federal stimulus funds coming into the state were used, Michigan would be in an even worse situation financially.

Simon said that working collectively, as the URC institutions are doing, is one strategy. But she told legislators they need to ensure that the value of a degree appreciates over time, and that higher education in the state is a magnet. “If we can’t do that, the numbers will only get worse,” she said. The universities are going through internal budget reductions, while maintaining a strong commitment to financial aid. Quality of and access to education are key, she said, as is research to drive the future of Michigan.

Coleman said there’s a correlation between the education of the population and the prosperity of the state. She told lawmakers that the state government needs to grapple to find a revenue model for the 21st century, and that she didn’t envy their jobs. She said the universities must have both quality and access, and noted that “it costs a lot to do what we do.”

Our coverage ended as the hearing took a break. Later in the day, the committee was to hear testimony from UM-Dearborn executives and Mike Boulus, executive director of the Presidents Council, a group representing the state’s 15 public universities.